Well it's finally happened, I bought my FF in the knowledge that it probably required a gearbox rebuild, it has a hard 1st to 2nd change and slurs the 2nd to 3rd change at anything more than a gentle throttle.... every now and again it would "bong" and put on the Trans Failsafe and lock in 4th gear. I have changed the oil and filter twice as it had the wrong oil in it (red) and also changed the rad and thermostat for the oil cooler as it ran hot as well, it ran a bit cooler but still hotter than it should...

Every time it dropped into failsafe it would always work again with a restart.... until today....

I'm at my Mothers, some 220 miles from home and it is now bonging every time you pull away and sticking in 4th, even with manual changes and trying to tease it a bit... so first job is to get it home, either it works OK on the motorway or we go home in 4th....

Can't complain really as it's done 16,000 miles since I bought it.....

Having read of all the problems people have had with "so called" rebuilt boxes I'm going to have a go at doing it myself, I've rebuilt just about every other part of a car over the years but never an auto box as to me they seem to work by magic and I don't totally understand them....

So I hope "the collective" can help me in giving it a go.... I mean "how hard can it be?????"

Input from James T Kirk (RRPhil) would be great.... omissions and double posts sorted by Spock (Stan) and sarcasm and jokes by Bones (Joker) would help me on my mission to boldly go where I've never been before....

Any tips, tricks and help from anyone else no matter how small would be great, I expect to do a lot of reading and head scratching, take a lot of pics (as we all like pics) and a lot of notes....

I won't be able to rush it as we are clearing my Mothers house out and that needs doing to a deadline, luckily I have another car to use so won't have to walk everywhere....

Now, first question, is the gearbox the bit that hangs down under the back or is it near where you put coloured water in for the front window....????  Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

Last edited by Haylands on 28th Mar 2015 6:30pm. Edited 1 time in total

Re your final question this might give you a guide to a gearbox http://www.owzat-cricket.co.uk/acatalog/Ab..._Box_.html

PS. Good luck with the rebuild.  John
2008 Stornoway Grey 3.6 Tdv8 Vogue
2005 TD6 Java Black Vogue - Written off!!
GAP iiD BT
2003 Discovery TD5 Auto, Nanocom Evolution - gone to a new home!
MasseyFerguson 152 - No electronics!! - Sold

Sorry to hear your woes Haylands , but don't worry you're in the best company on this site .

Might be a good start to go on the JPAT transmissions website, they have catalogues for all gearboxes and will give you a good heads-up on what's inside the 'box of tricks'.

Send the Gearbox Guru RRPhil a PM, I'm sure he will be a fountain of knowledge and a massive help in your endeavours.

We're all rooting for you, fella!

I must say good luck for having a go. I have rebuilt manual boxes but don't think I would try on a auto.
On the otherwise my previous ff used to go about half a mile before there was a thud at the back. First time this happened I thought I had been driven into. It would then go into trans Failsafe mode.then I could do a 225 mile journey but was slow off on roundabouts. I got so used to this and lived with it like this for about a year. Good luck with yours

I’m here for you Pete . There’s really nothing to it, you’ll be amazed by how simple it is - and if it all goes t*ts up you can always just shovel all the parts into a crate, send it over to sunny Blackburn and I’ll sort it out for you.

Here’s a good starting point : http://www.jagrepair.com/images/AutoRepair...Manual.pdf

If you don’t fancy tackling the valve block yourself just send it my way. It’ll just cost you the postage and a fiver for the gasket.

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Wow... thanks chaps, nice to know I'm not alone, Phil, having seen those pics and knowing what I'm like at loosing that all important "wooopy cam flange" I will probably take you up on that....

First part went OK, it bashed into failsafe at every start, reset OK then did it again, got on the motorway and took it up to 50, into neutral, engine off and restart, slight pressure to get the brake light on and back into drive, it dropped into 5th and stayed there the whole way......

There's about 2miles of normal road this end of the motorway and it behaved itself then.... can't see it lasting....

Will do a lot of reading this week and probably whip the box out middle of next week....

Will keep you posted....

Cheers Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

RRPhil

I've PM'd you with a few pre-build questions....

Cheers Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

you are a brave man pete

I sent Phil a few questions by PM but as he pointed out they are better on this thread to help out others in the future, so here they are.... Good call Phil...

My questions

Thanks for your kind offer of doing the valve body, it was the one bit I was apprehensive about, looking at that manual the box itself doesn't look as daunting as I thought... I do have a few questions before I start if that's OK, I like to have some idea where I'm going before I dive in...

1. Do you need all the special tools for the job or can you work round them?

2. Mines done 132,000 miles so I take it it will want most, if not all wear parts changed, do they do a kit, and where do you get it from?

3. I use it off road and it gets some hard use in low box, are there any upgrades that would make it better or stronger?

4. Who is best to get a new/recon TC from.

RRPhils answers...

1. Apart from something to compress the clutch springs (when you get to that stage you can probably fabricate something out of bits of pipe and stuff) there aren’t really any special tools required provided you have Torx T27, T30 & T40 bits.

2. Generally you’ll find very little that wears. For example, you usually find that the clutch friction plates measure exactly the same thickness as brand new ones, even after 100k+ miles. This is because the control system is so sensitive to unplanned clutch slip that it drops the transmission into failsafe the moment anything untoward happens. For that reason I would recommend that you only buy the overhaul kit for now (ZF part number 1058 298 022, approx. £125) which contains just gaskets and seals. Any other parts I would buy only once you have the transmission apart and you know that you need them. There are only eight approved ZF parts suppliers in the UK :

http://www.zf.com/eu/content/en/great_brit...rs_uk.html

I use both JPAT and Sussex Auto Parts.

3. Using your transfer box in low range doesn’t put any more strain on your transmission. I’m not aware of anyone that produces upgraded parts for the 5HP24 and I don’t personally see a need for any.

4. I would use one of the main ZF suppliers to re-manufacture your torque converter e.g. JPAT or Sussex Auto Parts – it’s a specialist job due to the design of the lock-up clutch. Cost is generally around the £250 mark. Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

Sorry, that link for the ZF official part suppliers doesn't seem to be working. Hopefully this one does :

http://www.zf.com/eu/content/en/great_brit...rs_uk.html

Phil

Good luck pete. I really admire you having a go.
greg.

By far the worst part is getting the transmission out of the car and then back in again. Rebuilding the transmission is the easy bit. I’ve attached the later instructions which leave out having to remove the viscous fan and rear propshaft (shortening the time from 5.4 hours to 4.7 hours! – that’s to remove and install)

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Cheers Phil, don't have a problem taking it out, I have the use of a ramp so it's not too bad, no rush so just take it steady.... did the last one a few years back on a classic on my mates drive in November, main front seal on the autobox went so we changed that... wasn't too much fun but hey-ho....

Phil should I change the TC??? it's seems to be working OK no cattle grid symptoms at all, it locks up fine, does it need replacing or should I just reuse it?? can you tell if it's worn when it's out or does it have to be split?? Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

@Haylands, If I was doing the rebuild I would err on the safe side and get the TC refurbed/rebuilt at least. You're going to end up with a great gearbox and for the sake of £250-00 odd for the TC, it would be well worth the while getting it done. My train of thought would be that at least you know the TC won't fail just after you've got the gearbox up and running again.

Only my tuppenny worth...and I will bow to RRPhil's wisdom if he say's otherwise.

Usually you would get your own torque converter re-manufactured (they usually turn then around in just a couple of days). There’s nothing much to see from the outside as it’s a welded assembly so they have to turn off the weld to separate the two halves and then weld it back together again when the work is finished (it’s then pressure tested and balanced). The lock-up clutch in the 5HP24 TC is notorious for only lasting just over 100k miles and, as the transmission would have to come out again to replace it, I would suggest - if funds will stretch to it - that you get it re-manufactured while it’s out.

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