Advice on gearbox oil change

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2.0_hippo said:
hah, yes its a shame they fked up the boxes on these, otherwise they would be an even better motor. as the engines are great, about the only thing ;)

my box still changes a smooth as anything from cold or hot, even smoother once you change the oil and filter.

and once i fitted the tuning chip to mine the box changes gears earlier so that not to hang in gear for too long, so as to save fuel :)

they feel damm slow once the chips taken off :D

yes, datatek the chips will lower the life of the box but i don't frash it all the time, its just nice to have more power when you need it, and it runs smoother with one fitted, ie less gear changes - so that must prolong the life in some way ??
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Fewer changes might be a help, but it is the torque at the point of change that knackers the clutches. On the P38, there is a torque reduction call from the auto ECU to the engine ECU at the point of change to protect the box, chipping largely negates this:( there were far fewer changes on mine with the power box fitted, but the box still began to fail, removing the power box, changing the oil and adding Lucas transmission fix has temporarily cured the problem despite more changes. The boxes are all marginal on torque.
 
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Datatek said:
Fewer changes might be a help, but it is the torque at the point of change that knackers the clutches. On the P38, there is a torque reduction call from the auto ECU to the engine ECU at the point of change to protect the box, chipping largely negates this:(
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aha i see now.

so the chip over rides this safety torque cut out to give more power ?

oh well, i have started saving all ready and will probably fit it myself (if) it goes in the time i own it :)
 
2.0_hippo said:
aha i see now.

so the chip over rides this safety torque cut out to give more power ?

oh well, i have started saving all ready and will probably fit it myself (if) it goes in the time i own it :)
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No, the call still occurs but the torque reduction is no longer sufficient due to the extra fueling provided by the chip.
 
The 5L40-E’s weakness is not the mechanical strength of the running gear or the dynamic power capacity of the clutches, it’s the wear in the valve blocks caused by valve oscillation and soft aluminium. The spools subsequently leak and the pressures drop beyond the ECU’s adaption capability allowing the clutches to slip (particularly the torque converter lock-up clutch). This wear process is independent of torque (i.e. chipping won’t make any difference) and the type of running the vehicle has been subjected to – that’s why these transmissions repeatably fail between 80k & 100k miles in the L322.
 
Bemble said:
The 5L40-E’s weakness is not the mechanical strength of the running gear or the dynamic power capacity of the clutches, it’s the wear in the valve blocks caused by valve oscillation and soft aluminium. The spools subsequently leak and the pressures drop beyond the ECU’s adaption capability allowing the clutches to slip (particularly the torque converter lock-up clutch). This wear process is independent of torque (i.e. chipping won’t make any difference) and the type of running the vehicle has been subjected to – that’s why these transmissions repeatably fail between 80k & 100k miles in the L322.
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Thanks for the informative post mate

From your point of view, do you reckon if 100k miles of my gearbox mileage was motorway miles and the other 40k was around town, do you think it's possible I could still be on my original gearbox ?

Thanks
 
There you have a definative answer from a man who knows what he's talking about, so chip away and one up to the L322. On the P38 the box is not strong enough for the extra torque but it still lasts longer than the GM box:p
 
As the torque converter lock-up clutch generally fails first (depositing huge quantities of metallic debris into the sump in the process), is it better or worse that the majority of the transmission’s life was spent at a steady speed on the motorway in 5th gear with the LUC fully engaged, rather than ‘off’ or in its ‘continuous 3% slip’ mode? From a valve block wear point of view I’m afraid I don’t know the answer to that.

I think the biggest influence on valve block wear is likely to be the additive and friction modifier packs used in the fluid, the 5L40-E’s recommended fluid having changed over the years from Dexron III, to Texamatic 7045E, to ETL 8072B and then finally to Dexron VI. Land Rover has stuck with 7045E for the TD6, but BMW didn’t for their vehicles.

Also, regularly changing the fluid and filter to keep it un-degraded and contaminant-free will help reduce the wear and so prolong the transmission’s life – so forget ‘fill for life’ because, generally, that will only give you 80k to 100k miles.

If anyone were looking to buy a used TD6 L322 and it had over 100k miles on the clock I think it’s unlikely to still have its original transmission and, if it has, you’re likely to have to replace it in the near future (Tip – save up and buy a 3.6 TDV8 instead with the ZF 6HP26 transmission :))
 
I did mine the other day. Oil coming out looked nice and clean(ish) but once I started to clean the pan it looked like a 70s rock star's silver make up was being taken off! Glad I did it now rather than later. Also had her serviced today, so she should be a happy Vogue for a while. ............................... I hope
 
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gold rover said:
Thought you were laughing at my hopes for a happy L322 :)
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Nope never !
My l322 is happy too !
In the last 3 months, gearbox oil and filter change, full service, new front air struts, new compressor, new front lower bushes and arms, and track control arms, new disks and pads all round ;)

Drives like a beaut now ;)
 
2.0_hippo said:
Nope never !
My l322 is happy too !
In the last 3 months, gearbox oil and filter change, full service, new front air struts, new compressor, new front lower bushes and arms, and track control arms, new disks and pads all round ;)

Drives like a beaut now ;)
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Cool. I'm off for a holiday in the sandpit from next week so nothing more being done on mine for a bit. Did wonder about discs and pads but as I have about another 6k in them and do less than 5k a year, thought I'd leave it for a while. :) Have to admit the L322 has given me a fraction of the issues, to date, that my disco gave me. So happy vroom vroom and happy me.
 
gold rover said:
Cool. I'm off for a holiday in the sandpit from next week so nothing more being done on mine for a bit. Did wonder about discs and pads but as I have about another 6k in them and do less than 5k a year, thought I'd leave it for a while. :) Have to admit the L322 has given me a fraction of the issues, to date, that my disco gave me. So happy vroom vroom and happy me.
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Nice one, so taking the rangie for a holiday too ?? ;)

Yea mind had some life in them but I decided to change them as they where looking rather fooked

Yes those discos can be troublesome from what I've heard, so can range rovers
I think you have just got to be lucky and make sure you get a looked after motor and keep looking after it then you will be ok
Lol
 
2.0_hippo said:
Nice one, so taking the rangie for a holiday too ?? ;)

Yea mind had some life in them but I decided to change them as they where looking rather fooked

Yes those discos can be troublesome from what I've heard, so can range rovers
I think you have just got to be lucky and make sure you get a looked after motor and keep looking after it then you will be ok
Lol
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Somehow I don't think the reply would be favourable if I asked if they could load the the rangie with the rest of my kit lol
It is , as you say, just a case of getting a looked after one and continuing to look after it. Although I'm sure that the Disco was a friday afternoon/Monday morning car. With only 40k on the clock anthing that could go wrong, did. I still miss it though :( It's their little quirks that get under the skin :)
 
gold rover said:
...Oil coming out looked nice and clean(ish) but once I started to clean the pan it looked like a 70s rock star's silver make up was being taken off! Also had her serviced today, so she should be a happy Vogue for a while....
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Sorry, are you saying that the transmission fluid/sump was contaminated with metallic debris but now that you've changed the fluid everything should be fine? I admire your optimism.
 
Bemble said:
Sorry, are you saying that the transmission fluid/sump was contaminated with metallic debris but now that you've changed the fluid everything should be fine? I admire your optimism.
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Nope I didn't say that. I said I hope I now have a happy Vogue. Being a novice to this type of job I have no idea what the shiny stuff was. Once the pan was emptied the magnets were fine but once almost all the oil was wiped from the pan, there was silver sheen. Anyway no harm in being optimistic, before doing the job the gear changes were still smooth and no issues felt, I only changed the fluid due the horror stories about the box.

p.s It didn't look anything like the one you show in your other post, that you broke down. The fluid looked clean , the magnets were fine and once the fluid was almost completely wiped away,there was just a fine sheen like silver paint.
 
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