Elf Tranself Type B 85W-140

Worth knowing

The ZF TE-ML 12E entry in this oil’s data sheet does not match ZF’s own list. In TE-ML 12, class 12E covers SAE 80W-90, 85W-90 and 90, while Tranself Type B 85W-140, under ZF number ZF008219, sits in class 12S, for viscosities with a second figure of 110 or 140. ZF gives that class for APL 9000 and APL 90 truck axles, not for A and AV series bus axles. If an axle specifies 12E, the oil listed under that class is Tranself Type B 80W-90. Each new edition of the list replaces all earlier ones, so check the class in the current edition by oil name and ZF number; a separate article explains how to read the ZF TE-ML letters and numbers.

The data sheet names a very high viscosity index and low pour point among the advantages, while its table gives 92 and -15 °C. The lower outside-temperature limit in TE-ML 12 is -12 °C for SAE 85W-140 and -26 °C for 80W-90. Syn FE 75W-140, close in viscosity at 100 °C, has an index of 178 and a pour point of -36 °C, but none of this oil’s four ZF classes appears in its entry.