Ugh! Brown Auto Gearbox Fluid!

[GICarey]

Well, one of the jobs on the list for today, having had the bongo for almost a week now, was to check the gearbox fluid. Am very glad I did.

Wasn't actually reading on the dipstick, dug out the old pela pump and sucked a little out to check colour before topping up. A delightful chocolate brown! nasty!

So, quick trip to Halfords (about 1 mile each way) for a 5litre tub of Comma red-stuff, then home, sucked the rest out with the Pela (the short trip seemed to have warmed the oil up nicely, emptied the sump in about 2 mins.

Got about 3 litres out, so it was very low, and very nasty to look at.

Dropped in 4 litres of the new stuff, and now I have a nice red bead of fluid showing on the dipstick. Taking a run out, I'm sure it's shifting more smoothly now!

that's one job jobbed!

Am no longer convinced that the garage did a great job "preparing" the car for my collection, so I think i'll order a set of filters in the near future, & do a change of the engine oil and all filters. May even go so far as to get the diff oil changed (a DIYable job (for a complete newb)? or one for the garage?).

Cheers,

Gav.

[mikeonb4c]

Gav.

The likes of Dandywarhol say best result is achieved if pan taken off and filters cleaned - all with an eye to keeping the environment 100% dirt and dust free, which has tended t put me off as I could see make making things worse if on the drive and a gust of wind happens.

I mention it though just in case - unfortunatley after youv'e done the job but....

[paul9]

may have seemed low,but there was probably about 2 litres still in the torque convertor.

[GICarey]

Gav.

The likes of Dandywarhol say best result is achieved if pan taken off and filters cleaned - all with an eye to keeping the environment 100% dirt and dust free, which has tended t put me off as I could see make making things worse if on the drive and a gust of wind happens.

I mention it though just in case - unfortunatley after youv'e done the job but....

Thanks Mike,

I had read those posts, but figured, I'd be better off getting the nasty brown gunge out, and some nice clean stuff in now, despite that meaning there's likely to be some gunge left in there (but, on the whole, overall less gungy, and full rather than v low). Didn't have time for a full raise the car, drop the pan, maybe have to source or make a new gasket, etc, as planning a trip out this weekend!

Can always do a proper job in the near future, just be upset when I do that i'll be wasting 20 quids worth of fluid! ho hum.

G.

[GICarey]

may have seemed low,but there was probably about 2 litres still in the torque convertor.

Really? I thought someone posted that a Bongo auto-box takes about 4 litres of the red stuff to fill? If that's the case, and I took 3 out - shouldn't I have been overful previously?

Which leads to my next question - how to tell AFT level - should I be looking for a thick bead of fluid sticking to the dipstick showing the actual level, or a thin film of the stuff only just visible? If the latter, it's possible it's now overful as I have a thin line of the stuff going up the side of the stick.

[dandywarhol]

Engine/gearbox warmed up, handbrake fully on/wheels chocked if necessary, select "D" and check with engine idling. Clean the dipstick WITH A LINT-FREE RAG (avoiding fibres) and dip for the level - it should be up to the mark. always check it with the dipstick horizontal.