What is the deal with this tranny???? Every CL seller I have talked to has had to rebuild this tranny before 100k. I have a potential car that has had "downshift" issues and new tranny is likely in it's future.

Without being an owner and having all the info at hand...what is a rebuilt tranny going to cost me on this? What is the issue that causes these trannies to tank like this and what can be done to avoid it?

Thank you!!!

 

We're not seeing this reported (except by you and maybe someone else?) but similarly very few STRs have 100K. There again, many owners seem to do no trans maintenance at all, not even changing the ATF.

 

So what about the downshift issue? Is this something that an ATF swap will fix or is this something that is going to require a rebuild.

 

Without rather more details all we know is what you've said, which wasn't much to go on. Does it sound like any of the issues others have reported / in TSBs / with fix(es) already on here such as in stickies?

BTW, same box as Audi, BMW etc use in case that helps you.

 

Is there an ATF leak? These ZF 6HP26 six-speed transmissions hold 10 litres of fluid. When they've lost more than 2 litres of fluid due to leakage (almost always at the notorious electrical connector sleeve), they begin exhibiting problems and eventually burn up the fluid and fail if the problem is not discovered and the ZF given a drain-and-fill along with a new sleeve....

 

He hasn't even got a car with that box

 

His title says "S-Type R". So I assume he is looking at one....

 

It's a pretty solid transmission and a lot of shops don't know how to work on them. I believe many are rebuilt when it's not needed. It's not easy to check the fluid level so some are driven around with low fluid which of course will make it shift funny.

Now if you have an interest do some searching on the "Lurch". This is a web site that describes in detail the funny shifting that the 6 speed ZF can exhibit.

My 2005 STR is at 101K and the transmission shifts perfect with a little bit of the Lurch now and again. It’s just part of the ZF tranny and Jaguar is not the only brand with this unit that has issues.

So no they will last much longer than 100K. Maintenance is the key!!
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In my experience, shopping for STR's in my area, a great deal many of them are higher mileage. And a great deal of those have taken the dealers 'sealed for life' approach to transmission service, which pretty much has the transmission on its last legs by 100k miles. Doesn't help that the ZF lifeguard fluid is pretty expensive; probably turns even more previous owners from having serviced it...

Figure $5-8k for the full job.


I like this transmission, but its not without its quirks. The 1-2 and 2-1 lurch issue, is pretty common, but does it more on some cars than others... This has nothing to do with the condition of the trany, as much as it relates to the TCM adaptations it seems...

Buy one with its transmission already done, and stay on top of the service from there on out.

 

I changed my transmission fluid and pan/filter 2 days ago.. my car no longer lurches or sticks in gear, which basically happened every time I touched the throttle. Come to think of it its like driving a brand new car.

 

+1 on trying a full service to include the filter / pan & oil of course using the correct fluids.

At around £300 in the UK it has to be the first and cheapest step to a possible fix.

Had mine done at 62k and now getting a new rear diff too .......sealed for life doesn't work, I think we all agree.

 

Just a guess but Craigslist and S Type R leads me to think he saw ad here for an 04, cheap due to a tranny issue.

 

Even Jaguar say it's not sealed for life - and have done for some years now. (How long it'll take their franchises to notice.... a long time?)

 

In a March 2010 phone conversation I had with ZF Tech Support, they essentially said that they recommend a fluid change on the six-speed unit at between 80,000 and 100,000 miles. They also acknowledged that ATFs other than Lifeguard 6 may work just fine in these units but because they had never tested any ATFs other than Lifeguard 6, they could not recommend any ATF other than Lifeguard 6....

I attempted to phone them again a few months ago to ask if they had any updates for us, but the toll-free number that worked in 2010 has since been disconnected....

 

sounds like softwear and drive cycle adoptions would help 8/10 that is the issue also making sure the fluid is filled to the correct level