this is a stupid question, but is transmission oil the same as motor oil?

 

nope two different things not a dumb question

 

not really

tranny oil is heavier and does not have some of the additives that are found in motor oil because it's use is much different

because of needing to withstand combustion temps. and tranny oil only 300f degrees or so

other than that mostly the same but there difference makes enough difference that one cant do the others job



hope this info helps

 

so when people talk about changing their oil, what are they talking about?

 

usually motor oil i think

 

Yeah, when people are talking about oil they are refering to the engine. Whenever you see people talking about "redline" or similar it is the tranny/differential oil. There are a lot of good articles floating around about different tranny oils. I would recomend reading them before you change them because some are better for shifting but wear your sycros out faster. Others are better for the syncros but give you sloppier shifting. The general consensous from what ive seen is that the redline "shockproof" is the way to go.