Group

I've got a bit of a weird situation with my old Nissan Patrol and hoping someone here might have experienced something similar. Lately, when I start driving in the morning, the gears feel a bit stiff and there's this low hum that wasn't there before, but after about 10-15 minutes of driving everything seems to smooth out completely. My regular mechanic in Al Nahda took a quick listen and said it might just need a fluid change because the oil looks old, but he also mentioned that sometimes these symptoms mean the bearings are starting to go and you're looking at a much bigger job. I'm trying to figure out if I should just do the simple fluid change first and hope for the best, or if I should take it to a specialist for a proper diagnosis before something fails completely. I know a few people who have used that place for their work trucks, I think it's called Gearbox Repair Sharjah, and they seem to know their stuff with these older models. Just wondering if anyone has any advice on how to tell the difference between old fluid and a real internal issue before I spend money on the wrong fix.