At 112k miles, the Big Kitty is beginning to show signs of old age. Rough idle/high RPM at cold start, long hesitation and gear hunting when the pedal is put to the metal, etc.

I am taking it in for the annual maintenance and wondered if I should pay $840 now for the transmission flush, or just wait for the bad symptoms/fault codes to show up as advised by some indie shops. What would you do??

Cheers,
Wolfy

 

Hi Wolfy,

I personally recommend doing the fluid flush, transmission pan/filter and connector sleeve, but $840.00 is a substantial charge, even given the expense of ZF Lifeguard 6 transmission fluid ("Liquid Gold"). It might be worth getting a second estimate or considering doing the work yourself.

Cheers,

Don

 

I concur with DonB. Flush now but maybe a second opinion on estimate. I will say that it would be good to have someone familiar with the process. It is more than just add until the dipstick (non-existent) says stop.

Good luck.

 

Thanks guys,

$800-850 seems to be the going rate here in the greater Los Angeles area, including my regular mechanic (former master tech at Rusnak Jaguar of Pasadena). I'll just bite the bullet now to avoid any grief later on.

Cheers,
Wolfy

 

+1 change filter/pan, sleeve and possible upgrade to T40 pan bolts and a BIG +1 on getting a 2nd opinion. Should be in the $400 to $500 range to handle the above items.

Pretty straightforward...

 

i was wondering same thing.... about having tranny serviced.


just bought my '04 XJ8 with 92k


1-2 is short and jerky, 2-3 flares pretty heavy, 3-4 flares a little, the rest are rock solid


although not all the time... sometimes it shifts perfectly

 

OK, so I just called another old-time indie shop (Al's Jaguar in Torrance, 30 years in business) and he flatly told me don't bother to change it if there's no problem. He said the issues that I am experiencing could be corrected with a 'transmission reprogramming'.... huh? Does this make any sense??

 

Hi Randy,

Congratulations on your XJ8!

You might do a little research using the forum search function. Several members have mentioned rough shifts that were not solved by a fluid/filter change, but were solved by reflashing the programming of the transmission control module (TCM), which requires the dealer-level service system (JLR SDD). Some members have had actual internal tranmsission issues.

My advice would be to have your TCM reflashed, and if that resolves the shifting issues, then do the fluid flush, pan/filter and connector sleeve change. Hopefully that's all you'll need, but if the TCM reflash doesn't resolve the problem, you may need some internal repairs done to your gearbox.

BTW, the TCM is built into the tranmission itself, and it has an adaptive programming feature that "learns" your driving style to "anticipate" when to change gears based on your patterns. My TCM has learned to be ready at any instant for the accelerator pedal to be mashed to the floor to pass one of the many oblivious texting/drinking/smoking/daydreaming/oh-yeah-I-almost-forgot-I'm-driving-a-car boneheads we have in Tennessee. If you only occasionally need a sudden gear change, you may be contradicting the patterns your TCM has learned, but hopefully a reflash will help.

More knowledgeable members who have dealt with shifting problems may have better advice.

P.S. Wolfy, I must have been typing the above when you posted your most recent message - yes, you probably should have your TCM reflashed also. Somehow I had missed your mention of gear hunting in your original post.

Cheers,

Don

 

On my old XJR I was experiencing a vague shift at 2nd to 3rd at 50 k if I recall. I did a trans flush with Mobile 1 (yeah, yeah I heard it all before) and presto problem fined.


I drove the car for another 10k with no issues. Based on this I would go with a prophylactic flush or change.

 

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/xj-x350-x358-xj6-xj8-xjr-28/transmission-fluid-90-000-miles-138078/

just went through this.


Here is what you can expect at 90k.


Flush now, buy the fluid and parts from CTSC. Just pay for labor. 800$ is way over the top. Make sure to flush 12qts.

Fluid, pan, sleeve, labor, tcm reprogramming put me at 550$.

As far as "don't change the fluid unless you have a problem", again have a read of the post I linked in. You can see that at 90k the fluid is pretty tired. I would think 150k is the lifetime of the fluid.

At 6-8k for a new transmission, change the darn fluid.

Sorry to keep editing, but if you need the bolts in a pinch for the pan, and don't want to pay Jaaaag prices, call Hyundai they use the same transmission in a few of there cars.

 

Thanks... it's my second Jag... have '95 XJ6 with 219K. it's been pretty beat up by a couple young male drivers... all the suspension bushings need replacing but the engine and transmission are still strong

thanks again, I did search using the word transmission and found quite a few posts with people describing similar shifting patterns but not many describing what fixed their problem

I'm in Chattanooga... if you're nearby be glad to meet up sometime

 

Hi Randy,

I'm not that far away. We have a number of members in Tennessee - maybe when the weather warms up we should try to organize a Saturday get-together. Plenty of scenic drives to choose from in our beautiful state!

Cheers,

Don

 

Wolfy take it to a transmission specialist one that knows ZF gearboxes

You wouldn't go to an Optometrist if you had a hole in your tooth would you!

I just looked up these guys Torrance Transmission Service - Torrance - Torrance, CA, United States | Yelp up they are in your neighbourhood 800 to 850 seems like a lot of money

I had mine flushed and serviced at 165,000 kilometres $500au car had a full dealer service history took it to my local transmission guy he has a lot of experience with ZF boxes they come standard in ford falcons over here in Australia he told me my box had never been touched so much for dealer service history

 

I've had similar issues with my 99 XJ8 and it has been sitting for some time (approx. six months). I've read on the forum sometimes these symptoms can show with a bad battery. I love my Jags but I am no mechanic. On my previous Jag I spent hundreds on a diagnostic at the local dealer to have them "find out EVERYTHING wrong with the vehicle" only to have them provide a solution for only one of my problems and return my vehicle with missing parts. Since then I've been browsing the forum so I don't go into a repair shop blind. How can I find someone to give me an accurate assessment without being taken advantage of?

 

My local independent recommends fluid and filter change at between 50-60k miles. I had mine done at about 65k. Car drives nice, but I think I need the TCM reflashed to cure some harsh changes. Of course there may be more to it, but the car still drives OK and I don't want to spend money unnecessarily

 

A fluid change/flush is a preventative measure. If you start to get codes, it's too late! Definitely, change the fluid now.

 

Thank you for all your feedback!

Besides the "SEALED FOR LIFETIME" argument that I commonly hear from these shops (too much work and hassle for them?) Another argument is "NEW FLUID CREATES NEW SYMPTOMS"...where some mysterious microparticles would come loose from the old parts to sabotage the tranny.

Thanks doc for the shop recommendation. I think even if I pay $800 it's still better than a $6k transmission.

Cheers,
Wolfy

 

today I noticed an engine miss and then the check engine light came on. using my scanner tool, determined plug misfire. so moved the coil to a different plug and that plug misfired so I deduce the coil is bad.


BUT it makes me wonder if the coil was weak and causing slight misfires that might be the cause of my odd transmission shifts... sometimes the shifts were perfect and then sometimes I would get a hard shift or even an unexpected down shift... which could happen if engine misfired ?


new coil should be here tomorrow.... i'll be interested to see the results.


just a thought

 

Go with fluid and filter change.

My XJR has 187k miles. It was never changed. I did first change (oil and pan). It improve the problem but still had issue.

Rather than bite bullet for new transmission. I did a full flush. Provlem all solved.

 

finally got around to calling dealer about TCM reflash and tranny flush


dealer in my town said "we only reflash TCM if it's been replaced" and "we never flush transmission, it's sealed for life"


I asked how I know if fluid is low... response "you have to sign agreeing to be charged for 3 quarts of fluid at $60/quart and then we put fluid in and see how much comes out... if 3 quarts comes out, you didn't need any"


so my dealer is not cooperative with the reflash and flush strategy to address harsh shifts on 1-2, 2-3 etc.


try another dealer?