![I bought a used Sansui amplifier, a nostalgic item for the Alpine A110. [A gem I bought in 2024]](https://wheelfeed.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/3933-1761202021273.jpg)
If you are still under warranty, please do not try this.
A Renault Samsung hologram sticker. Hangul is also faintly visible.
Looking at this issue again, I’m embarrassed to say that this year I bought a lot of useless things.
First, regarding items that have been discontinued, there are things that have undergone vehicle inspections, such as engine oil, air filters, and transmission oil. My beloved car is an Alpine A110, and since its release in Japan in 2018, the original oil specification has changed several times. Apparently, the later model had a GPF (gasoline particulate filter) and required additives, so it used Castrol, while the earlier model used Elf, like the Megane RS IV, which has a similar engine type. After digging through Renault documents in the home country, I found that the oil specification name and content have changed in detail to reflect Euro 6, with specifications such as R-TECH, RN17, and RSA.
That said, Renault’s M-family engines are essentially Nissan’s MR series, and since they’re mid-engine, prone to overheating due to somewhat over-tuned tuning, I like to use Mobil 1. If you’re still under warranty, please don’t try this. Incidentally, the Nissan oil filter is naturally compatible, which is a blessing, but the original factory oil filter was venerably one with a Renault-Samsung hologram sticker. It’s a product of a return to the Orient and a global supply chain that runs from Korea to Dieppe to Japan.
Motul’s Multi DCTF has good temperature resistance and viscosity
[1] Motul Multi DCTF. [2] Filler cap and oil seal from Turkey. [3] A thank you message in Japanese from Turkey.
However, the 7-speed EDC transmission is manufactured by the former Getrag, which is now owned by Magna International and does not appear to be used by Nissan, at least not in the Japanese market. I was unable to obtain the DW5 fluid specified by Alpine and Renault personally, so after consulting the owner community in the country, I learned that Motul’s Multi DCTF, which has good temperature resistance and viscosity, is used as an alternative. Looking into other equivalent fluids, I found Fuchs and Liqui Moly, and Mini also has models that use the same 7-speed DCT base, so Swag could be an option, but I still think Motul, also from France, is the safest option.
I also ordered a filler cap and oil seal online at the time, and they arrived from Turkey, which was a real treat. They came with a thank you message in Japanese and a mysterious cardboard accessory. I opened it wondering what it was, and it was filled with a spicy aroma… I wonder if it’s meant to be hung inside the car. It was the first time I’d received such a thick gift other than for kebabs, and it was quite an exotic and fun experience.
Purchased a used Sansui amplifier
[1] Sansui “AU-α607 MOS Premium”. [2] I also purchased a tool clipper and a soldering iron.
Also, this year, I happened to get hold of a used Sansui amplifier. It’s the “AU-α607 MOS Premium,” a model from the early 1990s, and yes, it uses a power MOS-FET element at the heart of its amplification.
Even power semiconductors for electric vehicles are beginning to be replaced by silicon carbide and gallium nitride. As a result, MOS-FETs are seen as a somewhat outdated technology, and while their high-voltage power transmission isn’t as impressive these days, they still produce crisp signals and delicate sound. When I connected them with four speakers, the sound was like that of a small jazz cafe, which I really liked.
Incidentally, I also bought a tool clipper and a soldering iron to make audio cables. My wife got suspicious of me for working on it late at night, so there was a time when I got into a rhythm where I had to shrink the heat shrink tubing with a noisy industrial hair dryer first thing in the morning.
A long time ago, the late Kazuhiro Watanabe, the creator of the word “enthusiast,” had a tool clipper on his desk, and when I asked him what he used it for, he replied, “Of course it’s for soldering.” I remember being mildly surprised that a grown man like me would ask him to help me at work, but I never imagined that it would happen to me. I’m still a novice, nowhere near Kazuhiro’s level, but it’s a moving experience.
