I've been wanting to change my transmission fluid for a while. These ZF transmissions are supposed to be "sealed for life" but I don't believe it. Sure... maybe it the life of the transmission is supposed to be 100,000 or 120,000 miles, but I'm sure the transmission will last much longer with regular transmission fluid changes.

So, over the last couple of days I changed my transmission fluid and the pan. The filter is built into the pan. And when I say "built into the pan", I mean BUILT INTO THE PAN. The filter is actually sealed into the pan and there is no way to change it without installing an entirely new pan. I suppose maybe a creative person could take a Dremel tool and cut out the filter, but seriously, it's not worth the effort.

I bought my pan from rockauto.com. I chose that pan because it was $27 cheaper than a genuine ZF pan. The ZF pan was $128 and the rockauto pan was $101. I hindsight, I wish I had just paid the extra $27. But I'm a tightwad, and I took a chance, hoping the rockauto.com pan was a genuine ZF pan. It wasn't. Here's a link to a website that sells ZF pans. I haven't used them, but for just a few dollars more, you get a genuine ZF pan. http://www.thectsc.com/index.php?p=c...&parent=8&pg=1

Overall, changing the fluid and the pan was about as difficult as I thought it would be. You definitely need a lift or 4 jack stands. You might be able to do it with 2 ramps and 2 jack stands, but it will be tight underneath the car. The older 4.2 liter cars used screws on the pan that took a T27 Torx bit. Those screws stripped out easily, so later screws used a T40 bit. Hope that your transmission uses the T40s. I stripped 2 screws on my car. Getting those screws out was the most difficult part of the project. If you don't have the tools to remove stripped screws, and you REALLY want to change your fluid, then I suggest that you just change the fluid and leave the pan in place.

When you watch the video you'll see how much easier it is if you have the proper power tools. If not for my impact wrench I'm sure I would have stripped half of the screws. Later on in this thread I'll post a list of all of the different tools I used. I'm not going to do it right now because it's 1:00 AM and I've had too much to drink (I needed it after changing the the fluid and pan).

Overall, I'd guess that this project took me about 7 hours. BUT, that includes driving to Harbor Freight to buy the screw extractor, fiddling with the video camera. Driving to the Jag dealership to buy replacement screws, etc. If I actually had everything that I needed at the start of the job (and I wasn't making a movie), I probably could have done the whole job in 3 hours.

If I had it to do over again, I would have bought 21 new Torx screws rather than just 2. When I called the Jag place he told me the screws were $3 each. but, after I got there and bull****ted with him for 20 minutes, he gave me a discount and only charged me $1.20 for the screws! (I don't know why, but people always seem to give me discounts, upgrade me to first class, hand-carry my paperwork, etc. I don't ask for it, but I chat with them for a few minutes and the next thing I know they are going out of their way for me. I don't get it. I'm a complete *****. I'm an *******. But for some reason people like me. Older women REALLY like me. I'm not even good looking! Anyway, just don't believe the parts guy at the Jag dealership when he tells you that the screws are $3 each).

Damn... I got side-tracked. If I had it to do over again I would have bought all new Torx screws and an actual ZF pan.

Some people may ask me why I didn't replace the "sealing sleeve". Well first of all, I don't know where the hell it is. Second, I look at it this way, right now the sealing sleeve isn't leaking. It's not broken. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. If I had removed the old one and installed a new one, chances are that 2 months from now the new one would be leaking. If the old one leaks two months from now, then I'll replace it then. But if I installed a new one and it started leaking in two months I'd be kicking myself for fixing something that wasn't broken.

About the transmission fluid... That deserves a whole thread of its own and I'm going to write the definitive ZF transmission fluid thread here in a day or two. But, for the purpose of this thread, Ford specifies Mercon SP fluid for use in its cars that have a ZF 6HP26 transmission. That's what I used. I'm not the least bit worried about compatibility because THAT'S WHAT FORD SPECIFIES! Sure, I could have used a different fluid, but I am absolutely certain that the Mercon SP is fully compatible with my transmission. And it only cost $6.39 per quart. I bought 10 quarts, and I have 3 left, therefore it took 7 quarts to fill up my transmission. However, I spilled about half a quart (at least) on the ground, so I'd say that you can probably get by with 7 quarts of whichever fluid you choose. You can spend $500 on that fluid from the Jag dealership which contains liquid diamonds and unobtainium from Haley's comet, or you can order Mercon SP online, which is identical to the Jag fluid except for the unnecessary diamonds, and pay $35 (plus shipping).

The video is finally done uploading to youtube. I'm going to ad some of those groovy, pop-up notes to the video tomorrow, but if you watch it before then, just be aware that this was the first time I ever changed the transmission fluid on my Jag, and WATCH OUT FOR THE FOUL LANGUAGE!

Here's the video. WARNING! It's 28 minutes long! I hope you have patience...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qL4ZhDlZAF4

And for those of you who would like to have the torque sequence for torquing the screws down, just print out this .jpg file. Taping it to the bottom of the pan was the best idea that I had. It made it soooo much easier.



And finally, here's a great document I found. This is a useful read if you're going to try this on your own. In addition to useful fluid/pan change info, it also gives you info on troubleshooting, changing the Mechtronic unit, etc.: http://www.thectsc.com/images/pdf/th...eplacement.pdf

 

By the way, my new jack stands are WAY COOL! They are aluminum and super light-weight. My old jack stands will now get relegated to the distant corner of my garage where they will only be used on rare occasions.

And before anyone tells me that it looks like my transmission was leaking before the fluid change, it wasn't. At the beginning of the video the stains you see on the pan are from when I added a liter of the special additive that eliminates the "bark" between shifts. I added the additive about 6 months ago, and it was a messy process. I got transmission fluid everywhere. That's where those stains come from.

 

Your videos are always appreciated, looking forward to checking this one out later.

Have a few more , you really deserve it

 

Thanks for this useful thread , FAQed and edited

 

Thanks Reverend! takes the guess work out for us who have yet to change fluid and O-ring, mine will be done before she goes on the road this spring.

 

Sam kudos sir!!! Job well done. I think you should leave the colorful language in, as it is part of the process.

How did your arms feel after removing and installing the 21 torx screws????

2 NOTES:
1) use anti-sieze on the 21 trans pan bolts on reinstallation,
2) for S Type owners doing this job, the trans tunnel is much, much tighter area to work in when removing the fill plug and pumping in the new ATF.

Thank you for taking the time and sharing this informative video.

 

Sam,

Thanks for taking the time and hassle to film the ZF pan & fluid change process. It really drives home how tough this task is when you're having to work on your back, especially when some of the torx pan screws decide they are going to fight you every step of the way....


Rick,

Thanks for bringing Sam's video over to the S-Type section so we can see it as well. Knowing that our S-Types have even less room in the transmission tunnel than Sam's XK does, I don't look forward to trying to stuff my gorilla hands up in there to battle that fill plug....


I surely hope that Sam does not come to regret not changing his factory ZF sleeve. With all the reports of leaking factory sleeves here on the forum over the past year or so, I believe that if you're going to go to the trouble of dropping your pan, you should install the new-and-improved sleeve while you're there. Nobody wants to have to do this job again because a lousy $15 sleeve starts leaking on you....

 

Three cheers for sam! Hip hip...hooray! Hip hip ...hooray! Hip hip...hooray!

 

Actually, since I used the impact wrench it was pretty easy to remove most of them. I bet I got 19 of them out in about 3 minutes. It was those last two that kicked my ***. And today my neck is feeling it. Laying on my side/back looking up at the transmission has made my neck sore.

No problem! I'm glad I can give back. I wouldn't have had the nerve to attempt this without all of the info I learned from you guys.

 

Sam
Awesome job! It's like they say---if you're going to walk a mine field---follow someone. If ever in Asheville I'll buy ya a beer.

Mike, 2006 XKR Conv.

 

I might take you up on that this Wednesday evening! My wife and I have decided to get out of town for a few days. Where we go depends on the weather. If it's going to be cold we're going up to the Mountains; either Asheville or Gatlinburg. If it's going to be warm we're headed to Charleston, SC.

 

Unfortunately I'm in So. California most of the week (lucky me)---if it's Friday or later give me a shout.

Mike, 06' XKR

 

Outstanding job Sam and please let us know how the Merco SP performs. Your videos and candid commentary are always appreciated.

Enjoy the road ahead.

 

Great job, Sam! Thanks for posting, and thanks Rick, for linking on the S-type.

I'm thanking God for Motorcarman. Had my daughter's 03 S done by him over Christmas and I have to say....much more enjoyable sitting visiting with Mom and Dad in front of the gas logs up in KY whilst snow and ice abound than on my back in TX with slightly milder wx re-learning a bunch of colorful vocab! THanks again Sam, it is not only a fabulous tutorial, but also a great confirmation for those of us that decided to hire it out to a trusted source! Yep...when the wife's 05 is due....I'll be offering to bring her home from McM's and take her back when it's ready!!!

 

Fantastic job, as always. Your videos are worth their weight in gold and certainly save us all a small fortune on these relatively minor jobs we can now tackle with confidence at home. Thanks!!

 

Thanks for a great post.

 

How much do videos on the internet weigh? I think that was a compliment, but hard to tell with you French dudes.

 

Hey, I might choose to live in France, but I am not - and never will be - French! Saying something is worth its weight in gold is a common British expression meaning its worth a great deal. Clearly one that didn't make it across the Pond :-)

 

LOL! I know the saying! But internet videos are weightless! That could have been a left-handed compliment.

 

Well done Sam,

That's really clear and informative, I didn't watch the whole thing but kind of skipped through, did catch most of the blue language sections though, I think it adds character.