Good Afternoon, all.

I was inquiring on the best procedure for a tranny flush on an XK8. Independent mechanic? Anything special I should know? Thanks!

 

An independent is fine but make sure they use the proper fluid and have the correct equipment to pull the fluid and re-fill the tranny. It's a sealed transmission so the fluid must be drained and re-filled through the cooler lines.

 

I agree with Ken. I just had my 99xk8 serviced (107,000 mi) on Tuesday by an independent. I know him and trust his judgment. He rebuilt the trans on my 93xjs and did a great job then. Just know who you are dealing with and find out if they had done any others and get recomendations if necessary.

Good Luck!

 

An independent transmission shop can do the flush, but you may want to bring your own fluid.

’97 – ’02 XK8's use the ZF transmission, model 5HP24, which calls for the use of Esso LT 71141. There are alternatives that are rated to be the same as the Esso, but the Esso is OEM with the XK8. To flush the entire transmission takes about 11 liters, but realistically, with the fluid left in the torque converter and other parts, you may only replace about 6 liters.

Unfortunately, the Esso is not a common fluid you can just buy at Auto Zone or Pep Boys. The independent I went to quoted $65 per liter. I got some on my own. I still have five liters left. I was going to put up on the private classified thread for $125 for the five liters. If you want them, let me know.

 

I would suggest that you should be personally confident that the tech understands the refill proceedure. The transmission must be filled to overflowing at the fill hole at no more than 130 degrees and the transmission must be shifted between forward and reverse while filling.

A local transmission shop and the local Ford dealer declined to change the fluid. I did find a indy that had learned on changing BMW transmission fluids but had never done a Jaguar.

I wish there was a simple, available proceedure to flush the system like I have done on my other Ford vehicles at regular intervals. A drain and refill only replaces about 70% of the fluid.

 

I should clarify that this was a Transmission Repair Shop and not just a garage repair shop. The gasket, filter and fluid came from Jaguar! Tom the owner would not do it any other way.

 

I'm in the middle of a trans repair (A drum) fialure. I'm going to use mobil 1 synthetic ATF, it's only $10.00 per liter, and it meets the esso spec. Buy a bug sprayer to pump the fluid in and save yourself a few burns. Drain the pan, measure what comes out, and put the same amount of new fluid back in. Drive it several miles, then drain it again, change the filter, replace the gasket and refill it per the proceedure (you'll need a digital infrared thermometer). The bug sprayer will save you lots of pain. Because the 5HP24 doesn't have a dipstick tube, you need to fill it through the plug on the passenger side rear of the transmission, basically put in fluid till it runs out, fire it up and get it up to operating temp (100 deg), cycle through the gears and top it up till it runs out again (while running in park). The hot fluid will test your pain threshold as you put the plug back in with the engine running. The good half inch of working room between the fill hole and the very hot exhaust pipe will make you want to buy some good gloves.... enjoy...