Jeep TJ Manual Transmission Fluid Change *SMOOTH SHIFTING*

[@brenthenninger3866]

The Royal Purple made my 97 TJ shift better. Thanks

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

That’s awesome!

[@jeffskaggs5697]

I generally take the fill plug out first on anything like this. A lesson learned when I was changing front diff fluid on a Toyota onceZ. Drain plug came out fine, filler plug was torqued to 17,297 mile/tons. Ended up having to drop it and drill it out. No big deal, except a 30 minute job back a multi day affair that I wasn’t ready for!

[@jeffskaggs5697]

Haha, and there’s the nod to removing the filler plug first!

[@hhyperdd]

Sir, I appreciate your taking the time to go through the process step by step. Thank you.

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Your welcome!

[@theanswerisinthebackofyourhead]

​@@FreeAutoMechanicI have a 1994 jeep Wrangler that has never had the transmission fluid changed, shifting gears is a bit off. I was wondering if changed the transmission if it would mess it up or would it shift gears smoother and better.?

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

@@theanswerisinthebackofyourhead Shouldn't harm a Manual Transmission to change the fluid.

[@jeremyrader4056]

Big time helpful video. My 4.0 2000 wrangler manual took 2.4 qts.

[@timpeterson87]

nice. 98 4.0L here and thank you for chiming in

[@J0rg3cB1]

Boock says over 3 litters or the AX4.5

[@jbhk7977]

The 2.5 liter is not coupled to an AX-15 but an AX-5, also the AX-5 & AX-15 are fully synchronized. Looks you are running the later NV3550 transmission, the best Wrangler transmission in my opinion. I run the NV3550 for 21 years now (last 8 years on 35's) and it works flawlessly.

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Seems to shift much smoother now that we have changed the fluid. 33's here. Nice to hear such high regard for the NV3550. Thanks for watching!

[@user-cs1ne8gx9u]

Yup

[@briannurre8366]

Love your "high dollar creaper"! lol!

[@jdcooper9]

I have the exact same jeep, a 2001 green/khaki sahara 4.0 5spd. This was very helpful, thank you!

[@randallbaker9221]

I have a 2000 Jeep Wrangler Sport, 4.0L 6 cyl, 5-speed manual transmission. Bought it in 2010, and don't think it has ever had Transmission fluid OR Front/Rear differential fluids changed. It only has about 80k original miles on it and runs perfectly. Only had it in the sand once in North Carolina and had no problems with all tires aired down to about 10 psi. But now I am starting to do all the maintenance that I have neglected over the years. I have already replaced front disk pads, rotors, and calipers, and rear drum shoes, springs, etc, cleaning everything as I went with plenty of BrakeCleaner. Fixed the E-brake, and it works well now. I engineered a system to drain the fuel tank by jumpering the fuse box to allow the fuel pump to operate with the engine turned off, to empty out 2 year old gas, then ran SeaFoam and fresh gas through two whole tank-fulls to clean the fuel rail. I have replaced the battery, water pump, all belts, spark plugs, air filter, and the occasional plastic things that you always break on a 24 year vehicle when working on it.. lol. It has every option on it that Jeep made back in 2000, including A/C. It came with both a hard top and rag top, and spare doors. It has NO rust underneath anywhere. (I live in Virginia Beach, VA) However, now I want to do the fluid changes on both differentials and the transmission. My concern is in identifying the exact front and rear diffs to put the correct amount (and type) of gear oil in, and whether my 5-speed is Synchromesh or not. From reading most of the posts here, I believe I have the DANA 30 in the front, and probably the DANA 35 in the rear (Everything on this Jeep is original) But, how can I tell for sure? I will attach pictures if I can to show what I am looking at, and hope someone can verify my assumptions. I will add that I also have a 2011 Toyota Tundra Crewmax 4X4 and have done all of the differential and Xfer case fluid exchanges on it, so I am familiar (in general) with the basic procedures. I just want to know EXACTLY what kind of axles/differentials I have on this Jeep. All inputs will be welcomed.. Thanks in advance. Randy

[@dpommerenck]

Did you just input your VIN into the build sheet generator online that spits out your factory build sheet? That is best way to know what it shipped with. Then you have to make sure no one changed out the diffs before you owned it.

[@altonbritton881]

EXACTLY the video I needed to see! Thanks

[@DrPlasmaM]

Thank you, that is very helpful

[@theanswerisinthebackofyourhead]

I have a 94 Jeep Wrangler and have been driving it for 24 yrs and an ex amount of months. I just recently changed out the differential fluid, and the last time was 11 yrs ago but for a long time now, the synchronizers have gone out in my transmission. I can still drive it but I have to be very accurate with changing gears or it will grind, I was led to believe that I had to get a new transmission but kept putting it off, cause of other expenses. For yrs I have been putting it off. I I just ran across this video. And it says in the title smooth shifting. I think I will try this first before I buy a new transmission from this company out of Tallahassee FLA. I would be willing to bet that this could fix my shifting problem. I have never changed it out. I think I will do this soon, right now I am getting new carpet put in and when I get it back, this is going to be the first thing I do to it.

[@AZHunter1776]

Did changing the fluid fix your problems?

[@theanswerisinthebackofyourhead]

@AZHunter1776 no, not really. The synchronized are shot. I need a new transmission but it's still driveable and recently changed out the clutch master cylinder and slave cylinder and my clutch works much better.

[@ZenNiklaus]

When it refuses to stop shifting.. get a rebuilt then. ​@@theanswerisinthebackofyourhead

[@theanswerisinthebackofyourhead]

@ZenNiklaus changing out the fluid did not work, I will have to buy a new Transmission but at least there is fresh fluid in the Transmission and this vehicle is still on the road after driving it now for 25 yrs and 6 Mos.

[@ZenNiklaus]

@@theanswerisinthebackofyourhead that's what I'm saying. Grind it till it won't brotha!

[@Andrewsky347]

If you can't get the fill plug out you can always do this with the vehicle inverted.

[@611E11THST]

One suggestion: open the fill plug first. You don’t want to drain the fluid from the gear box and then find out you can’t get the fill plug open. Same thing goes for differentials when changing gear oil. Always open the fill plug first.

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Sounds about right.

[@jameshelton8095]

Cool video, love the all terrain creeper (lol) I have one that is supersized (grin). thank you for haring

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

lol, all terrain creeper!

[@MilitaryMobility]

Please tell me that flannel is still going strong! Great vid

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Still surviving! Covered in white overspray at the moment but I’m sure a good wash and it’ll be good for another week or two, lol. Thanks for watching!

[@Jay388]

How you liking the Synchromax ? I put it in my transfer case and it seems like it quietened it down a bit . Seems like good stuff. The HMX oil is awesome! 👍👍😎

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

The shifting is noticeably smoother after changing over the transmission fluid to ROYAL PURPLE SYNCHROMAX - amzn.to/3q7ez80

[@RedPaw715]

Thanx for the video! Since it has been over a year... Did you notice better shifting? Are you still happy with the purple product? Thnx!

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

For sure noticed a difference. Worth the work in my opinion. Still shifting well. Great product.

[@stevensmith1911]

For me, the penzoil synchromesh is smoother than the rp. Cheaper too.

[@geoferret]

I'm curious if a transmission flush is necessary? I have a 2001 TJ with 90,400 miles and some grinding gears on 1st and sometimes 2nd. Thoughts?

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

With grinding you may very well have some stuff floating around in there. Inspecting the fluid after it is drained should let you know if there are any metal contaminates or not. Couldn't hurt to change the fluid, run it 500 miles or more and change it again. I would not add anything other than Manual Transmission Fluid to the transmission. Any kind of "flush" chemical may be harmful to internal components and cause permanent damage.

[@steveschwartz6138]

That was a good video. Thanks man.

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Appreciate the kind words!

[@markroy2098]

Great video, very helpful, thanks. Personally I'd be wearing a latex glove when I pull that drain plug but hey ;) that's me. I didn't have a 17mm Allen (hex) driver socket to undo the plug, but I did have a short 17mm steel bolt laying about. So I locked two nuts against each other on the threaded end, and put a ring spanner (I think you guys call it a 'box wrench') on the inner nut and the 17mm bolt head in the 17mm plug hole. The inner nut can't come undone when you put weight on it because of the lock nut. Had a crack and the plug came out easily. I put it back in again with the spanner on the outer nut of this handmade tool and bingo, saved $20 on a hex socket :) plus whatever the garage (shop) would charge for the job.

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Some creative engineering for sure. Good you had the right size nuts/bolts lying around to use.

[@J0rg3cB1]

The only reason I watch this is because the fill plug on mine says Don’t remove. And wanted to doble check

[@spacemonkeyfive]

Great video! My manual says 4.2 pints. That’s a little over 2 quarts. Don’t know what’s up with that.

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Your, right, It is kinda confusing.

[@jedeckerd5969]

After running it for a while how did you end up liking the Royal purple???

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

For sure noticed a difference. Worth the work in my opinion. Still shifting well. Great product. One of the best improvements made by far. I still recommend switching over if you haven't done so already.

[@jedeckerd5969]

I’m doing my transfer case today with Castro atf+4 and I’m going with RP in the transmission . Gota show the old TJ some love … lol

[@masonprice4177]

My car is making a loud rattling noise and even after taking the fluid and changing it the noise is still there. Could it be some kind of bearing in the transmission?

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Anything is possible at this point. I'm not going to try and guess. Noises are almost impossible to diagnose without actually hearing them yourself. Here is a great article I wrote on how to approach a problem. Hope it helps guide you in the direction you need to go. www.freeautomechanic.com/auto-repair.html

[@masonprice4177]

@@FreeAutoMechanic thank you

[@pacog6932]

Bery good

[@mcgruff7355]

My NV 3550 out of a 2000 tj 4.0 sport took 2.5 qts

[@bobbysenterprises3220]

They are all syncromesh. I've seen ax5 ax15 and nv3550 all get chewed up synchros from using gl5 fluid. I used the fluid shown and it shifted great but after it gets hot it is very hard to get out of gear.

[@kellismith4329]

The royal purple is overpriced garbage, the best fluid I have found is the GM synchromesh

[@freddybird1632]

How often should this be changed and how do i know it needs changing?

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

According to Maintenance schedule the Manual transmission fluid drain and refill should be performed at every 37,500 miles.

[@Patriot3665]

Hey my friend, how do I know if I have an AX5 or an Ax15 transmission? I have a five speed manual mated to a 4.0 6 cylinder. Any help is much appreciated. :-)

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

There a re a couple of differences that will help you figure it out pretty quick. I'll list them below. And thanks for watching! 1) The shift pattern is different AX-5 has the reverse gear out to the right and THEN down AX-15 has reverse directly below 5th gear. 2) Fill Plug location AX-5 is on the passenger side AX-15 is on the drivers side

[@user-cs1ne8gx9u]

All AMC 4 cylinder 150/2.5 with a stick have the ax5. All the 6 cylinder AMC 258 and 4.0 with a stick have the ax15 which is a similar but bigger and better "stronger" transmission.

[@vigilantemotors]

Really depends on the year. 5-Spd AX-15 Manual (1997-1999) 5-Spd NV3550 Manual (2000-2004) 6-Spd NSG370 Manual (2005-2006)

[@Sykora171]

AX5 is for the 4 cylinder, you should have an AX15 if you have the 4.0L

[@vigilantemotors]

@@Sykora171 It depends on the year as well

[@ChildsPlayTJ]

Thank you

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Your welcome!

[@abisailmurillo124]

My clutch pedal bushing broke on me, I fixed it with a new one and it broke not even a mile down the road. After fixing it again it feels like 2nd gear is slipping. Could the bushing bring slightly lose causing slip? Maybe a new master cylinder? I'm lost

[@FreeAutoMechanic]

Tough to guess at this one without looking at it. Makes me wonder what is going on that would cause you to break two bushings. Interesting though. I do not think a bushing being loose would cause any gear to slip.

[@shirleyewing7304]

We like Amsoil. Nebraska winter

[@brandinsarazin]

Wrong ax5 came in the 2.5 and the ax-15 and the nv3550 came with the 4.0 TJ and XJ

[@brianandglendaharkin9457]

Gloves 🧤 oil is not good for your system as your skin is a complete organ . Stay safe . Nice TJ .

[@brianandglendaharkin9457]

👍🏻🇦🇺💯

[@walterdennis7023]

The four cylinder 2.5 is connected to an ax5 not ax15 the six-cylinder has the ax15