97 discovery transmission

[mikefal]

Hi i have a 97 land rover discovery and i was going to change the transmission fluid and filter, it has 150,000 miles on it and i don't think the other owner ever changed it. the reason i was thinking of changing it was it was really foamy and a reddish brown color the other day when i check it after a 200 mile trip (plus it had a little vibration when you would first pull out no sure if that was the transmission because today it does not do that ) i know most people say if it was never changed leave it alone but i am afraid of it over heating. any recommendations

[Rob P]

None here. I have 110k miles on mine and have no idea if the fluid was ever changed. I'm almost afraid to look at it.

[pushngo]

I,ve never changed it in any of mine and you are right the general feeling is if it hasn't been changed regularly than don't change it...ever

If it is brown you may already have an issue Changing it may bring it to a head

[03springer]

I was always under the assumption that you can change the fluid and filter, but don`t flush the tranny! When you flush it, that is what stirs up all the gunk in there and causes problems.
When I get around to it thats what I`m going to do.

Bob

[Rob P]

When I get around to it thats what I`m going to do.

Bob

An elderly friend of mine had a round Tuit, she passed away though and I don't know what became of it.

[03springer]

Huh:confused:

[mikefal]

what is the reason for not changing the fluid if it was never changed before does it just gum up the filter as it breaks down the gunk or is there another reason

[Rob P]

I would imagine sediment like dirt, metal etc would collect in the pan and when changing it that would get stirred up and get into the inner workings of the tranny. Although, does the pan have a drain plug or do you have to drop the pan to drain it? If you are dropping the pan then all the junk would get out before stirring.

I'm not a tranny expert but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

[Tom109]

On our '96 D1 I changed the fluid/filter every 30k. I started to loose the clutch packs around 95k miles. I replaced the ZF with one from a '97 D1 - only 70k on it, installed a new filter and changed the fluid twice. It's been running/shifting like new for almost 50k miles. I'm not going to touch the fluid - it's at the proper level and a nice red ATF color.

I kept my old ZF + torque converter, either for a project when I've nothing else to do (yeah, right...) or a future core exchange. I also caught one of those 4WD shows on TV the other day and they rebuild an auto trans. It didn't look that difficult. Maybe one day this ZF will end-up in a wife-friendly Series...

Tom P.

[mikefal]

anyone know a good shop to get my transmission rebuild at in the lancaster or allentown area

[03springer]

Landis Transmission. Talk to Tim. Really great guy.
717-656-7369

[Tom109]

I'd consider changing the fluid, and even the filter, before getting the trans rebuilt. Five years ago I was looking at $1k just to open the ZF, with pending final diagnosis and cost.

And if they are original to your vehicle, replace the transmission cooler lines too.

Tom P.

[pushngo]

Trevor found a guy who will ship a rebuilt by a ZF shop for $1100 + 1 way shipping like $165 I know of a few people who have had issues with local rebuild shops and ZFs

[Rob P]

Broadway Transmission in Red Lion PA. My X-brother in law works there, small shop. He does most of the rebuilds and has been doing Trannys (keep it clean guys) since he was just out of high school which has been 25+ years.

[tikicar]

The reason most say do not change the fluid if it has never been changed is because of the new fluid. Trans fluid is a very strong cleaning fluid. With induction of a bunch of new fluid it can start to destroy the seals and was off the clutch plates too much. This is what all the old transmission guys hove told me over the years. They have always suggested draining the fluid, replace the filter and strain the old fluid through a paint strainer like from a auto paint store and put back in the old fluid. If you need to add some new to top off the old that is fine. If you do replace or rebuild the trans I suggest removing the trans cooler to properly flush it and adding an external trans filter in line. The stock type trans filter on all cars are very poor.

[Rob P]

Thanks Tiki, That actually makes sense when you put it that way.

[Frank84]

I do most of the maintenance on my dad's DII for him. He's got just over 280k on the original trans. Fluid and filter was changed every 30-50k miles. Swapped over to synthetic at 90k and it was barely noticeable but it did shift slightly smoother when cold.

[pushngo]

I have several used D1 tranis here you can have for $300 ea I don't know if that would work for you