Leolarge

Member
Hi Again guys, I put up a post on here recently due to gearbox problem i had, Basically i had gearbox fluid and filter change along with engine service recently on my 2004 3.0D, Now as soon as i had it done i had problems with jerky changing and just not right, took it back and plugged in to find only problem was gearbox voltage low, well i was due to drop it in to them last tuesday(after easter bank holiday) when on the sunday the gearbox shat itself and the forward clutch has gone apparently, Now the garage that did the fluid / filter change have my car and have said its a £1800 bill to fix, Now is the forward clutch problem down to anythin they could have done or is it just bad luck, i went in there today as on the Bank holiday monday my mum died and when they told me the news i didnt wanna start questioning just yet as the frame of mind im in i prob would have had a massive argument and dont need that atm, Guys if i could ask your thoughts please if it could be related that would be great, Also is £1600 a normal price for a recon supply and fit ??
Cheers guys in Advance !
 
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Did they put the right fluid in the gearbox when they changed it? £1600 seems very cheap for a recon box fitted.
 
It would depend on mileage and if it had been given regular oil changes in the past, I had my box reconditioned 3 years ago at a cost of nearly 2.5k inc vat, so 1600 seems very cheap. But once it's done you have 12 month warranty just make sure you get oil changed every 30,000-40,000 miles
 
Agree with the above. Chances are the new fluid (which does have a slight deturgent effect) has cleaned the inside of the box and just brought forward the failure. Auto boxes are strange my discovery for example is "sealed for life" but I've changed the oil and found it to have just over half the required quantity needed...?! So the work you've done has probably just coinsided with the beginning of the issue.

W
 
Agree with the above. Chances are the new fluid (which does have a slight deturgent effect) has cleaned the inside of the box and just brought forward the failure. Auto boxes are strange my discovery for example is "sealed for life" but I've changed the oil and found it to have just over half the required quantity needed...?! So the work you've done has probably just coinsided with the beginning of the issue.

W

That's because a large quantity of the oil remains in the torque converter when you drain the box. You really need to change it two or three times to be sure of getting most of the old oil out.

I have just bought a TD6 which has recently had a recon gearbox fitted and the cost of the box alone was £1500, so £1800 for the complete job seems to be suspiciously cheap.
 
Cheers guys, im gonna go down to the place who quoted me £1600 for the recon box as one of the fella's in work his son works there so im gonna go enquire and ask is it a totally reconditioned box or just a salvage one cleaned up and such.
They have the box on Ebay, their user name is : qponlineltd if anyone wants to have a nose and see what you think on it.
Cheers fella's for the replys
 
Mine has just done the same which is really annoying as it came with a recon box when I bought it 18 months ago and I've only done about 12000 miles. £1600 seems to be the going rate at the moment, I' m guessing the cost has come down due to the high volume of failures. A local place to me even has them on the shelf although they are more expensive. Anyone want a 52 plate Vogue with a duff gearbox??
 
Mine has just done the same which is really annoying as it came with a recon box when I bought it 18 months ago and I've only done about 12000 miles. £1600 seems to be the going rate at the moment, I' m guessing the cost has come down due to the high volume of failures. A local place to me even has them on the shelf although they are more expensive. Anyone want a 52 plate Vogue with a duff gearbox??
One bag of midget gems (including the black one's !!!), a picture of a nun and half a ham sandwich, that's my final offer.:)
 
That's a completely different proposition!!
On a more serious note I am more than a bit hacked off and am very tempted just to get rid of the Rangey as it stands. Don't really have the time or inclination to get it sorted. Will need to arrange to get it transported to a gearbox place and back or travel and drive it back. Then I'll be thinking how long this gearbox will last.
 
A well fitted and refurbished box should last 60-80k miles....

Fit a refurbbed box with the Sonnax Valve block and the problem pretty much disappears apparently!
 
As you say, and only trying to remember the words of our Lord and master , As I understand it's the valve block leaking that reduces the pressure on the torque converter lock up clutch which causes premature clutch plate wear which puts metal debris into the transmission causing the required rebuild but if the valve block isn't repaired at the same time the reduced pressure still remains which wears the lock up clutch again only quicker now which is why the transmission needs rebuilding again a lot sooner as in 10-12 K miles.
 
A well fitted and refurbished box should last 60-80k miles....

Fit a refurbbed box with the Sonnax Valve block and the problem pretty much disappears apparently!
ant I'm on my 3rd ,the first must have been a 4.30 fri afternoon recon special ,this was stripped/refitted with a sonnax valve block after only another 100 mile with no affect as it was all wrong in the beginning, ended up swapping the whole box out again,new case,sonnax,cooler,pipes etc etc . 12,000 miles/a few years later/a few quid lighter its still working fine but tbh does have the odd twitch now & then
 
Half a bag is tempting at the moment. Can't get anyone to transport the damn thing as it's over the weight for most independents. The big boys want upwards of £600 for anything over a couple of hundred miles. It might be going on the bay of e as a repair job!!!
 
I've Been quoted £1300 for recon of my gearbox should it need it. Same guy did my Audi S6 and that was fine. I'm still suspicious that they only use a universal fluid though...............but that's just me.
 
Half a bag is tempting at the moment. Can't get anyone to transport the damn thing as it's over the weight for most independents. The big boys want upwards of £600 for anything over a couple of hundred miles. It might be going on the bay of e as a repair job!!!
Tow it down the road, phone AA/ RAC/ Green Flag (join first if you are not a member) and get them to recover you to where you want to go.;)
 
From the info i have learnt on here you must use the proper fluid in the box or it can bugger it up, Saint v8 would know more than me .
 

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