Recent new 75 CDT owner - autobox oil change

Londonsteve · 17th October 2020, 12:35

Hi all,

I bought my 75 CDT (not sure if it's an 'i' or not - first registered 07/03) about 6 weeks ago and it's a wonderful car. In fact, I'm kicking myself for not having bought one sooner! They've been so affordable for so long, I feel like I've missed out by jumping on a 17 year old car that has unfortunately led a hard life in recent years, but carefully maintained before that.

So far it has had a fair bit of work, starting with an oil and filter change, AC gas recharge during which time it was diagnosed that the electric cooling fan had failed, so the front end had to come off the car and I had one of Jules' fans fitted, while an intercooler hose and AC condenser was renewed at the same time. Jules kindly supplied some new intercooler seals which were replaced at the same time as the hose. The plenum chamber covers were removed, the chamber was vacuumed clean of debris and they confirmed there was no evidence of standing water having been there recently, although they didn't test the hoses or prod something in to poke them clean. Was this perhaps a mistake? Last but not least, it had a new bonnet alarm switch.

I procured 5 litres of genuine Land Rover ATF402 and we set about changing the autobox oil. My garage are Citroen and Peugeot specialists, working mainly on the rare classic and esoteric stuff. I've always had hydropneumatic Citroens of some description so they are my go-to garage and are very helpful.

They had never done the job before and checked on Autodata before starting. The gearbox wasn't misbehaving but at 101k miles, it had done a fair amount of mileage, I couldn't be sure when the gearbox oil was last replaced and I wasn't entirely happy with the shift quality. It would shudder slightly when first entering 'D', some degree of shudder was also tangible while holding the car stationary at the lights with the gearbox in Drive and the downshifts when slowing to a halt were not smooth, particularly when re-entering 1st gear. Changing up was fine and there was no flaring between gears or any serious misdemeanours.

With the box at ambient temperature, after a 15 mile drive to the garage but having had 20 minutes for the car to cool down, they opened the drain plug and precisely 4 litres of not excessively dark or malodorous oil came out. After replacing the drain plug, they put in precisely 4 litres of ATF402. Despite what Autodata was telling them, my box didn't appear to have a level plug on the side, so there was no way of telling if the old and new level were correct.

My understanding is the change process was correct, that 4 litres is the expected drain volume, thus indicating that the existing level was fine and I now have 50% diluted ATF in my box. I would be grateful if someone could please confirm that this is all correct and we didn't miss a step or make a big mistake, e.g. by not paying attention to the gearbox temperature, etc.

The oil change specified at 60,000 miles, does it include another 4 litre drain, to leave 75% fresh oil in the box? I struggle to imagine that every 60k miles the manufacturer only advises a 50% dilution. I have another 4 litres of new oil so I'm planning another 4 litre drain soon, unless an expert on here advises a different approach.

Many thanks for your time and expertise!

17th October 2020, 12:35	#1
Londonsteve Newbie Rover 75 saloon Join Date: Sep 2020 Location: London Posts: 7 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Recent new 75 CDT owner - autobox oil change Hi all, I bought my 75 CDT (not sure if it's an 'i' or not - first registered 07/03) about 6 weeks ago and it's a wonderful car. In fact, I'm kicking myself for not having bought one sooner! They've been so affordable for so long, I feel like I've missed out by jumping on a 17 year old car that has unfortunately led a hard life in recent years, but carefully maintained before that. So far it has had a fair bit of work, starting with an oil and filter change, AC gas recharge during which time it was diagnosed that the electric cooling fan had failed, so the front end had to come off the car and I had one of Jules' fans fitted, while an intercooler hose and AC condenser was renewed at the same time. Jules kindly supplied some new intercooler seals which were replaced at the same time as the hose. The plenum chamber covers were removed, the chamber was vacuumed clean of debris and they confirmed there was no evidence of standing water having been there recently, although they didn't test the hoses or prod something in to poke them clean. Was this perhaps a mistake? Last but not least, it had a new bonnet alarm switch. I procured 5 litres of genuine Land Rover ATF402 and we set about changing the autobox oil. My garage are Citroen and Peugeot specialists, working mainly on the rare classic and esoteric stuff. I've always had hydropneumatic Citroens of some description so they are my go-to garage and are very helpful. They had never done the job before and checked on Autodata before starting. The gearbox wasn't misbehaving but at 101k miles, it had done a fair amount of mileage, I couldn't be sure when the gearbox oil was last replaced and I wasn't entirely happy with the shift quality. It would shudder slightly when first entering 'D', some degree of shudder was also tangible while holding the car stationary at the lights with the gearbox in Drive and the downshifts when slowing to a halt were not smooth, particularly when re-entering 1st gear. Changing up was fine and there was no flaring between gears or any serious misdemeanours. With the box at ambient temperature, after a 15 mile drive to the garage but having had 20 minutes for the car to cool down, they opened the drain plug and precisely 4 litres of not excessively dark or malodorous oil came out. After replacing the drain plug, they put in precisely 4 litres of ATF402. Despite what Autodata was telling them, my box didn't appear to have a level plug on the side, so there was no way of telling if the old and new level were correct. My understanding is the change process was correct, that 4 litres is the expected drain volume, thus indicating that the existing level was fine and I now have 50% diluted ATF in my box. I would be grateful if someone could please confirm that this is all correct and we didn't miss a step or make a big mistake, e.g. by not paying attention to the gearbox temperature, etc. The oil change specified at 60,000 miles, does it include another 4 litre drain, to leave 75% fresh oil in the box? I struggle to imagine that every 60k miles the manufacturer only advises a 50% dilution. I have another 4 litres of new oil so I'm planning another 4 litre drain soon, unless an expert on here advises a different approach. Many thanks for your time and expertise!