Changing the oil in the Lada Largus gearbox. Manual transmission JH3, JR5, 21809

Changing the oil in the Lada Largus gearbox is an important procedure on which the service life of the gearbox of a domestic station wagon depends.

From the very moment of its release and the start of sales, the Lada Largus station wagon has established itself as an excellent and unpretentious “workhorse”. But, despite its unpretentiousness, Lada Largus requires timely maintenance. Changing the oil in a Lada Largus box is part of the full maintenance of this car, which should be taken as seriously as changing engine oil.

Oil change interval for Lada Largus gearbox

The Lada Largus station wagon went on sale back in 2012. Initially, the manufacturer did not indicate any information on the period for changing the oil in a manual transmission. Arguing this is that the oil is designed for the entire service life of the car and does not require replacement.

In 2014, the maintenance regulations changed, and AvtoVAZ added an item for changing transmission oil in the Lada Largus manual transmission - after 140,000 km. There is no time frame for replacement, only replacement after a certain mileage.

140 thousand kilometers are not covered by the dealer’s warranty, so replacing the transmission oil in the Lada Largus box is entirely the responsibility of the owner.

Although experienced car owners change the oil in the gearbox much earlier - after 60-70 thousand kilometers or after 48 months. In fact, the replacement costs are not so high that it would be worth saving on this to the detriment of the box.

Let's consider other suitable oils for Lada Largus:

1. Castrol Syntrans Transaxle 75W-90 is a synthetic oil, the best analogue among competitors. In terms of quality and resistance to temperatures, this oil can be compared with the original. After filling with such oil, the gearbox will engage more smoothly and clearly. Owners also note the absence of a crunch when engaging reverse.
2. Motul Gear 300 75 W90 is another synthetic oil that gives the gearbox maximum operating efficiency. The properties of this oil have a positive effect on the smoothness and clarity of gear shifting. Crunching and noise are also eliminated
3. Shell Getriebeoil EP 75W90 GL4 is frankly not the most suitable oil for Lada Largus. This lubricant is a clear example of the fact that expensive oil is not always the best. There is no doubt about the quality of Shell products, but this product has incompatible parameters with the Lada Largus gearbox, or is simply not adapted for the Russian climate. Largus owners who have tried this oil often complain about hum, noise, vibration and crunching of the synchronizers.

What kind of oil should I fill in the Lada Largus gearbox?

Mechanical gearboxes of Lada Largus are filled with API GL-4 class gear oil with a viscosity of 75W80. At the same time, many Largus owners fill in 75W85 or 75W90 oil if 75W80 oil is not on sale. The gearbox is not very picky about the quality of the working fluid, so it “digests” these oils. However, I recommend, whenever possible, using exactly what the manufacturer recommends.

From the factory, the Lada Largus gearbox is filled with elf TRANSELF NFJ 75W-80 transmission oil, which is officially approved by Renault and AvtoVAZ.

Oil selection

On the Lada Largus, gearboxes are installed from the factory with a suitable compound poured into them. The gearboxes of these cars initially operate on gear oil, which is marked 75 W80. With the selection of engine oil, everything is a little different, since the number of valves on the power unit is taken into account. According to the factory service manual for Lada Largus vehicles, the level and condition of the lubricating fluid in the gearbox is checked as necessary, but at least once every 15,000 kilometers. At the factory, the boxes are filled with Tranself TRJ oil produced by Elf. If fluid is being added, only this should be used.

When changing the oil completely, the old lubricant must be drained and the box is filled with new lubricant that corresponds to the markings required by the factory.

Changing the oil in manual transmission Lada Largus

The procedure for changing the oil in a Lada Largus manual transmission is not a technically difficult job, so it can be easily done independently in a garage.

This instruction is suitable for all types of gearboxes that were installed on the Lada Largus (Van, Station wagon, Cross). These are Renault JH3 and JR5, as well as AvtoVAZ 21809.

Please note that before replacing the transmission fluid, it is necessary to warm up the gearbox to operating temperature - heated oil drains faster and better than cold oil.

1. We drive the car into the inspection hole and remove the crankcase protection, if it is installed. 2. Take the waste container and unscrew the drain plug with an 8″ square wrench. 3. We unscrew the filler plug (aka the control plug) by hand so that the oil flows faster due to air entering the gearbox.

4. After the oil has stopped dripping from the box, you need to screw the drain plug back into place. Before doing this, install a new drain plug gasket. This is a copper washer, which has the article number 77 03 062 062. It looks like this:

In fact, this is a disposable part that requires replacement after unscrewing the plug. But in fact, these plugs can be used 2-3 times if you do not overtighten the plug.

5. Now we need to pour fresh oil into the box. We will do this through the control hole of the filler plug. You can use a special syringe, and you can use a thin tube and funnel, first bringing it up under the hood. The oil volume in the Lada Largus gearbox is not large - about 3 liters, so you can fill it as convenient.

6. We check the oil using the control plug - when the oil starts to flow out, we immediately stop filling. We screw the control plug into place.

At this point, the oil change in the manual transmission can be considered complete. If you removed the engine and gearbox protection, do not forget to reinstall it.

Checking the level and topping up

Before changing or adding lubricant, you should check the oil level in the box. This is not as difficult to do as many may think. If you have minimal experience and skills, you can easily cope with the task with your own hands. In the case of a Lada Largus car, for work you will need to take:

• a syringe that will be used to add the missing liquid;
• rags;
• an empty container for several liters;
• key square for 8;
• oil similar to what is in the box.

Special syringes are used, available in auto parts stores. Do not confuse them with medical syringes, which are not suitable for such purposes. Special topping and filling tools have a hose that allows easy access to the filler neck. When everything is ready, you can begin to assess the amount of oil in the box and add the missing amount of lubricating fluid to the Largus gearbox.

The work is carried out according to the following algorithm of actions:

1. Remove the engine protection. People often call it the central mudguard. The essence does not change from the name.
2. Find the filler plug, which can often be easily unscrewed with a square wrench.

3. Before opening the cap, place an empty prepared container under it to avoid spilled puddles of oil.

4. According to the standards, the level should be located slightly below the filler hole. If it is less, then you will need to add the missing amount of gear lubricant.
5. A syringe pre-filled with oil is inserted into the filler neck. Gradually pour in the viscous liquid.

6. At some point, lubricant will begin to flow through the hole. Wait until it stops running completely, then wipe everything with a rag and screw the plug back into place.
7. During the process of checking and topping up, pay attention to the condition of the rubber O-ring on the plug.

   
   If the machine is used for a long time and actively, the ring may wear out. It is better to replace it immediately, since a worn seal will break the seal and the oil will gradually leak out. Such a ring costs about 5 - 10 rubles, so serious expenses for such repairs will not be required.

If you did everything correctly, the oil is not leaking anywhere and the gearbox is functioning normally, then the transmission fluid level is sufficient and you can continue to operate your car.

Causes and signs of oil losing its properties

If the transmission fluid is darkened or black in color, this may indicate that the lubricant has undergone a chemical change as a result of severe contamination with wear products of the gearbox elements (gear shafts and synchronizers) or a violation of the tightness of the gearbox (moisture and dirt entering through the seals of the drives or input shaft ).

1. The smell of burnt oil in Lada Largus. May indicate insufficient lubrication levels due to leaks. Under heavy loads on the unit, cooling of the rubbing parts is not adequately ensured.
2. If shifting gears is difficult, you may hear some noise or hum at certain speeds or when idling. The lubricating properties of the transmission fluid are partially lost or the level in the gearbox housing is insufficient.
3. Increased wear of gearbox elements. Aggressive driving style and incorrect gear shifting.
4. Mileage over 60,000 km since previous replacement. It is at this interval that service stations recommend replacing the transmission fluid.

Step-by-step instruction

Changing the oil in the box is carried out on a well-warm-up car.

1. For access and convenience, we drive the car onto an overpass or inspection hole.
2. Apply the parking brake.
3. We turn on the transmission.
4. We go down into the inspection hole and remove the engine protection. Six 10mm bolts.

5. Unscrew the plastic filler plug by hand. Using a special four-sided wrench, remove the drain plug.
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6. Drain the oil into the prepared container. If there were no leaks, we get approximately 2.5-2.8 liters of waste. The full volume of 3.1 liters cannot be drained due to the design features of the upper row of gears.
7. We replace the sealing washer with a new copper or aluminum one.
8. We wipe the drain neck with a rag and screw the clean plug back on. Tighten with a force of 30 Hm. We use a torque wrench. If there is no key, tighten the wrench tightly enough to avoid possible oil leaks. But not too much, so as not to spoil the edges and break the thread.
9. Using a syringe, fill in new transmission fluid through the filler hole. If you don’t have a syringe, take a hose with an outer diameter of no more than 16 mm and a funnel. Open the hood of the car and, through the top, insert the hose into the filler neck.

10. Fill with oil until grease flows out of the same hole. The filler hole is also a control hole. The lower level, which is the norm. Before tightening the filler plug, inspect the sealing rubber for integrity.

11. If necessary, to eliminate smudges, replace the rubber band or plug assembly with a new one. We start the car for a few minutes. Then we inspect the gearbox for oil leaks.
12. Reinstall the engine protection.
13. To carry out work on replacing the gearbox lubricant of a Lada Largus car, you can turn to professionals or do the work yourself.

Types of oil

Let's look at each type of oil separately:

• Mineral is the most affordable lubricant for gearboxes. Recommended only for high mileage, and only in extreme cases. It is highly undesirable to use such oil at low temperatures. The fact is that mineral oil is very thick and therefore freezes quickly. In the warm season, there are no special problems with mineral water, but it’s still better to choose a more worthy option for the Lada Largus
• Semi-synthetics are the best option, the golden mean between mineral water and expensive synthetics. This oil is obtained by mixing two oils. In this case, more mineral oil is used than synthetics. This explains the relative cheapness of the product. Semi-synthetic is also recommended for cars with high mileage, but for Lada Largus it can be filled at any mileage. The main thing is that the temperature outside the car is not too low
• Synthetic is the most fluid and expensive oil. This lubricant will never freeze, even in the coldest weather. It can be used both in summer and winter. Perhaps synthetic oil is the best option for modern cars such as Lada Largus.