Long term reliability of HTRAC AWD transfer case due to inability to change the transfer case fluid?

[bubbaG80Sport]

I'll do it for ya. Are you near Buffalo NY?

Nope. Thanks for the offer. Also, no way I'm going to Buffalo, NY in the winter. Been there before in Feb/Mar and froze my keester off. I used to fly into Buffalo for work in Tonawanda. Saw Niagara Falls froze over many times, very beautiful.

 

[rmod]

Thanks rmod, Asianparts had the fluid at a decent price $40/L but they are currently out of stock. Everywhere else it's like a $100/L

See the specs for "Redline MT-LV". May be a direct substitute. Also, if you can contact your local BMW dealer, you may be able to get the DTF-1 if reasonably priced. AFAIK, it's straight weight 75W GL-4 oil.

 

[Acpantera]

Nope. Thanks for the offer. Also, no way I'm going to Buffalo, NY in the winter. Been there before in Feb/Mar and froze my keester off. I used to fly into Buffalo for work in Tonawanda. Saw Niagara Falls froze over many times, very beautiful.

Spring is around the corner, actually most of our snow melted the last 2 days, I'm driving to Maine to snowmobile some more.
Keep looking some one will help you, show them my posted pics.

 

[bubbaG80Sport]

Took my girl into a local high end European (Beemers, Audi's and some exotics) tire shop last Friday to get rotation, balance and alignment. Asked them if they'd do a transfer case fluid based on the Genny's using the same/similar transfer case as BMW. They would not do the fluid replacement. Was told they don't have the tooling to work on "Korean cars". I suspect most non-dealer shops don't want to do this in case it causes an issue with the TC in the future.

Also, reading the "bulletin" about not changing the fluid there was the possibility of some ECU reprogramming needed. Non-dealer shops don't have/won't invest in the OEM electronics to do this type of deep ECU programming.

As much as I want to replace the fluid for regular maintenance and to possibly address a driving issue, I am becoming reluctant. If the fluid is replaced and there is an issue it may cost me out of pocket and the hassle of replacing the TC. My 2 local dealers are terrible. I'll ponder this further.

 

[Acpantera]

Took my girl into a local high end European (Beemers, Audi's and some exotics) tire shop last Friday to get rotation, balance and alignment. Asked them if they'd do a transfer case fluid based on the Genny's using the same/similar transfer case as BMW. They would not do the fluid replacement. Was told they don't have the tooling to work on "Korean cars". I suspect most non-dealer shops don't want to do this in case it causes an issue with the TC in the future.

Also, reading the "bulletin" about not changing the fluid there was the possibility of some ECU reprogramming needed. Non-dealer shops don't have/won't invest in the OEM electronics to do this type of deep ECU programming.

As much as I want to replace the fluid for regular maintenance and to possibly address a driving issue, I am becoming reluctant. If the fluid is replaced and there is an issue it may cost me out of pocket and the hassle of replacing the TC. My 2 local dealers are terrible. I'll ponder this further.

Idiot service writers, hardly any special tools required, except for a syringe and tubing....omg the ignorance of shop management is outstanding.

 

[Husky]

Yeah, that was a stupid answer. They just didn't want to do it.

 

[carguy75]

Took my girl into a local high end European (Beemers, Audi's and some exotics) tire shop last Friday to get rotation, balance and alignment. Asked them if they'd do a transfer case fluid based on the Genny's using the same/similar transfer case as BMW. They would not do the fluid replacement. Was told they don't have the tooling to work on "Korean cars". I suspect most non-dealer shops don't want to do this in case it causes an issue with the TC in the future.

Also, reading the "bulletin" about not changing the fluid there was the possibility of some ECU reprogramming needed. Non-dealer shops don't have/won't invest in the OEM electronics to do this type of deep ECU programming.

As much as I want to replace the fluid for regular maintenance and to possibly address a driving issue, I am becoming reluctant. If the fluid is replaced and there is an issue it may cost me out of pocket and the hassle of replacing the TC. My 2 local dealers are terrible. I'll ponder this further.

Sounds like the shop was just being jerks and was snubbing your Genesis. Those shops usually have $$$$$ scan tools that can service all make of cars. However, it is possible that they really do not have any experience servicing a Korean make and do not even want to start ever. You will be better off going to an Asian import shop that service Toyota,Lexus,Honda,etc models than an European shop.

 

[JgenG]

Follow up question for Rmod and Acpantera. Was the car level when you filled it? I see Acpantera had it on ramps. I'm going to change it on ramps as well, but I'm concerned that the incline may not allow me to fill it up completely.

Also I found this fluid

BMW Porsche DTF 1 Transfer Case Fluid (1 Liter) - S-Tec OIL0005

BMW Porsche DTF 1 Transfer Case Fluid (1 Liter) - S-Tec OIL0005

www.fcpeuro.com

Label says TF0870 B. Plan is to get it from ebay
I also contacted S-tec to confirm it's okay for use on the Genesis DH

 

[rmod]

Follow up question for Rmod and Acpantera. Was the car level when you filled it? I see Acpantera had it on ramps. I'm going to change it on ramps as well, but I'm concerned that the incline may not allow me to fill it up completely.

Also I found this fluid

BMW Porsche DTF 1 Transfer Case Fluid (1 Liter) - S-Tec OIL0005

BMW Porsche DTF 1 Transfer Case Fluid (1 Liter) - S-Tec OIL0005

www.fcpeuro.com

Label says TF0870 B. Plan is to get it from ebay
I also contacted S-tec to confirm it's okay for use on the Genesis DH

I had it fairly level. My garage has a slight slope to the outside. Nothing came out of the transfer case when the fill/level check bolt was removed. I was only able to suck out 450ml of oil from it but was able to put back 600ml before it overflowed.
Probably a good idea to have the car leveled.

What I found odd is that in the "recommended lubricants and capacities" section of the G70's owners manual, it lists that the oil capacity for the transfer case as 570ml for the clutch/gear and 250ml for the actuator. I am not sure if those are two separate compartments in the transfer case.... which I think is highly unlikely. We will only know once someone tears down one of these transfer case and reports the findings.

 

[rjl54]

Post #81 of this thread. Exhaust was a non issue one the g80.
G70 looks more involved, but it's worth it to r&r the fluid, cures the wonky feeling while accelerating.

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[rjl54]

Thank you Acpantera. I thought I was looking at a major transmission problem, I was really bummed out . I have a '17 G90 5.0 Ultimate and 6months ago around 42,000 mi. started having an occasional bucking/jerking on acceleration. Fast forward 6months and it was constantly bucking/jerking. Brought car to local transmission shop. They had it about a week looking for the cause and quickly ruled out the transmission. They checked the drive shaft, the center support bearing, U-joints etc. all were ruled out. Meanwhile I was researching possible causes on google & this genesis forum. The transfer case started looking suspicious and when I read your post I was convinced this was the issue. I show the transmission shop mgr. your posts and pictures and he agreed to exchange the fluid. Picked up the car the following day and it drove like new. Perfectly smooth acceleration.

Had I gone to genesis dealer they would not have done the fluid change and would have told me I needed a new transfer case at a cost of about $4000.00. How Stupid! ! !

So at 48,000 miles my fluid was shot. Certainly not lifetime.

Thank you so much for your posts and great pictures.

 

[Jhon]

Wouldn't this be covered by the 50000/100000 mile warranty at the dealer?

 

[rjl54]

Wouldn't this be covered by the 50000/100000 mile warranty at the dealer?

I am the second owner so only 5yr 60000 mi. but 5 yrs was up in Nov. 2021

 

[Acpantera]

Thank you Acpantera. I thought I was looking at a major transmission problem, I was really bummed out . I have a '17 G90 5.0 Ultimate and 6months ago around 42,000 mi. started having an occasional bucking/jerking on acceleration. Fast forward 6months and it was constantly bucking/jerking. Brought car to local transmission shop. They had it about a week looking for the cause and quickly ruled out the transmission. They checked the drive shaft, the center support bearing, U-joints etc. all were ruled out. Meanwhile I was researching possible causes on google & this genesis forum. The transfer case started looking suspicious and when I read your post I was convinced this was the issue. I show the transmission shop mgr. your posts and pictures and he agreed to exchange the fluid. Picked up the car the following day and it drove like new. Perfectly smooth acceleration.

Had I gone to genesis dealer they would not have done the fluid change and would have told me I needed a new transfer case at a cost of about $4000.00. How Stupid! ! !

So at 48,000 miles my fluid was shot. Certainly not lifetime.

Thank you so much for your posts and great pictures.

Really glad it worked out for ya. It's amazing how much different they drive after doing a very simple and inexpensive task like change the fluid. Too bad the dealers won't do it.

 

[Acpantera]

I guess there are some people having issues, the fix is ez. see post#80 and 81

 

[rjl54]

I guess there are some people having issues, the fix is ez. see post#80 and 81

4 months later and my acceleration is flawless. Hard to believe such a simple fix.

 

[Light2000]

FYI. I've been attempting to have the Transfer Case (TC) fluid changed on my Genesis G80 3.3T HTRAC (AWD).
Vehicle is almost at 50K. I'd like to do this to maintain the vehicle and because I'm getting a minor shudder/slip under moderate to hard acceleration.
Initially I was going to do myself, but don't have a good/safe way to jack up/support the vehicle.

My 2 local Genesis Hyundai dealers can't/won't do it. because they can't find the fluid and/or unwilling to change fluid due to Genesis bulletin saying not to change fluid. If transfer case is having issues they replace the TC (WTF!).

I had the front+rear differential fluids changed Dec 2021 at a local garage/noN-dealer. I also asked them to do transfer case fluid. One of the mechanics worked at Hyundai/Genesis previously and was aware of the Genesis TC bulletin. This garage was unwilling to change TC fluid. They didn't want the liability of the TC being damaged due to the fluid change.

I contacted another local garage I trust and they also refused to change the TC fluid for the same reason.

So if dealers and independent shops are unwilling to change the transfer case fluid, doesn’t that mean something that we should really really pay attention to. The darn experts are refusing to do it and it must be for a good reason?

 

[Light2000]

FYI. I've been attempting to have the Transfer Case (TC) fluid changed on my Genesis G80 3.3T HTRAC (AWD).
Vehicle is almost at 50K. I'd like to do this to maintain the vehicle and because I'm getting a minor shudder/slip under moderate to hard acceleration.
Initially I was going to do myself, but don't have a good/safe way to jack up/support the vehicle.

My 2 local Genesis Hyundai dealers can't/won't do it. because they can't find the fluid and/or unwilling to change fluid due to Genesis bulletin saying not to change fluid. If transfer case is having issues they replace the TC (WTF!).

I had the front+rear differential fluids changed Dec 2021 at a local garage/noN-dealer. I also asked them to do transfer case fluid. One of the mechanics worked at Hyundai/Genesis previously and was aware of the Genesis TC bulletin. This garage was unwilling to change TC fluid. They didn't want the liability of the TC being damaged due to the fluid change.

I contacted another local garage I trust and they also refused to change the TC fluid for the same reason.

The shudder you described here under acceleration, can you further describe it? I think I have the same issue and have another post under the new tires thread. My shudder/slip is happening under moderate throttle acceleration at the 18-45mph and gears 2,3,4 I think.

 

[Light2000]

View attachment 32527remove the triangular bracket, 17mm socket for the three, 14mm socket for the two lower.View attachment 32528once thats off, remove the plug with a 14mm allen.View attachment 32529fish the tube in as deep as possible, I got out just shy of 450ml.View attachment 32530Very EZ job, test drove and was extremely happy that my jerky acceleration disappeared. The manual says it takes 670ml and i replaced less than 500ml. Im going to be changing the engine oil in about 500 miles, so i think im going to repeat the process just for the halibut.
So, don't any one tell ya that the transfer case oil can't be changed in a G80 sport with HTRAC.

Sure you have proof it can be done. But SHOULD it be done, if dealers and the mfg say don’t do it?

Also, what’s the why here? WHY did changing this fluid solve your problem? Was the old fluid really THAT bad?

 

[Acpantera]

Sure you have proof it can be done. But SHOULD it be done, if dealers and the mfg say don’t do it?

Also, what’s the why here? WHY did changing this fluid solve your problem? Was the old fluid really THAT bad?

All I can tell you is that changing the fluid works. It's a common issue with all wheel drive systems that use the same type of active clutching.
As for shops not doing it? Probably not a published time for it anywhere and some guys are scared to actually fix something if there is no manual to refer to.
If you can't do it yourself, take it to a mom and pop shop, explain your issue and what you want done, show them the posts and reassure them that if it doesn't work you'll part ways. no harm no foul, no hard feelings.
I'm a retired mechanic, made my living keeping vehicles on the road. I was never in the retail side, I always took care of a truck fleet....for 35 years.
I've also had a lot of wet clutch experience, on HD Tractors and motorcycles, fresh fluid always improves the way the discs in the clutch packs perform, it is basic mechanics.