Disco 2 Help… I’ve lost all drive!

Hi all,

I’ve lost all drive in my TD5 D2 Auto… was driving fine, just completed a 1 hour drive (home thankfully) cruising at 65-70 on the motorway, so not particularly stressing anything, pulled off the motor way with no issue, around a roundabout, no obvious problems, slowed for traffic and wouldn’t pull away again! No loud bang, no obvious holes anywhere, no loss of fluid…
Nothing, not even a hint of effort in D/1/2/3 or reverse.
Both the display and leaver ante correctly indicating the selected gear.
No props spinning, no difference in high/low or diflock.

I got towed home (less than a mile) both transfer and auto box in neutral, engine running, for breaks/steering.

I’ve checked the ATF and that’s fine. Just dribbling out when running.

Other than the transfer box, auto box itself or the torque converter, is there anything else that can cause complete loss of drive?

Possible problem with XYZ?
Yours sounds like mine a 18 months ago?
The are some threads on here to help you?

Ways forward?
Check XYZ?
New or 2nd hand XYZ!!

If that does not work problem my be more expensive and that will test your courage!?!?!? On how much you wish to keep 'Your' old girl running?


Kev

The dreaded P clip maybe?
slightly significant that it happened after going round a roundabout.

Spot1 said:

Hi all,

I’ve lost all drive in my TD5 D2 Auto… was driving fine, just completed a 1 hour drive (home thankfully) cruising at 65-70 on the motorway, so not particularly stressing anything, pulled off the motor way with no issue, around a roundabout, no obvious problems, slowed for traffic and wouldn’t pull away again! No loud bang, no obvious holes anywhere, no loss of fluid…
Nothing, not even a hint of effort in D/1/2/3 or reverse.
Both the display and leaver ante correctly indicating the selected gear.
No props spinning, no difference in high/low or diflock.

I got towed home (less than a mile) both transfer and auto box in neutral, engine running, for breaks/steering.

I’ve checked the ATF and that’s fine. Just dribbling out when running.

Other than the transfer box, auto box itself or the torque converter, is there anything else that can cause complete loss of drive?

Click to expand...

If you have a high/low selection lever, is it in the neutral between high and low?

Turboman said:

If you have a high/low selection lever, is it in the neutral between high and low?

Click to expand...

Spot1 said:

Nothing, not even a hint of effort in D/1/2/3 or reverse.

Click to expand...

Spot1 said:

No props spinning, no difference in high/low or diflock.

Click to expand...

I think he has covered this.
But you have a point because the first time I drove my D2, home from the peeps I bought it off, this did happen to me and it took me and a mate a little while to suss out something so obvious.
Typically never done it since.

Stanleysteamer said:

I think he has covered this.
But you have a point because the first time I drove my D2, home from the peeps I bought it off, this did happen to me and it took me and a mate a little while to suss out something so obvious.
Typically never done it since.

Click to expand...

I have seen people post about it at least a dozen times on LZ.

Turboman said:

I have seen people post about it at least a dozen times on LZ.

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Funny that. In my case the lever just jumped out of drive.
Let's hope it is something as simple as that.

Funny that the driver does’t know the procedure and the functions for selecting hi - lo in an automatic.
Therefore the range required by the driver may not be fully engaged and so falls into neutral.

Of course with a manual gearbox there is a different procedure when stationary, plus a bit more involved when on the move.

When mine jumped out of drive, I had just manually changed the gear downwards to gain some engine braking in my TD5 auto. It drove fine in the lower gear for a while then, boom, no drive at all. I never saw the high-low lever move as I was looking where I was going, and it was my first proper drive in the vehicle. It was only after I had rolled it onto the grass next to the road and my mate who was following me back to Poole stopped to help. I rang for recovery, then rang the previous owners who were gutted and said nothing like this had ever happened to them.
It took quite a long while before I finally looked at the Hi-Lo lever and thought, "That looks a bit vertical". Quick fiddle with it and off I went.
I think it must have just not been quite in the right position when I drove away in it and the engine braking pushed it over the edge as it were.

TBH changing from hi to lo and back in the auto is not a lot different at all from doing it in my 300 TDi manual, you still need to put the main gear lever into neutral as it were. etc.

@Spot1 , got any trouble/ fault codes?

JUKE179r said:

@Spot1 , got any trouble/ fault codes?

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Hi Juke, the only gearbox code was p0722 however having cleared it, there hasn’t been a reoccurrence of the fault code.

Hi all, thanks for all the comments. I’m 100% confident the t’box is in gear, as in my original post, I’ve tried all 4 positions (mine has diff lock) with no improvement.

My suspicion is TC has failed… there is no change in engine tone between PND321, it’s like the a’box is completely disconnected from the engine…

I’ve had a mechanic come around today and can’t work it out either, next plan is drag it to the garage and pull both ‘boxes and see what there is to find…

Spot1 said:

Hi all, thanks for all the comments. I’m 100% confident the t’box is in gear, as in my original post, I’ve tried all 4 positions (mine has diff lock) with no improvement.

My suspicion is TC has failed… there is no change in engine tone between PND321, it’s like the a’box is completely disconnected from the engine…

I’ve had a mechanic come around today and can’t work it out either, next plan is drag it to the garage and pull both ‘boxes and see what there is to find…

Click to expand...

Does the transfer box lever feel like it's sloting into gears as you move from hi to lo?

Spong said:

Does the transfer box lever feel like it's sloting into gears as you move from hi to lo?

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Hi Sprong, yeah t’box feels absolutely normal moving between hi/lo lock/unlock. I’d be extremely surprised if it was that.

I’d say I’m 70% on the TC 25% on the auto’box and the last 5% something weird/wonderful like the end of the crank sheared off.

Update time…

Well…

Garage have drained the ATF which is “crystal clear” and no hint it’s been burnt which is good. I changed it August ‘21 so that’s reassuring.

They’ve pulled both ‘boxes and can’t find anything obviously broken/failed. No obvious failure with the TC/flex plate either…

They’re going to talk to the company they use recon ‘boxes on Monday and see what they have to say about it.

At least my 5% for weird/wonderful failures has been eliminated so I’m now 70% on TC and 30% auto ‘box… the real question is do they rebuild it with the Ashcroft HD flexplate and v8 TC and hope for the best and risk the whole lot coming out and the ‘box needing doing? Or, do I get them to recon the ‘box whilst it’s out?