SL82 gear box maintenance?

[Raider89]

SL82 gear box: manual says send back to Sadev at 1000 miles. Is that really necessary and is everyone doing that? What do they do? My car currently has ~1200 miles with another ~500 coming soon at VIR & RA. No issues yet.

 

[StratusChaz]

I know at Stratus, we rebuild the gearboxes about every 6 months. We do about 1,500 miles per race weekend on average so that would be a ballpark of almost 9,000 miles. It's important to inspect the gears, oil, and ring and pinion after every event though - any damage would impact that timeline.

 

[Raider89]

I change change the gear oil every other weekend, so depending on HPDE event, would be every 400-500 miles. I dont race W2W, just do HPDEs. I have not seen any metal or concerning issues with gear box, but have not removed and looked at internals either. What does Sadev do if we send it to them and what is approx cost? How do yall package for shipment if necessary? It sure sounds like the OEM 1,000 mile instruction is extremely conservative, thus curious what others are doing. I sure would like to wait longer as that is a fairly large effort for my DIY.

 

[Sebeco Motorsport]

At around 1,200 miles or 2,000 km, Sadev advises that the ring and pinion teeth, 1-6 gear teeth and dog rings should be inspected. The best method is to disassemble the transmission to inspect which is why Sadev advises to send to them. There are many factors that effect the condition of the gearbox. Short sprint races versus long endurance races. Gearbox temps. Driver habits, Oil quality, etc.

If the box is sent to SADEV, they will do a complete disassembly of all the parts: All parts are cleaned and inspected, The 1-6 gears are rolled on a fixture that measures for tooth deflection, they will always install a KITREV (a small parts kit that contains all seals, o-rings, springs and snap rings.) And then, once reassembled, they will dyno test the gearbox for proper operation and make sure that the temps and dyno loads meet the factory's specifications.

Typical pricing:
Complete service labor = $1695.00
KITREV = $313.49

If needing parts/repair:
1-6 ratios = $611.53
Ring and Pinion Kit = $3793.36

The best way to ship the gearbox is in a 120qt cooler. It is UPS Ground shippable. They typically quote 2-3 weeks turn around but I have seen them do it faster when needed. Typically it is easier to have a rebuild done from Apr-Oct than from Nov-Mar.

I have attached a document that Sadev likes to have with the gearbox when sent in for service.

 

[Raider89]

Ouch!
I would sure like to hear from others how long they have gone before doing this. I am normally very conservative and dont like to push things, but my gear box has not given me any concerns yet.