So the last thing I want to do on the new-to-me 1999 XK8 is drain, filter, and fill of the transmission.

I'm curious why mine has a BMW sticker though. Did they all have this? I know the transmissions were common across multiple vehicles, but this green sticker is just making me wonder if the transmission has been swapped or replaced at some point in its history.

There's no documentation of it having being done and I still plan to drain and fill regardless, but just curious if they all had this or if this is truly indicative of a replacement (or possibly just a junkyard pan from some point).

I can't see the Type Plate as it's hidden, but I can see enough that it's green.

Second question - the little plastic inspection cover thing over the torque converter on the bottom of the transmission crumbled to pieces. Does anyone know a part number, or the correct name, so I can find a replacement somehow?

 

There should be a VIN sticker on the left rear corner of the gearbox above the pan.
It SHOULD match the car VIN but someone might have replaced the gearbox in the past?

 

I'm sure that the gearbox must have been replaced with the same ZF 5HP24 gearbox from a BMW at some point.

Richard

 

Sweet. I hope for the expense it was a low mileage one. Probably hoping for too much that the pressure regulator or A drum was replaced...

 

Why not do the pressure regulator fix while you have the pan off? It's not difficult, just messy.

I didn't realize about the VIN sticker on the trans until I replaced mine last month. The replacement had one, but the trans I pulled out did not. I found the torque converter to have been painted, too, so somebody installed some cheap-*** rebuild, or some junkyard trans with a new converter, at some time in the past. None of the records I received with the car indicated this. Based on my experience, I'm pretty sure it was the latter - a junk trans.

Cross your fingers and hope for the best.

 

I probably will. The transmission was removed to do the heater hoses in March 2024 so it would have had fresh fluid (I'm assuming) at that time - only 2,000 miles ago.

Unfortunately there's no info on when the transmission was replaced with a BMW-unit.

My thinking was to do a drain and pan removal now, put in fresh fluid, drive it for awhile, and then do another drain -and filter- change in a 1000 miles or so and at that time do the pressure regulator.

I haven't driven it more than 10 miles to even see how the transmission acts.

The owner I bought it from only had it four years but at some point someone did the tensioners though it wasn't noted in any service records so someone has taken very good care of the car.