Shell Spirax S3 ALS 85W-90

ShellShell Spirax linegear and transmission85W-90

API GL-5 85W-90 gear oil for axles with limited-slip differentials, approved to ZF TE-ML 05C, 12C, 16E and 21C.

Classification
Product line Shell Spirax 45 oils
SAE viscosity 85W-90What SAE means
Intended use gear and transmission
API class What API means
Approvals
Manufacturer approvals What an approval means
Meets the requirements of
Other designations API GL-5 Limited Slip
Typical properties
Viscosity at 100 °C 16.5 mm²/s
Viscosity index 101
Pour point -36 °C

The car maker has not officially approved the entries in the “Meets the requirements of” row.

Description

Shell Spirax S3 ALS 85W-90 is a Spirax gear oil of viscosity grade SAE 85W-90 for axles with limited-slip differentials. It is used in buses, construction machinery and cars, above all in ZF axles, including those on Liebherr machines.

The oil is rated API GL-5 Limited Slip and holds the approvals ZF TE-ML 05C, ZF TE-ML 12C, ZF TE-ML 16E and ZF TE-ML 21C. It meets the requirements of MIL-L-2105D without formal approval.

Typical figures: 16.5 mm²/s at 100 °C, viscosity index 101, pour point -36 °C.

Application

Axles with limited-slip differentials in buses, construction machines and cars, above all ZF axle units, including those on Liebherr machinery.

Worth knowing

On codes, the only difference between this oil and Spirax S3 ALS 80W-90 is ZF TE-ML 16E, a class from the list ZF maintains for rail-vehicle gearboxes. ZF TE-ML 05C, ZF TE-ML 12C, ZF TE-ML 21C and compliance with MIL-L-2105D are recorded for both, while the Shell data sheet for Spirax S2 ALS 90, at the same API GL-5 Limited Slip, lists no ZF codes. So among the Spirax ALS oils in the catalogue, class 16E is held only by 85W-90.

It is 05C that is tied directly to the limited-slip differential: list 05 covers the axles of construction machinery, and class C in it is reserved for oils with additives for such differentials. The letter means something different in each ZF list, so 12C (bus and truck axles) and 21C (tractor axles, final drives) are read from their own lists, not by analogy with 05C; the article on what ZF TE-ML approvals mean explains how to decode the number and the letter.

Data current as of Check the label and the current product data sheet before you buy.

Sources

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Other 85W-90 oils

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  • Liqui Moly

    Liqui Moly Gear Oil (GL4) SAE 85W-90

    Mineral 85W-90 gear oil to API GL-4 with ZF TE-ML 16A, 17A and 19A approvals for manual gearboxes and axles.

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Oils with the same approvals

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    Castrol TRANSMAX Limited Slip LL 75W-140

    Fully synthetic 75W-140 hypoid oil for limited-slip and open differentials: API GL-5, with BMW, MB 235.61 and ZF approvals.

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