Hi all, I know that some treads are already discussing this subject, however I didn't find my answer on them... I have a 360 F1 from 2002, and I just checked the gearbox oil and the lvl is below minimum by a lot. The car just come out of annual check but the guys from Ferrari didn't checked it (this and many other things that I asked, they charged for but did not verify...). I couldn't find the Shell Donax TX that is on my Manual, so I called the Ferrari garage, and they sold me the Shell Spirax S4 ATF HDX. The mechanic there told me that it's what's they use today for this, however I do not fully believe them as the guy didn't even know how to check the oil level and wans't sure how I should refill it. Therefore I would like to know if it's safe to use this oil (which is synthetic). If any one know about this oil, it would be great! Thanks! Ogeff
Are you talking gearbox oil or the F1 fluid? The 2 oils you mention are auto trans fluids and possibly suitable (can't remember the exact one) for the F1 shift mechanism, but definitely not for the gearbox.
It's unfortunate, but the factory fluids are rarely available to consumers here in the USA today. I have no idea what your situation is in Europe. However, according to Shell: Based on synthetic technology base fluid, Spirax S4 ATF HDX is the ultimate performance automatic transmission fluid allowing extended drain intervals even under the most severe conditions. I would not think this is the appropriate fluid for our 360 transmissions which are manual with synchronizers but also share the fluid with the Limited Slip Differential (LSD). I personally chose the Red Line 75W90NS GL-5 GEAR OIL and am happy with it so far! https://www.redlineoil.com/75w90-ns-gl-5-gear-oil I don't know if Red Line is available there, but I am sure there are European equivalents, perhaps even superior.
The fluids suggested are for the f1 hydraulic system not the gearbox/transaxle itself. Depending on which you need, you may seriously want to find a new mechanic if they don’t know the difference.
The Shell product you mentioned is a direct replacement for the donax but that is for , as others mentioned for the F1 not the gearbox itself Please find out which is truly low and we can help Red is for F1 and yellow/brown is for gearbox Also let us know how you are measuring since the F1 dipstick is not accurate Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk
Hi guys, sorry for my late answer, and thank you all for commenting this post. To be honest, I don't know the difference between the F1 Fluid and the Gearbox... On the user manual it says "F1 Gearbox" oil, I checked it from the cap on the right when you open the engine bay (Point 5.12 in the user manual); however my cap seems slighlty different as the one in the picture in the manual, mine is metallic, but I still think I checked the right one... So what is the difference between the F1 shift mechanism and the gearbox? For me it's more one of them is for the manual version, and the other for the F1, which is my version... Regarding the mechanics I'm going too, well I'm going to the only Ferrari Official dealershop in my country (Luxembourg) and I have to say I'm not happy with them at all, they gave me back my car all dirty (outside/inside) and asked some things to be checked, I had to pay for it but they didn't checked (or checked but didn't do anything). However I don't know who can take care of a car like this around the country... Best regards, Ogeff
The oil on the right is F1 fluid ..red in color ..the dipstick is not accurate To measure it ..turn key on and when pump stops immediately measure it ..it should be a 1/4 I'm from disk inside The gearbox oil ..amber in color is where the gears and diff is .. The F1 system is a set of actuators and solenoids that switch the gears and depress clutch as if a human was driving The F1 and manual transmissions are pretty much the same ..the F1 just replaced the third pedal and stick Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk
If you do not have the car up on a lift and the lower panels removed and haven't used a 12mm allean socket to lossesn the dip stick/fill plug from the side of the gear box from under the car...you are more the likely checking the f1 fluid in the right rear corner of the engine bay. synthetic ATF is perfectly fine to use..I use LiquiMoly 4143..
The actual gearbox (transaxle)should use a fluid that meets GL4 and GL5 specs. There are several. In Europe you can get MobilLube PTX or the Shell product (Spirax?) in addition to others. Do not use ATF in the gearbox. Make sure you are talking about the transaxle not the F1 system (activates the gear change). The fluids used are different.
If i lived in Europe I would use the ENI rotra lsx ..perfect for our cars Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk
Hey, thanks again for all your answers. So from my understanding I cannot change the gearbox oil myself as it's somewhere not accessible without lifting the car. In fact what happened is kinda weird, I was going backwards (going out of garage) and after like 20m (yes long way to go backwards) a red light appeared (like engine hood open), an alarm started to ring and the engine turned off. After 15mn I was able to turn the car on again. As I'm a dumb man, I still went for a drive with it, and the gearbox worked perfectly... But for the backwards gear, which is really hard to get in (sometimes it shows that it's in backwards gear but car is not moving, sometimes the gear doesn't pass at all). I checked online quickly and I thought it might be the F1 fluid. When checking it I saw it was really low (almost nothing on the measurements cap) so I was looking for this first. But therefore, if it's coming from the gearbox itself, I will go back to Ferrari to have it fixed... Thanks for your replies! Best regards, Ogeff
Your explanation of the problem can and most likely is coming from a issue within the F1 system (pressure(accumulator, pump), or actuator or even solenoid The second thing would be a really worn clutch The gearbox would be the last educated quess A good mechanic with the proper diag tool should be able to diag it quickly..maybe down to two items Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk
You over heated the clutch. Please if you can avoid reversing for such long periods. The clutch will not fully engage in reverse. Just a constant slip..big temps and big wear. I'm surprised you have any clutch left to be honest..20m in reverse??
I know 60 ft is alot but would that cause the issue if the car was functioning properly .. unless 60 ft uphill ? Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk
I was assuming far more then 20m..from what he is describing..it is an over heat warning as far as I can figure..based on an internet diagnosis. I had a fellow burn out is clutch driving out of an underground parking garage..poor thing was apparently beeping the entire journey out of the garage.. and that was going forward!!
Hello, No it was just 20meters or so, and I usually do a stop as I have to go out of the garage but I was also going backwards in my courtyard for half of it so I don't think it's coming from an overheating. Moreover I'm doing this for 5 years (I mean I always park it at the same spot in my garage) so I think I might had the problem before if it was this. The weird thing is that after this alarm I still went driving for quite sometime, using all gear and it passed without any problem, however the backward gear doesn't engage sometime, still now... Best regards, Ogeff
If you had a diag tool like a launch or even ap200 i would look at the values for you and see if anything stands out Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk
Hi everyone! So after weeks of holidays and covid I finally took time to look at my cars again. I did check the red fluid and add some as it was really low, and I have no problem anymore! So yes might be coming only from this, which is great. However if anyone is living near Luxembourg and has another repair shop to go, I would be thankful to have some address as I'm not a fan of the official Ferrari dealershop. Best regards and thanks all for your help! Ogeff
Checking the gearbox oil is fairly easy, you don’t need to have the car on a lift. It’s actually easier by yourself, to check it on the ground. I put a moving blanket under the diffuser and lay on my side to undo the Allen bolts. I leave the center couple for last to support the diffuser. Once the diffuser is removed, the fill and drain plugs are easily visible. On my 430 there’s a small dipstick on the fill plug. Not sure if your 360 has that. There’s a couple YouTube videos that will help you. Routine maintenance is very simple on these cars. Don’t be intimidated because it’s a Ferrari. Have a friend with some mechanical knowledge to help you the first time. Sent from my iPad using FerrariChat.com mobile app
Hello there, The thing is for my "normal cars" I do most of the thing (unless it needs a lift or specific tools). However for the Ferrari I did some battery replacement and light. For checking the fluid as said I checked it by myself, however I check the manual and it wasn't in it for the gearbox oil. Now the problem I have also with a repair shop it's not much for small things, but I'm really not happy with the official dearly shop, I understand I don't have a SF90 or I'm not one guy with 10 Ferrari, however I still have one and I would expect to be well treated by them. When I receive my car all dirty, with a 6.500€ bill where I can see they say they checked problem as I asked, but the problem is not fix and I have no news about it, I'm thinking it's not the right thing to do. When I go to my mechanic who works on some problems for my others car, the guy is nice, give me back my car clean and explain to me whatever he has done, what he couldn't and why... Ferrari doesn't give a s*** about you and this is sad. Best regards, Ogeff
The 430 is significantly easier in this aspect, unless you've got some serious body mods to a 360. Otherwise to remove the "diffuser" on a 360, you are pulling the entire bumper assy. with the built in diffuser. Raised up is a requirement on the 360, either via lift or jack stands, if you are checking it from the bottom.
Ahh thank you, I had no idea. I’ve heard checking the gearbox filter screen is difficult but I didn’t know the bumper had to come off to check the gear oil level. Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
Yea, there are several ideas that the 430 benefited from due to lessons learned on the 360. Gearbox filter isn't too bad....holesaw and a rubber plug!
