Just bought a 97 disco. Transmission will only let me start in 1st and once im going everything works fine until i come to a stop then i must go back to 1st to start moving again. Online Manuel says i have "no 2 freewheel" not sure what that means. just put in some Lubegaurd but hasn't helped yet. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

What online manual are you referring to?
Your transmission is toast.
It might be able to be saved with a professional flush and filter change.

 

the manuel is at landroverresource.com you say its toast yet if i shift like a manual transmission it works fine

 

The manual at that same spot also says:

normal pressure - fried clutches (replace/rebuild, maybe limp around for a while on Lucas tranny fix)

No pressure - blocked filter or failed pump (usually you can hear the pump screaming from no fluid) - you can change filter and fluid, will take more than 15 minutes (part of frame must be unbolted and such to remove pan, which is why few filters are ever changed.

Low pressure - blocked filter or sticky regulator -again something that fluid change and filter will improve.

So like Spike says, 2 outa three ain't bad. There is a plug you un-bolt, and screw in hose for your 300 PSI gauge. Normal pressure, depending on rpm and gear can be up to 150 PSI.

If you can't get to the filter, and are forced to drive as is, consider a fluid change three times, a few days apart, to flush out what is left in the torque converter. And a bottle of Lucas tranny slip fix, which is increases the pressure, making a marginal transmission work again. For some period of time, but not forever.

 

Thanks for the info. I was interpreting the manual when it said "no drive" it meant if it did not move in 1st gear therefor it did not have any info other than no 2 freewheel. That makes sense now, so on to pressure check thanks again!

 

You have a broken sprag. When it you it down in 1st, a clutch applies and bypasses the sprag, allowing it to pull foward. You will need it rebuild ASAP, as it was not designed to pull the vehicle, only to work with the sprag to provide engine braking.

 

Another member suggested fluid and filter change may take care of it as if it had a sticky valve or something, you disagree? what is average price for rebuild? Am I making matters worse by driving it?

 

The Ashcroft website (Ashcroft Transmissions - 4HP22 FAQ's) may provide some extra light on this:

I have a 4sp ZF, when I select “D” the vehicle won’t move, when I select “1″ the vehicle moves off. I can then select “D” and continue to drive normally. If I stop I have to start in first again. Why?
A sprag clutch has “inverted” and will need replacing. No further damage will occur if you continue to drive but you will need to select “1″ every time to start moving. A rebuild is required to correct this.

And:

A common problem with all ZF 4HP22/24 boxes is the failure of the one way "sprag" clutch. Once the cams in this one way sprag clutch "flip" the unit will slip both ways resulting in the vehicle only pulling off with the shifter in position "1" not "D" and driving OK when shifted up to position 2,3 and D until you stop then you need to pull it back to "1" to start off again. It is not feasible to change this unit in each rebuild as this one part is approx £ 400. By disassembling the "sealed unit" we were able to examine the profile of the cams and understand how they work, from here the challenge was to find another cam from another type of autobox that would fit and had the correct profile to make the unit stronger by not allowing the cams to flip. After quite a lot of searching we found one, "re-cammed" some of these clutches and thoroughly tested them, we have not had one fail since. This is an example of how we are able to use our engineering background to understand a problem and cost effectively make the unit stronger without having to raise our prices.


So while it can be driven while you save up for another tranny (rebuild or used), seems like your right hand will have something to do.

 

I would be curious to see how long the transmission lasts by "bypassing" the clutch at each take off. IMHO, the clutch wasn't designed to pull the full load of the vehicle, that was the job of the sprag, so if it is really doing any damage or not, is hard to say.

 

So with all the info here is it eminent that a fluid and filter change would be helpful but not solve the prob?