RRC Auto box problem?

I have a Range Rover 3.5EFI 1986 auto mainly used for offroading.
I think I have a gearbox problem, the car seems very sluggish and seems to
change from 1st to top and miss out the middle stages. A real shove will
make it kick back down to 1st.
When it evenyually goes from first to the next gear it almost feels hesitant
as if it is the engine is holding back.
I was towing a Suzuki up a slight hill at the weekend and it seemed to go
straight into top gear, I was doing about 30mph and it would not change down
no matter how hard I kicked the accelerator. Which meant I struggled in top
eventually only doing 20mph!!
Oil levels in the box seem ok, but when I finally got home it started to
make some grinding and graunching noises, does this sound terminal?
I tow the same Suzuki with my TD5 and have no problems at all.
I must admit the overall performance of the RR is very dissapointing for a
V8. The TD5 will easily out perform it although against my friends 3.9
bobtail the TD5 is about level on performance.
Could a gearbox fault give this complete lack of performance?

TIA


Martin

On or around Fri, 10 Dec 2004 14:02:50 +0000 (UTC), "Martin Coombs"
<[email protected]> enlightened us thusly:

>I have a Range Rover 3.5EFI 1986 auto mainly used for offroading.
>I think I have a gearbox problem, the car seems very sluggish and seems to
>change from 1st to top and miss out the middle stages. A real shove will
>make it kick back down to 1st.
>When it evenyually goes from first to the next gear it almost feels hesitant
>as if it is the engine is holding back.
>I was towing a Suzuki up a slight hill at the weekend and it seemed to go
>straight into top gear, I was doing about 30mph and it would not change down
>no matter how hard I kicked the accelerator. Which meant I struggled in top
>eventually only doing 20mph!!
>Oil levels in the box seem ok, but when I finally got home it started to
>make some grinding and graunching noises, does this sound terminal?
>I tow the same Suzuki with my TD5 and have no problems at all.
>I must admit the overall performance of the RR is very dissapointing for a
>V8. The TD5 will easily out perform it although against my friends 3.9
>bobtail the TD5 is about level on performance.
>Could a gearbox fault give this complete lack of performance?

'bos sounds iffy. what happens if you use the shifter to put it in 2 or 3?

graunching noises sounds bad an' all. Is your handbrake releasing properly?

could be a T-box problem. <Thinks> is this a 3-speeder or a 4-speeder?

Austin said
< 'bos sounds iffy. what happens if you use the shifter to put it in 2 or
3?>
Moving the shifter does nothing, it will not manually shift

<graunching noises sounds bad an' all. Is your handbrake releasing
properly?>
Handbrake does not work, another little job to do and fully released.

> could be a T-box problem. <Thinks> is this a 3-speeder or a 4-speeder?
I think 4 speed, it has 1, 2, 3 and D.

T box has high, low and diff lock which appear to work fine off road.

Martin

On or around Fri, 10 Dec 2004 18:13:05 GMT, "Martin Coombs"
<[email protected]> enlightened us thusly:

>Austin said
>< 'bos sounds iffy. what happens if you use the shifter to put it in 2 or
>3?>
>Moving the shifter does nothing, it will not manually shift
>
><graunching noises sounds bad an' all. Is your handbrake releasing
>properly?>
>Handbrake does not work, another little job to do and fully released.
>
>> could be a T-box problem. <Thinks> is this a 3-speeder or a 4-speeder?
>I think 4 speed, it has 1, 2, 3 and D.
>
>T box has high, low and diff lock which appear to work fine off road.

LT230 T-box, as appropriate to the year. the BW one didn't have difflock
(though the knob might still have) and didn't happen until IIRC 1989.

Sounds like a ZF 4-speeder. Good box normally, but yours doesn't sound
like. the lack of shifting with the lever sounds ominous. might be sticky
valves, though, or it might be shagged. If the T-box is OK, you can pick up
a secondhand auto for not-stupid money; lats one I got was 450 notes with
its BW-type T-box, I was offered box only for 250.