Nope. Just did it- no reflash. Even used a valve body from a different Trans. I swapped out the valve body, the filter, the squarish seal for the valve body and the round connector one on the side.

 

Is that not the best news I have had this year? It very likely is! Thanks!

How long did it take you to do swap the valve bodies? Are there any special precautions I should know about aside from: disconnect the battery, use jack stands or a lift, and don’t drop it?

 

Leave a few bolts loose but in place when removing the pan and the valve body so you can balance it before dropping. Took me maybe 2 hours of actual work to do it. The pan bolts are VERY prone to stripping so get the pan that comes with new ones and don't use a too-small socket, make sure its a tight fit so it doesnt strip. If it does, you can drill it out no problem.

 

I understand the bolts are likely to be T-27s and the replacement bolts T-40s?

I have seen that both a metal and a plastic pan are available, yet most choose the plastic pan. Why is that?

 

As far as I know, the ZF pan is plastic, I have never heard of a metal pan.

 

Plastic has the built in filter and the metal has a replaceable filter. I prefer the plastic since there is no worry of warping etc. when installing/removing. You have to look for the metal ones but they can be had.

 

In the summer of 2019, when the wife's away, I'm planning to do an ATF change and put in the Transgo pressure relief valve for my ZF5HP24 transmission.

As I had real problems working on old bolts on the underside of previous cars (1970 Triumph and 1994 BMW), I now always get replacement bolts as you expect bolts on the underbody of the floor to be badly corroded and a real PITA. I asked for the bolts (part no. JLM888) with my filter kit and, despite what people say about grease on threads which are torqued, I'm definitely putting some grease on these.

You'll always have difference of opinions, but I would always prefer to keep the original metal pan, rather than plastic, simply for strength if I bottom out the car.

Probably a silly question - if you're not having problems with your transmission and you don't have leaks, why do this? I wouldn't fiddle with your valve body (the ones in your car!) and solenoids just for the sake of it. In Bahrain, I even found a broken gearbox, and disassembled it so I could see what I was getting into to make sure it was within my capabilities.

 

Yes and no. A reflash (replacement of the code) is likely unnecessary, but you likely will want to look into getting the adaptations reset. To my knowledge, the solenoid valves that control the flow of the trans fluid to the various clutches, etc. are controlled by pulse-width modulation. This is done to do smooth transitions from one gear to the next. There is a software procedure to make the TCM "learn" and smooth out everything. These adaptations get out of whack as the fluid ages and the clutches wear out. If you are doing a substantial maintenance, these adaptations likely need to be reset (and let the TCM learn for 100 miles). Right after new fluid is a good time to do this. You can also do a flush later (to renew even more of the old fluid as the torque converter does not empty) and do the adaptations then. SDD definitely does this, but maybe some of the handheld devices do it too (Foxwell, etc.). The procedure requires driving the car under the conditions dictated by the software, likely requiring a helper passenger, but it is nothing crazy complicated.

This 6HP26 was used on a number of vehicles, including off-road applications, I believe. The thing is that the metal pan is shaped differently, and allows one less quart of fluid. The fill procedure is also different (you are supposed to fill through a fill hole on the pan instead of the side of the trans. Unless you are not (there are conflicting posts on this). The filter is also stand-alone and can be replaced separately. To me, it is something appealing in theory, but is likely untested by Jaguar on this car, so I opted out of it. These come up on eBay periodically.

 

The bolts that hold the pan in place stick up thru the flange of the transmission into "open air" and therefore can be soaked easily with something like "blaster". I had no trouble in taking these bolts out. That was at about 103,000 miles.

 

The car is nearing 70k miles and I must have the fluid changed. I do not wish to drive this car with old fluid. I also think I have a fluid leak, but I need to confirm.


What's the procedure to reset the adaptations? Can a hard reset start the process or does that require software?

 

The ZF Adaptations Drive Cycle procedure is explained in the technical service bulletin JTB00145. I have had this procedure performed twice on my wife's 2006 XK8 to correct harsh shifting issues that developed over time (in July 2013 and again in April 2016). I did ATF drain-and-fills just prior to having each procedure done. In both cases, normal shifting patterns were restored by the combination of fresh ATF and the adaptations procedure. I paid a highly-experienced dealership $150 for the procedure both times. The car now has 118,200 miles and is shifting normally.