autobox problem! turbo diesel

[madmark]

write on my newly perchased auto transit , i have a problem with the gearbox , when the van is left standing for a wile ,when you start it up put it in D it wont come out of first gear ,you have to move the shifter to 1 then 2 then 3 then D then if you are lucky it will then work ok, after that it will work fine untill you let it sit for a wile say 1 hour! i have checked the oil and topped it up , i rang a gearbox place and he said it was a lazy govener in the box has anybody got any idea???? could it need just new oil and filter?????? oh the box is a A4LD

[Valsheda]

MARK , I HAD THE SAME PROBLEM WITH A AUTOMATIC 2.0L CORTINA YEARS AGO , I CHANGED THE TRANSMISION OIL AND IT WAS FINE AFTER THAT , MIGHT BE WORTH A GO AS AS A CHEAP OPTION TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS

[dan@dsfplumbing]

i had that box in my old 24v 2.9 cossie.

what did the oil look like ?? it should be clean and fresh like the day it was made and NOT smelling burnt,

definaty worth a gearbox flush as it certainly can make a world of difference especially for the torque converter and response times. Expect to pay upto £150 for that though.. it isn't a simple job.

i think you may have a lazy solenoid like said. i don't think yours is obd2 compliant is it??

[madmark]

dan what is obd2 ?????? sorry mate dont understand ,i will probly change the oil myself , the oil was low in the box ,i have toped it up ,but its looking sortof pinky browny coluor now if you just dran the oil then shurly the tourqe converter will still be full of ols oil????

[rover]

Yeah unless you flush it. You will never get it all out anyway.. I usually find out exactly how much a particular gearbox holds, then drain about 75% of it, top up again with new oil and run the engine till warm, the drop the same amount again and refill with new oil again.......its better to drop it twice cos you end up with fresher oil at the finish.

[dan@dsfplumbing]

It's the diagnostic system that can be tapped into mate to retrieve fault codes and the like. In think it's more common on post 95/96 vehicles ?? Although if the OD light isn't on then any fault codes won't be too serious imo. Although i not sure if yours has it, mine was the a4lde - the e for fully electronic.

Yeah the gearbox has to be sucked out.. every last bit they supposedly get. really a job for an autotranny specialist.

I'd let the gearbox pro's sort all of the autobox stuff. Althoughn plenty of places out there do rip you off. I paid £1100 for a recon unit in the cossy and it turned out he only replaced the forward clutch pack !!! Never got my money back either. So get a quote first from a couple of places.

[madmark]

thanks for that dan i think it has just a A4LD the oil is abit smelly and going brownish rather than pink! i only have to let it sit for around an hour then it wont go up gears again ! if you use the stick and start off in 1st then 2nd it seems to sort itself out after that!

[Nighthawk]

Automatic
4speed
Lock up
Drive

If the oil is anything other than red it's been too hot at some point, give it a change and see how it goes, if it's still bad you could have a solenoid problem or even an oil pressure problem. While the box is very simple to strip (once you get passed the valve body) it's quite complicated to diagnose without being there.

[madmark]

manythanks nighthauk its so strange as if you go up the road and it wont change just move the lever into second then it goes into second gear then put it into d then its ok! i did ring a gearbox place and he said its the governor but were is that????? the oil is not red its more brown and it smells abit but not to burnt????? i have spent to much on the van as it is and need to try and get it working ok as cheap as poss!

[dan@dsfplumbing]

should be mineral smell

i certainly aint no transit guru by any stretch of my deranged imagination but by govenor i'm sure he means solenoid ?

[madmark]

well for some reason she has now lost top gear! so i think the box is no good! the oil is brown ,there is 2 types of box i have found out today one is eletric and one is normal ,mine is eletronic type! so she will need another box or manual conversion!

[dan@dsfplumbing]

the od light should be on indicating a fault

Sounds electrical to me though. I'd see a auto specialist immediately and get it hooked up to the obd2 computer to annalise any problems

If 1st gear is engaging within a second, smoothly and the torque converter pulling nice then i'd go the repair route rather than.....

...a fully recon box supplied and fitted would be £950 from Oakdene in Nottingham. I used PH Gearboxes in Cotgrave and they were useless, made it worse the first 3 times i took it back and a rip off.

[madmark]

mate the only light i have is the engine management light but that takes a long wile to go out so it is saying there is a falt ,but its getting it pluged in ,its a nightmere there is only 1 person who can do it at my local dearler and he is always to busy!

[dan@dsfplumbing]

Got to be an auto specialist in the land of roundabouts mate..

I think that when a fault is indicated then you may loose o/d anyway so that maybe why you havn't got top gear.

You can buy the OBD2 lead and software for around £60. just need a laptop then to view everything on.

I really think the only way to move on from here imo is to get it plugged and the codes retrieved.

[madmark]

dan i will try my dearler again tommorow but they are not that helpfull at the moement!