Bongo Fury

Hi there, hope all are fine.
Just got back over from France and I'm in Salisbury.

Need help drastically as the bongo gearbox is playing up something chronic. Its not selecting gear from standstill almost all the time and is slipping in 3rd too whilst driving.
When it does select it jumps into 1st with a thump.

Question is this. Is it the clutch or the clutch master cylinder, or even both?

Also I have no hold warnings on the dash, just the symptoms as written above.

Its a 2000, 2.0 automatic gearbox.
Does anyone know where I can find the right parts as I need asap.
Mot tomorrow and back to France on Friday.

Need clutch kit, possible clutch cylinder and oil pump to be on the safe side.
Or if anyone can recommend a bongo friendly auto box garage nearby it would be greatly appreciated.

Please help a fellow bongonaught.
Cheers all in advance

Just checked the oil and there's bits of clutch material in the oil, looks and feels a bit like black rust. Think its deffo the clutch.

Sorry to hear this.

Don't know if anyone local can suggest an auto box specialist, or if you can fix this yourself if parts can be sourced?

Good luck.

You need to speak urgently to an auto box specialist! Alacrity is your man he runs such a company down my way in Sussex, but normally its not a 1/2 day job!

Hi Bob, nice to hear from you.
Won't be able to fix this myself, unfortunately it needs the garage.
There's a couple of gearbox specialists here in Salisbury but one things for sure, this ain't gonna be cheap.

The problem I have is that I need to head back to France in Friday so if the garages don't have availability, I'm screwed.
Will be hopping the bongo into mot tomorrow and I'll be phoning the gearbox places too.
I'll keep you posted.

Looks like a flight, or perhaps boat from Southampton, and come back for Bongy once he's better.

Far better than rushing the repair.

As Geoff says, Alacrity is your man, well worth paying for recovery to his garage.

Just sent alacrity a pm so here's hoping
I'll be staying in blighty until the job is done, but the Mrs will have to fly back.

Does anyone have Alacrity's company details I.e phone number and address? Would greatly appreciate it if you do.
Thanks for the advice again all.

Only got back last night and what a start to the week, oh and I'm in hospital with the Mrs just now as she walked into a fence with a nail hanging out. just gets better every minute

Ta Ra...

http://www.autogearboxes.co.uk/

Thanks Bob, once again you are the fountain of knowledge that never ceases to amaze

Got breakdown cover that can get the bus transported there for free.
I will give them a buzz first thing in the morrow and with any luck alacrity can get on it quickly.

Thanks to everyone that responded to this post and I'll give updates as it happens.

Speak to you all tomorrow, wish us luck.

You will probably find that a replacement box from Bongo Spares or one of the other breakers will be quicker and cheaper, provided they have a spare of the same style (they vary), otherwise refurbishment is not cheap or quick, as I found out ..... but at least you have warranty!

Well, thanks all for your input. Finally I decided to go for the box refurb which cost £1572 with a 2yr warranty or 24000 miles whichever comes first.
Torque converter was completely gubbed and a spring which activates the piston amongst a couple of smaller things.

So when I last was on I was in the Salisbury. Passed not with flying colours and when I left I parked up just round the corner and got her recovered.
She was taken the Erith in Kent to a place called jt automatics, who were great.
As my post said I had to be back in France on the Friday, but that didn't happen.
They started the work on the Thursday, which was the earliest time out of all the places I tried. Luckily for me, my mate was on a scheduled visit in Salisbury from Scotland so we had wheels for the week. On the Thursday I drove back to Scotland and dropped the Mrs off at Manchester airport on the way as she had to be back at work on the Saturday as she works as a nurse in the public sector. My work was really understanding with my and let me stay until the work was done.
So I stayed in Scotland until the following Wednesday and flew down to London in the morning and grabbed a train the taxi to the garage.
I got the bongo back around 3 in the afternoon and then headed to tatsfield to pick up alloys I had already arranged 2 weeks prior, then headed back through the tunnel and back home again. Phew finally got back to work on the Friday.

Hell of a couple of weeks with an mot, trip to hospital and watched my mate spew on the streets of Salisbury cos he can't handle his whisky

All in all a bit of an expensive one but it all worked out in the end.

Thanks again all.

Good it's all sorted. What mileage is on the van, had you changed the ATF before this happened?

Great to hear its sorted. Stuff like that can happen with any (ageing) car but perhaps unlike yer average car, a Bongo is not something you relish giving up on and swapping. Hopefully that'll be the end of that!

What a time.

Glad you're all sorted, and thanks for the update.

Alls sweet with the box and I didn't realise how smooth the gears change when it work perfectly, seriously, I work with Renaults Peugeot and other marks and the only box, from what I've driven, that beats the bongo one, was a 2017 BMW x1.
Couldn't be happier really
I'd never had any work done on the atf before and she'sat 180000 on the clocks, so not too bad.
I must add that I do plan on keeping the bongo to the end, so no way I can give her up.
She's been in 6 countries in Europe plus Scotland england and of course Japan and we have plans for many more.

At the moment she's at the work getting her paint refreshed and any rust removed plus arch covers installed.
I got her for £6000 and all the parts and the gearbox I'm just under 10k. But I'll be honest, you'll be hard pushed to find one that's done 35000k in 2 years that's in a better state. I'm proud of her state and long shall it continue