300tdi Manual to Auto conversion

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If you do a search my thread will come up, I did mine a few years back using an Ashcroft kit and ran a thread at the time.

Best thing I did, makes the vehicle so enjoyable and easy to drive. :D 👍

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Good morning and thanks for your reply, your Defender looks great. Ashcroft is out of stock for Auto conversion Kit and I am struggling to find a mechanic who could do the conversion for me. Please let me know if someone could do the conversion.
 
Sorry, don't know of any workshops as I do all work myself. :(
There are plenty of independent LR workshops dotted around, I guess you need to find one of those and get them to rip the guts out of an old Disco1 auto.
 
Litch said:
Sorry, don't know of any workshops as I do all work myself. :(
There are plenty of independent LR workshops dotted around, I guess you need to find one of those and get them to rip the guts out of an old Disco1 auto.
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Thanks for your reply, I’m still ringing lots of people but so far had no luck
 
There's JE Engineering in Coventry. They do a bolt-in conversion using the 6-speed transmission from a Ford Ranger- mostly for the later TDCi engines but they might be able to help.
 
Singr07 said:
Hi I have found your previous post. Did you had to change the Seat box to adapt the Auto transmission?
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No, seatbox & tunnel remained standard, just had to drill new holes in the centre-plate to mount the shifter.
The good thing about the Ashcroft kit is that it was all nuts & bolts, the only thing I changed was the oil-cooler pipes as they supplied flexible ones whereas I went with the solid Disco1 pipes but had the flexi-ends modified by my local hydraulic-hose shop.


Rather than modifying your vehicle you could just buy mine, it is in the For-Sale section! ;)
 
Litch said:
Sorry, don't know of any workshops as I do all work myself. :(
There are plenty of independent LR workshops dotted around, I guess you need to find one of those and get them to rip the guts out of an old Disco1 auto.
Click to expand...
I have consulted couple of Mechanics and they all said 300TDi with Automatic ZF4HP22 is very sluggish, is it correct?
 
Singr07 said:
I have consulted couple of Mechanics and they all said 300TDi with Automatic ZF4HP22 is very sluggish, is it correct?
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Not at all. :mad:

If you have a knackered engine which is hauling around an overloaded 110 then yes, I guess it would be sluggish.
My engine is still in excellent fettle (59K miles from new) and my 90 is not carrying loads of unnecessary gear so it is positively sprightly. :D

Before I did my conversion I was offered a test-drive in a 300TDi auto 90.
The owner was gushing saying that my vehicle would not be as quick as his as he used the engine & gearbox lifted out of a Disco (different pump). To say I was underwhelmed would be an understatement! :eek: It was slow to respond and really seemed to struggle with the country lanes where we were driving. I immediately decided that his was not a good conversion as there was no way my vehicle (which I had stepped out of only 5-minutes before) could be transformed into this sluggish vehicle I was now driving. :vb-looko:
Pleased to say that when I did my own conversion I was proved correct and there was no comparison with his vehicle and mine. It took me 12-months to make a final decision on the gearing because since new I had been running a 1:2 (Disco) T-box but with the autobox this was slightly too high so I swopped it for the stock 1:4 and it works perfectly (have always run 265/75x16's).

No way I would go back to the old R380 (which was never a great gearbox even when brand-new) and in my opinion, my 90 is a benchmark for how a 300TDi auto CAN perform. ;)
 
I used to drive an early 300tdi Auto, it was as flat as a witch's tit. They are as numb as anything and like driving a 2.5 N/A with a slightly slightly faster top end.
 
Litch said:
No, seatbox & tunnel remained standard, just had to drill new holes in the centre-plate to mount the shifter.
The good thing about the Ashcroft kit is that it was all nuts & bolts, the only thing I changed was the oil-cooler pipes as they supplied flexible ones whereas I went with the solid Disco1 pipes but had the flexi-ends modified by my local hydraulic-hose shop.


Rather than modifying your vehicle you could just buy mine, it is in the For-Sale section! ;)
Click to expand...
Rougharse Racing said:
I used to drive an early 300tdi Auto, it was as flat as a witch's tit. They are as numb as anything and like driving a 2.5 N/A with a slightly slightly faster top end.
Click to expand...
😂😂😂 never heard that witch joke before
 
Singr07 said:
😂😂😂 never heard that witch joke before
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I wish if I would have done some research prior to purchase of this Defender 90. I’ve read lots of threads about 300tdi engine is the best, so I was looking for one. But I’ve been sold with a conversion. I would love to buy an automatic but then what would I do with my existing Defender? May be I should sell it and start off again, I have already spent so much money on it, resprayed, doors been repaired, galvanised bulkhead, Raptor dash board kit, lots of other bits 😔
 
Singr07 said:
I wish if I would have done some research prior to purchase of this Defender 90. I’ve read lots of threads about 300tdi engine is the best, so I was looking for one. But I’ve been sold with a conversion. I would love to buy an automatic but then what would I do with my existing Defender? May be I should sell it and start off again, I have already spent so much money on it, resprayed, doors been repaired, galvanised bulkhead, Raptor dash board kit, lots of other bits 😔
Click to expand...

Why do you need to make it an auto?
There are lots out there to make the clutch a LOT lighter, or to add servo assistance to the clutch which makes it a lot easier to drive. I was going to auto my 200tdi because of arthritic knees but in the end went with a LOF power master cylinder and assisted spring which lightened the clutch considerably.
Next step for me would be servo assistance (google red booster) if my knees get worse, and if that doesn’t work then will sell!
 
flat said:
Why do you need to make it an auto?
There are lots out there to make the clutch a LOT lighter, or to add servo assistance to the clutch which makes it a lot easier to drive. I was going to auto my 200tdi because of arthritic knees but in the end went with a LOF power master cylinder and assisted spring which lightened the clutch considerably.
Next step for me would be servo assistance (google red booster) if my knees get worse, and if that doesn’t work then will sell!
Click to expand...
Hi it’s been fitted with Lof clutch cylinder and latest clutch pedal, which made the clutch lighter. The auto conversion reason is existing LT77 gearbox and transfer box has an oil leak, Craddock said labour cost will be a lot to fix. Then 300tdi Engine is sitting away from the front end, engine oil hoses and power steering hoses always has a bit of leak. So instead of spending lots of money to fix the existing stuff, I thought it would be better to make it look and work like original 300tdi. But I am still confused if it is worth spending that much money on it or not😟
 
Singr07 said:
Hi it’s been fitted with Lof clutch cylinder and latest clutch pedal, which made the clutch lighter. The auto conversion reason is existing LT77 gearbox and transfer box has an oil leak, Craddock said labour cost will be a lot to fix. Then 300tdi Engine is sitting away from the front end, engine oil hoses and power steering hoses always has a bit of leak. So instead of spending lots of money to fix the existing stuff, I thought it would be better to make it look and work like original 300tdi. But I am still confused if it is worth spending that much money on it or not😟
Click to expand...
Not sure it is tbh, be easier to just be a recon lt77 tbh
 
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