Gearbox woes more than just coincidence?

[Bushido]

Long story short. Today for the first time ever I had that pit of the stomach feeling about owning the d2 s8> As I went to leave a car part the car revved loudly and stayed put. No drive at all. I tried the shifter in various positions, went to tiptronic and was about to weep loudly when with a large clunk something engaged and the car moved again.

The lack of acceleration was accompanied by all of the gear selector lights on the dash illuminated together. Clearly the car was locked in to some form of limp mode.

HAd the codes read properly this evening and , despite the lovely lady at A8 parts doing a good luck jig down the phone for me that we threw up a f125 code we got the dreaded

PO730 Gear:Incorrect ratio

Now, is this a coincidence or a possible help? For the past 2 days the auto dip reverse mirror had started to work, for the first time in a years ownership, although it then stayed in the dipped / curb position when engaging drive and also the steering wheel had started to electronically adjust / move when I opened the drivers door.

Is this all unrelated or helpful in diagnosing why the greatest all round car I have always promised myself is sat outside and I have the urge to beat it with any branch to hand Basil Fawlty style...

Any serious help or suggestions welcomed. And yes, I have Googled and spoken to our sponsors and had the codes read properly so I'm looking to move forward from there please.

Thanks as always

[David's8]

I feel for you. Just gone thru similar but mine indicates the F125. Did you check Rosstech Wiki? Not that it give smuch hope beyond what you already know.

[mannyo]

Could it be a damp problem, have you checked that the scuttle drains are all clear and not full of water or showing signs of water having been present. We've had a lot of rain recently so maybe thats the problem. The gearbox ECU and other electronics modules are under that cover on the passenger side, maybe remove the cover and look inside for water.

Also check the area down in the passenger footwell for damp, typically caused by "Botangs Hole" or possibly blocked A/C drains.

[HPsauce]

Originally Posted by Bushido

the steering wheel had started to electronically adjust / move when I opened the drivers door.

That function (can't recall its name) is turned on and off by a little button on the steering column (just behind the knob that moves it around), you could have accidentally pressed it. So probably unrelated.
My experience of dipping mirrors on reverse is that they are (or become) close to random in operation.

[Bushido]

Spoken to the great fella at Mackies. (0141) 778 4545

May help others treading the same path?

Ok, put simply the p0730 code relates to gearbox slippage. The ECUs are telling one another that the engine speed and gearbox speed are not within expected parameters. Unless the code reader was saying specifically the f125 fault, then checking it or playing around with it is a worthless task.

So, slippage. Can be electrical or mechanical failing.

The box was, reputedly, a sealed for life affair. There isn't, as we know, a dip stick or more traditional level indicator on the box. So, look for evidence of leaking transmission fluid underneath. IF you find some then this may be better news!

To investigate the box has 2 plugs on it
1. Lower - sump drain plug
2. Higher up - An all but hidden top up plug.

This top up plug needs a length of plastic tube fabricating to it to top up the oil level until the oil is pouring back at you down the tube. They assure me this is the only true indicator that the box has the recommended levels of fluid in it.

Clear the codes and see if this improves matters any.

If there are no signs of leaks (and like the desperate child I am you still want a mechanic to try topping up the fluid "just in case" ) then the slippage is within the box itself and arguably terminal .

A current reconditioning is £2942 + vat

As you were chaps...

[barzya8]

Hi,
I had that code, (incorrect gear ratio) which was due to low gearbox oil level.
The reason for the low oil level was a leak from the sump.
Whoever did the oil and filter change prior to my ownership, had not tightened the sump bolts correctly, so the leak was from there.
My mechanic only got 5 liters of oil out. It should hold 8.
Also the filter had a 2 inch split in it, which would not have helped either.
New filter, 8 liters of oil and a new sump gasket solved the problem.
Gearbox works a treat now.
Good Luck
David

[27litres]

As much as we all feel for you when this happens and would truly wish you all the luck in the world for a simple fix, the big "clunk" you describe is telling for something in the gearbox breaking.

You should definitely check all the usual things like fluid, sump damage, filter pick up clearance etc...

I too recently had gearbox issues with an extraordinary stroke of luck when a cracked feed pipe for one of the clutch packs was found to be the cause of my issues.
However my gearbox never "clunked" into Drive (it did give a couple of shifting thumps) and gave flaring/slipping gear changes under moderate throttle inputs indicative of low fluid (which is why I checked it twice!) before failing into limp mode.

One thing my transmission specialist did say about the 5HP24, particularly in RWD guise in Jags, Beemers and Range Rovers, is that the Valve Body housings crack. Quite what symptoms this will produce, I couldn't tell you. However, it's cheaper than a whole gearbox!

Good luck!

[Bushido]

Advanced transmissions in Billingham (as recommended on here ) offered these thoughts...

The huge clunk will invariably be the front drum cracked inside the box. Apparently its a classic tell tale when in limp mode.

He doesn't see a lot of gains topping up fluids etc as , having done "20 -30 of these boxes when most people wont touch them" that is where the finger of fate is pointing.

Very helpful chap. Did also give me a heads up that the manifiold bolts can also prove problematic as part of this whole repair.

Our site sponsors will pay £500 for the car as it stands as a breaker.

I had just advertised it for sale for £3200 (its Ollies old car if that makes any difference to people knowing how meticulously it had been cared for - including gearbox oil changes...)

£2942 + vat for reconditioned box = £3530.50

Ho hum ....

[Bushido]

Advanced transmissions in Billingham (as recommended on here ) offered these thoughts...

The huge clunk will invariably be the front drum cracked inside the box. Apparently its a classic tell tale when in limp mode.

He doesn't see a lot of gains topping up fluids etc as , having done "20 -30 of these boxes when most people wont touch them" that is where the finger of fate is pointing.

Very helpful chap. Did also give me a heads up that the manifiold bolts can also prove problematic as part of this whole repair.

Our site sponsors will pay £500 for the car as it stands as a breaker.

I had just advertised it for sale for £3200 (its Ollies old car if that makes any difference to people knowing how meticulously it had been cared for - including gearbox oil changes...)

£2942 + vat for reconditioned box = £3530.50

Ho hum ....

[IT]

Originally Posted by Bushido

I had just advertised it for sale for £3200 (its Ollies old car if that makes any difference to people knowing how meticulously it had been cared for - including gearbox oil changes...)

Sad news.....

£500 isn't a bad no nonsense offer in fairness. I cant see a D2 with a faulty gearbox getting much more than that on the likes of ebay these days and that would be accompanied by all the usual time wasters you have to fend off.

Whilst demand for sound low mileage S8's has gone up, the demand for non runners and spare parts is very much in decline unfortunately.

Ironically, the gearbox is about the only part of my car that hasn't caused me any concern as yet (touch wood)