Gear up for summer and maximise fleet efficiency with the right gear oil

As Ireland heads into the warmer months of 2025, fleet operators, service centres, and hauliers are turning their focus towards ensuring vehicle performance and reliability under increased summer loads and temperatures. A critical—yet often underestimated—component of summer fleet readiness is gear oil. The right gear oil can make all the difference. It boosts transmission durability and efficiency, especially when trucks face long hauls, heavy loads, and rising road temperatures.

Why gear oil matters even more
Fleet and commercial gear oil is engineered to protect critical components like gears and bearings from friction, heat, and pressure. During the summer, these stressors can intensify, particularly for vehicles climbing gradients, idling in heat, or towing heavy loads. Choosing the right formulation ensures smooth gear shifts, reduced wear, improved fuel economy, and longer service intervals, all of which are essential for keeping downtime minimal during peak activity.

Types of gear oil
There are numerous types of gear oil to consider, with the following being the most notable.

Conventional Mineral Oils
These traditional lubricants provide baseline protection and are generally suitable for older vehicles operating under moderate conditions. However, with shorter drain intervals and lower thermal stability, they are less ideal for summer fleet operations or for modern vehicles handling demanding routes.

Semi-Synthetic Gear Oils
Combining mineral and synthetic bases, these oils strike a balance between performance and cost. They are mainly used in light-duty commercial vehicles or passenger cars. However, due to their limited high-temperature endurance and shorter drain intervals, they are not recommended for heavy-duty fleets or hauliers doing long hours in summer.

Synthetic Gear Oils
Synthetic gear oils are chemically engineered with high-performance additives, making them ideal for extreme summer conditions, long-haul operations, and heavily loaded vehicles. Benefits include:

• Superior heat resistance and thermal stability
• Improved fuel economy
• Extended drain intervals
• Enhanced protection against oxidation, corrosion, and wear

Types of Synthetic Gear Oils:

• Standard Drain Interval Oils: Ideal for fleets requiring change intervals between 150,000 – 200,000 km.
• Extended Drain Interval Oils: Optimised for 300,000 – 500,000 km, perfect for reducing summer servicing downtime.

OEM-approved
High-quality synthetic gear oils from reputable brands like TotalEnergies undergo rigorous testing to meet global OEM standards. In contrast, budget blends from smaller blenders often lack the thermal endurance and additive quality required for rigorous summer operations. Choosing an OEM-approved gear oil ensures:

• Lower maintenance costs
• Fewer breakdowns during peak driving months
• Improved gearbox longevity
• Additional Fuel savings when paired with synthetic fuel economy engine oil (fuel economy oils in complete drive line ensures maximum efficiency)
• Consistent Performance with reduced likelihood of overheating under heavy loads

One of the leading ranges of heavy-duty gear oils, as recommended by many of the leading OEMs worldwide, is TotalEnergies’ Traxium range. The Traxium range offers a wide variety of gear and axle oils to suit most gearboxes/differentials/axles and their needs. TotalEnergies’ Traxium Range consists of the following products which are available from Finol Oils, the Irish distribution partner for TotalEnergies:

Traxium Dual 9 FE 75W-90: Extremely high-performance fully-synthetic gear oil, developed for synchronised or non-synchronised manual gearboxes, axles and reduction gears requiring API GL-4, GL-5, MT-1 or MIL-PRF-2105E and MIL-L 2105 D specs. It offers extended drain intervals and is approved by major OEMs including MAN, DAF, Iveco, Scania, Mercedes, Mack and Volvo which makes it the perfect choice for mixed fleet operators.

Traxium Dual 8 FE 80W-90: Based on synthetic technology with a high viscosity index, it is suitable for lubrication of gears and axles under severe conditions of use. It is suitable for the manual transmission of several OEMs such as MAN, DAF, Iveco, Scania and Renault Trucks with drain intervals recommended by the manufacturer.

Traxium Gear 9 FE 75W-90: Fully synthetic gear oil with high-performance, developed for truck gearboxes, especially Mercedes Benz and carries Mercedes-Benz Trucks:DTFR 13B110 approval. TotalEnergies’ fuel economy technology allows for reduced fuel consumption in comparison with standard lubricants.

Traxium Gear 9 FE 75W-80: This lubricant is particularly suited for the latest ZF gearboxes with Carbon synchronization (ZF TE-ML 01E) and for ZF gearboxes with Molybdenum synchronization (ZF TE-ML 02E). Because of its fuel economy properties and approvals from different major OEMs like Man, Mercedes, Voith, Volvo, Iveco etc. it is ideal choice for a high-quality gear oil for mixed fleet operators.

Traxium Gear 7 80W-90: Designed for synchronized and non-synchronized gearboxes, mild loaded axles, transfer boxes and all gears requiring MIL-L-2105 or API GL-4 level. It is approved by ZF for the lubrication of their gearboxes (without intarder) with standard drain interval.

Traxium Axle 8 FE 80W-140: High-performance multigrade oil designed for the lubrication of severely loaded hypoid axles and final reduction, requiring API GL-5 or API MT-1 levels of performance. It is particularly suitable for the lubrication axles from Scania and ZF. It is also suitable for Renault Trucks, Volvo and Iveco axles.

Traxium Gear 7 80W-85: Specially designed for gear boxes, mild loaded axles, transfer boxes and all gears requiring MIL-L 2105 or API GL-4 level specifications, this lubricant is particularly recommended for Mercedes Benz and ZF hypoid gears operating under standard drain intervals.

The complete Traxium range is now available at Finol Oils in Dublin for nationwide delivery. Finol Oils is the authorised Irish distributor of TotalEnergies in Ireland, offering technical guidance through their dedicated lubricants support team in Dublin. With six pump-off delivery trucks, they ensure bulk and packaged orders reach you quickly—especially important during busy summer months.

If you would like to avail a free technical consultation, get a free quote, or become a customer, you can contact Finol at +353 (0)1 2238842. You can view their vast range of lubricants, coolants, and grease at www.finol.ie.