Was just talking to my mechanic and he wasn't clear as to whether it was advisable to use use anything but VW oil in the transmission of my '87 Syncro.

Specifically, he thought that VW has a unique oil for Syncro gearboxes, different than that for standard gearboxes.

Is this correct?

The reason I ask is that after hearing such glowing reports, I was going to have the tranny drained and refilled with Swepco 201.

Should I proceed with this or not?

Also, (showing that I haven't had time to read through my Bently), is the transmission gearbox directly connected to the rear differential unit?

If so, do they share fluids?

If not, what sort of lube goes in that differential unit, and is it the same lube that goes in the front unit?

And if I'm going to be super-maintenance anal (not a bad idea knowing how much these parts cost), should these fluids be drained and replaced at any sort of regular interval?

Oh, and also, what about changing that magic viscous coupling juice every few years?

Paul puusital@adobe.com