Littelwill

Littelwill

Well-Known Member
Hi my names Will I'm new here, I don't think this has been covered before. I've just tryed to change my p38 auto box oil and whilst layed under my truck I notice That my gear box sump doesn't have the torx bit level plug instead it has a 30mm bolt with a silver ball inside it? Is this normal? I put a spanner on it but it wouldn't budge. Ad I don't want to damage the aluminium sump. Help would be great thank you.
 
Littelwill said:
Hi my names Will I'm new here, I don't think this has been covered before. I've just tryed to change my p38 auto box oil and whilst layed under my truck I notice That my gear box sump doesn't have the torx bit level plug instead it has a 30mm bolt with a silver ball inside it? Is this normal? I put a spanner on it but it wouldn't budge. Ad I don't want to damage the aluminium sump. Help would be great thank you.
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First off the sump is not alluminium, it's steel. I don't know what you are undoing, but it's not the level plug which is on the front of the sump unless your car has a dipstick, in which case you fill via the dipstick tube.
 
Thanks for the reply this bolt/plug is on the front of the sump about half way up. It's facing the engine if you like I can't see anything else on the sump except the drain plug at the bottom.
 
Littelwill said:
Thanks for the reply this bolt/plug is on the front of the sump about half way up. It's facing the engine if you like I can't see anything else on the sump except the drain plug at the bottom.
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Whatever it is, it sure aint normal.
 
It could be a home made dip stick I guess
 

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That is what it is. Someone has removed the dipstick and blanked it off. Follow the procedure for filling the later box in RAVE.
 
Has it got a dipstick? looks like someone has cobbled up something to blank off the hole. Probably the only think they had to blank it off was a double male connector and used a ball bearing and a female union to seal it. If the dip stick is missing, how are you going to heck the level?:)
 
tomcat59alan said:
Has it got a dipstick? looks like someone has cobbled up something to blank off the hole. Probably the only think they had to blank it off was a double male connector and used a ball bearing and a female union to seal it. If the dip stick is missing, how are you going to heck the level?:)
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Same way as you do on later cars without the dipstick:rolleyes:
 
tomcat59alan said:
take it they have a level plug as well then:rolleyes:
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Cars from MY 1999 don't have a dipstick just a level plug. Drain oil. Refit drain plug. Remove level plug. Fill until oil runs out, start engine. Move several times through all gears. Place in park. Top up until oil runs from level plug, replace level plug.
 
wammers said:
Cars from MY 1999 don't have a dipstick just a level plug. Drain oil. Refit drain plug. Remove level plug. Fill until oil runs out, start engine. Move several times through all gears. Place in park. Top up until oil runs from level plug, replace level plug.
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Morning wammers, thanks for the info, is it a separate level plug because looking at the photo the OP posted you would not get much fluid in before it ran out. I don't have this problem, mine's a manual, my problem was the £2 spring pins that hold the release fork to the pivot shaft shearing. Who thought of that set-up?:D:D
 
I would suggest one tweak to the routine suggested by Wammers: check that you can undo the filler plug before you undo the drain... Long story but I once drained a gearbox only to find that the filler plug was well and truly fixed and rounded by the previous owner... a simple job turned into an unexpected saga.
 
Just go for it, after looking at Rave and your photo in its correct orientation ie. turned 90 degrees clockwise! you don't have a problem. Change filter as suggested:D
 
Moonfire said:
I would suggest one tweak to the routine suggested by Wammers: check that you can undo the filler plug before you undo the drain... Long story but I once drained a gearbox only to find that the filler plug was well and truly fixed and rounded by the previous owner... a simple job turned into an unexpected saga.
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With a square plug in a diff or the manual box, yes i will live with that. But with the level plug on the P38 auto box only two things can happen, it either comes undone or you rip the boss out of the oil pan. If you round that off you have done something verging on the impossible. :);)
 
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