Hi does anyone know a reliable place i can get my box replaced?
Suddenly lost all gears after slowing for lights and hearing a grating sound at around 5 mph. If turned off for 10 mins and resarted it would drive 200yds then the same fault again accompanied with trans failsafe message.
I have drained the oil which was brown and smelt burnt, dropped the sump and found many particles in there so have decided to get a new/recon box fitted.
Does anyone know if Phil (RRPhil) rebuilds for other people?
Cheers
Dean The Best 4x4 by far, so long as you have deep pockets.

Hi Dean,

I decided against rebuilding 5L40-Es for forum members for a couple of reasons

1) There’s more upfront investment required in special tools for the GM ‘box compared with the ZF ones – mainly due to the bonded clutch piston seal arrangements (and, to be honest, the ZF ones are a lot easier to strip and rebuild)

2) I’m sure most of the 5L40-E remanufacturers just replace the torque converter together with any burnt out clutch plates, even though the root cause of the failures is wear in the valve block. The remanufactured transmissions are therefore already well on the path to their next failure from the start and I suspect most will not outlive their warranties by a large margin. Renewing (or fitting Sonnax kits to) the valve blocks, though, would probably cost more than people are willing to pay.

I would imagine that the most cost-effective route is to pay £1200ish for a remanufactured unit with a warranty and expect to get maybe 40k miles out of it before having to replace it again.

Phil

Actually, there are several vendors selling valve bodies rebuilt with Sonnax bits: the one that comes to mind immediately is Valve Body Express (talk about specialized ) - but they are in the US.

I'm quite sure there are companies in Europe doing this as well - let me check.

As Phil says, though, rebuilding w/o making sure that adequate pressure is built up and kept is a short term solution. This means that the pump needs to be checked and either machined or replaced and that the valve body must be replaced or remanufactured. And this will cost more than £1200... 
RRC 2Dr, RRC 4Dr,
P38, and 2 L322s
(wife thinks I'm nuts - prob right, too)

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Based on the comments made by Phil and Steve (thank you for your quick replies) I am now faced with fitting a recon box and taking my chances or buying a run around and stripping/ rebuilding the box myself ( I am a mechanic with autobox experience) which is not something I want to do as I have other projects on the go. My next question is:-
Has anyone had a box refurbished and fitted but had problems later on? Based on Phil and Steve's comments I will possibly only get 40k from a recon box. This is my daily and also my tow motor for trialling and winch challenges.
How many miles did you get after fitting a recon box before it let you down?
Who supplied the recon box?

Thanks
Dean The Best 4x4 by far, so long as you have deep pockets.

Is a new box available?

47p2 wrote:

Is a new box available?

It's a tough call, I don't know who re-cons the boxes LR supply and buying from Joe-Bloggs Gearbox Re-Cons doesn't fill me with much hope. I wonder if the manufacturer would be prepared to give you the name of a local repairer who are competent and backed by the manufacturer

If it was me and I wanted to keep the vehicle after kitting it out for trialing an winching challenges is put the other projects on hold, get a daily runner and do the strip myself knowing should you get really really stuck there are always plenty of knowledgable folk around willing to lend an ear an the money you save on a recon can go into making your box stronger. Ie the sonnax valves and reman torque converter would be worth it knowing that at an event it won't just go pop or when towing around the country. Which lets face it is what puts the most strain on a box  FFRR MY06 facelift With TDV8 Alloys Zeros/ATR's
Mantec Sump Guard, Rigid Load liner, MY10 BT upgrade.

It's a pain to think that every 40K (possibly) you may have to stump up £2K to replace gearbox. At current mileage for me that is every 4 years.

Please tell me later Range Rover variant auto boxes are more reliable....

I think Phil was going from a worst case scenario. I have heard of several inexpensive rebuilds that have been going for quite a bit longer. Much depends on what your driving is like, obviously. All city is bound to be more taxing on th trans than all motorway. I really would not let it diminish my RR enjoyment.

That said, I would not pick the cheapest guy on the block to do a rebuild. http://www.mackie-transmission.com/ supply parts and rebuild torque converters for many other rebuilders - and they have an excellent reputation.
And why not look into having the valve body upgraded? 
RRC 2Dr, RRC 4Dr,
P38, and 2 L322s
(wife thinks I'm nuts - prob right, too)

I think brand new boxes are still available, but over here I was quoted $14K for one Not sure what they are over your side of town...

My rebuild included rebuilt pump which included machining, and a modified torque converter. New o rings in the valve body, but as mentioned, this is the route cause of failure, so not sure how long everything will last. Next time I will look at a modified valve body, or see if I can fit the 5 speed manual box from the X5 in there... I still need a few answers on that conversion, but the box will bolt up to the engine, and most of the other bits I can do. Anyone know if the bolt pattern and output splines on the NV125 - used on the X5 are the same as those on the NV225 used on the Rangie?

Does this help?

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Admin note: this post has had its images recovered from a money grabbing photo hosting site and reinstated

Hi Phil, thanks for that - it does help. I can't see from the photos, but would you know what the spline count and size between these? The bolt patterns do appear to be slightly different, but if the output shaft is the same on the boxes (so the input is the same on both the NV125 and the NV225) maybe an adaptor plate could be made? The bolt pattern between the E53 & L322 5HP24's looks close, but a set of drawings for each, or some detailed measurements would be good if you know anyone who has any. Finding these boxes in Aus is very hard, so I have run into a brick wall trying to sort this out.

If I can't make the NV225 fit, then I'm not going to butcher it completely and make it only a single ratio Rangie - that would be shameful...

Cheers - Gav

Just had a thought - is the transfer case on the V8 and TD6 the same part number, or different???

Hi Guy's first post! have been a member a few months now and i have done more reading the posts than seeing the wife I have just had my 2002 95K GM gearbox repaired and fitted at MACKIE TRANSMISIONS GLASGOW, 3 GRAND with a 3 YEAR warranty (not too bad i thought as i dont have the tools or knowhow to attempt it myself) in and out in 3 days. Hope this helps. Cheerz May The FFoRRce Be With You

£3k, that's the most expensive I've heard yet


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