I have a 2005 LR3 HSE with approx. 60,000 miles.

After reading the many posts about flushing and changing the transmission fluid I asked my LR dealer if I should do this.

I was told that they don't recommend it and they say that LR does not either.

They informed me that doing this can cause the transmission to prematurely fail.

They said that the particulates in the transmission that gather over time from normal wear and tear actually assist the clutches to engage properly and that the computer adapts to the accumulated particulates.

By removing these the clutches will not engage as well causing slippage and gear change difficulties.

Are there any seasoned LR Technicians ( Dave ) that can offer me some advice/guidance?

I was about to have this done now I am afraid to.

 

The link below is to a number of files related to changing the transmission oil. You are correct to be fearful as most LR dealers do not know how to change the transmission oil in an LR3 - the story you got is typical of what they say.

You will have to find an independent transmission shop that can spell ZF. By independent, I do not mean one of the chain owned transmission places - I mean a run down place on the east side of town that has a pack of dead Mercedes and Audi's strewn about. These guys know ZF as that is the reason for the dead Mercs etc.

DISCO3.CO.UK Photo Gallery - ZF 6HP26 Automatic Transmission in LR3

Changing the oil will cost you maybe 800 dollars - more than 500 and less than a thousand is the usual range.

Use only the LR part number oil as it does matter and the incremental cost is small compared to the labour - they have to lift the engine tranny a bit to do the filter change out.

80,000 miles and five years is a good change interval for highway driving; in Australia in the outback, they change more often but here with mostly highway or city driving, 50,000 or every five years is probably good.

The bit about leaving the oil in is when the tranny is already shot - new oil and it will not operate. This is why guys selling a vehicle with a defective tranny add iron filings to the tranny oil. In your case, change the oil so that this never need be the solution.

 

X2 on above and ZF. If Rover says you should not do it then why is it on their maintenance schedule for 10 years or 150,000 miles? Will there be just the right magic quantity of particles until 149,999 miles; no matter how or where it is driven? Do brand new trucks get a handful of pixie dust to make tranny work when it is new and "slippery"?

BTW - there is a belt on the LR2 that may need attention about now as well.

Maintenance schedule attached from the shop manual.

 

I talked to my local Rover dealer about changing the tranny fluid, and other than the ridiculous price of $1,000, he didn't even know that ZF made the transmission.

These are the same clowns that told me the 2006 LR3 doesn't have an ignition capacitor.

Too scary for me!

 

The fluid is rated for about 75k miles. If you ever get an overheat warning, you need to change the fluid.

The "flush" is very commonly done in the UK, Australia, etc. and I have never heard any negative reports afterwards. I looked into it, and might have even tried it, however couldn't find anyone with the proper equipment to my satisfaction.

For those who choose to go the 150k route, I can supply new transmissions at a decent price compared to the dealer price.

I don't recall the labor price when I changed mine last, I bought my own fluid, pan, filter, and the great independent changed it all for me. I am very confident it was nowhere near 1000.00 total. The fluid is pricey, but it is worth it in the long run.

Happy 4x4'ing

 

Yep, and the differentials could use new fluid as well. The LR3 weighs more than a D1, more HP, and yet has 1/3 the oil capacity in the diff, and they expect it to go 150,000 miles between fluid renewal. And it is a $2200 part, with 22 ounces of fluid. All these "high miles" fluid changes are to help the cost of ownership in early years for the lease dept and the sales weasels. BTW, when your truck fails at 149,000; see if that sales weasel can get you a free differential......

Moral is change fluids like voting in Chicago - early and often.

 

The big concern with changing the trans fluid comes from changing it to fix a problem. If the clutches are starting to slip, then what you were told about the fluid 'helping' the clutches is correct (new fluid will be more 'slippery' then fluid that has clutch material in it, and will slip more in a failing system)

Personally, I will not preform one, at a customer's request, without having the vehicle for a cold start and doing a full test drive prior to preforming it, so that I can verify the transmission is not already compromised. Not saying that I don't trust my customers, just that most people start thinking about maintenance once there is a reason to, not before, and I have been burned(unintentionally) on this in the past.

If the transmission is ok, and there has not been any abnormal shifting, and this is being done for maintenance, it is absolutely a good idea to change it out. I recommend changing the filter/pan at the same time, and recommend doing so ~120k miles, if not sooner. A simple fluid change, or flush, can be preformed without changing the pan, which is much less labor intensive. If changing the pan, change the valve body connector sleeve(even if it's not leaking) to the updated style.

I was hesitant at first, and used an employee's truck as the guinea pig, but my shop has switched from using factory (or ZF branded) transmission fluid, to now using BG full synthetic undyed ATF, which meets all the right specs. I have noticed smoother shifting(how much was this fluid vs just new fluid, not real sure), and have not had any issues with it at all, and it is about half the price of the factory stuff.

 

Transmission is shifting just fine, so this is preventative maintenance. I checked with the dealer and they show no record of it being changed there. The previous owner might have had it done elsewhere, but I just don't know.

Where would one obtain the BG fluid?

 

http://www.bgfindashop.com/locator/index-mobile.php

 

Thanks everyone for the advice - I really appreciate the assistance.

Gordon