D4 - transmission rebuild - is it worth it or do I retire the car? - HELP!

[Fozzie]

Hi All - Desperate need of Advice
from experienced LR owners

Vehicle: 2012 - D4 , TDV6 2.7 - 175K on the clock
Problem: like others I have shudders in my transmission and they say that the issue is associated with the Torque converter -- and the transmission needs to be rebuilt!
[B]Cost: $7-8,000 (ouch)
Added woe: in the last 8 months I have replaced the inter-cooler (due to a crack), and replaced the air-con Compressor - $3-4,000 already spent!!

[B]The questions - is it worth fixing the transmission?

what else is likely to happen to the car?
will I fix this and then (on average) something else major will go wrong costing another lump of cash - is my beloved D4 now becoming a money pit?
I know this is a hard one to answer - but what are the other things that USUALLY go wrong, and how much do they cost?

I have some technical capability but not enough to rebuild hydraulics etc

Please Help - Thanks
Fozzie

[NavyDiver]

My pick is repair and replace. The cost is significantly under the depreciation and taxes you get to pay on a new car.

Cars are money pits particularity when new and giving all those hard earned over to the Dealer and Government. The repairs, maintenance and replacements are variables largely based on how much you travel and maintenance schedule and quality. I have replaced everything you list and just upped you with a radiator.

What else could/will you need to consider. Front Control arms of course, Timing belt is about due? I did put a new steering rack in my first D3 at well over 300,000km I think.

Not a nice place to be for you. It might be a worse place If you let it go perhaps? We all know that money pit feeling at times. It hurts.

[DiscoJeffster]

You have a D4 2.7 so engine wise they’re very reliable. I wouldn’t expect anything to go wrong in that respect. Have you done the timing belt service yet? Have you replaced the top coolant outlet prone to failing with age? Do these things and I think you’ll be fine for a while after the trans rebuild other than your standard maintenance items for any car.

[woko]

If your able to remove and replace the transmission yourself, I would remove just the torque converter and have just the torque converter rebuilt. Did this option with the same symptoms. It was on a D3 with 300000km on it. The transmission was changing perfectly just lock up shudder. It is now perfect to drive and has been ever since doing this. It was approx $500 to have the torque converter rebuilt.

[PerthDisco]

If your able to remove and replace the transmission yourself, I would remove just the torque converter and have just the torque converter rebuilt. Did this option with the same symptoms. It was on a D3 with 300000km on it. The transmission was changing perfectly just lock up shudder. It is now perfect to drive and has been ever since doing this. It was approx $500 to have the torque converter rebuilt.

Interesting and add DiscoJeffster recent post to put a solenoid and seal kit through the mechatronics unit and you are a lot less than $6-7k assuming it’s had an oil change along the way.

[twr7cx]

It sucks but what else would you do? You either spend the up to $8k and have it back up and running being a known quantity, or you get some low scrap value for and have to spend at least $20 - $25k to get back to the equivalent.
Though it also has to be balanced with the rest of the cars condition. Has the engine been looked after and serviced properly (being one of the last of the 2.7 engines it should be well sorted and reliable if so), interior condition, body work condition, etc.

[DiscoMick]

You don't say if the transmission has been fully flushed and serviced. If not, might be worth trying. And take the tip above from Woko about just having the torque converter rebuilt.

[scarry]

Have you spoken to the guys at MR Auto?if not they may be able to help.

Big decision,hard for anyone to know what you should do as they don't know your full circumstances,particularly your financials.

For me,i would get it fixed,properly,then move it on in the next year or so.

As others have also said,maybe just get the TC done,i know MR do that to a lot of the 6 speeds.

[libertyts]

Mate, I have just been through this. Shudders and some less than ideal shifts on occasion. The torque converter is definitely the source of the shudder. I had it replaced, along with replacing the pan with the metal part and a few other little bits (see the pic) for less than $3,300 in Canberra.

The guy I chose was fantastic. He wasn't the cheapest around (a fair bit off actually), but when I spoke to him he knew the transmission well. The bit that sold me though was that he was more than willing to listen to me and have a conversation about my understanding of the issues and fixes, rather than tell me he was the expert and ignore me!

As it stands now, it runs beautifully.

The advice given here previously to install a Sonnax Zip kit (seals, o-rings, valves, sleeves, etc.) is a good one. If you can stretch a little further for it then I say it's worth it. I decided not to as we were having issues sourcing it at the time and I needed the D4 on the road (it was already apart when we realised we could get the kit quickly) for the missus.

Any suggestion that you require a full rebuild to solve the VERY common torque converter shudder issue is a straight up lie and they are taking you for a ride. Get a second, more expert opinion from someone like MR Automotive or British Off Road, both reasonably close to you.

Good luck.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200903/ec5c065ba63a6443f24eb518ac35c068.jpg

[vbrab]

I had my D3 6 speed rebuilt at 300,000 k's, just because I wanted to be sure it wasn't going to be a problem with me living 2000k's from nearest service option (cost $8000, all new everything).
It went fine for another 200,000 and although I hadn't noticed the problem, my service guy remarked that perhaps I had a transmission issue with harsh shift from 1st to 2nd. (News to me.)
He reckoned i might be needing a trans overhaul.
Whilst breaking into a cold sweat (thinking another $8k!!), I Reminded him I had new trans 200k's previously, so he suggested a couple of cans of some additive that was recommended by the guy who rebuilt my trans.
Got him to change oil (which I had been doing every 60,000k's) and I can now feel the difference and the changes really are smoother.
Nooooooooooo, I do not know what the additive was, but seems it helps torque convertor from locking up.
So maybe if box is not that old, it might be an issue with the torque convertor (which on D3's is not as heavy duty as on D4's).


Mate, I have just been through this. Shudders and some less than ideal shifts on occasion. The torque converter is definitely the source of the shudder. I had it replaced, along with replacing the pan with the metal part and a few other little bits (see the pic) for less than $3,300 in Canberra.

The guy I chose was fantastic. He wasn't the cheapest around (a fair bit off actually), but when I spoke to him he knew the transmission well. The bit that sold me though was that he was more than willing to listen to me and have a conversation about my understanding of the issues and fixes, rather than tell me he was the expert and ignore me!

As it stands now, it runs beautifully.

The advice given here previously to install a Sonnax Zip kit (seals, o-rings, valves, sleeves, etc.) is a good one. If you can stretch a little further for it then I say it's worth it. I decided not to as we were having issues sourcing it at the time and I needed the D4 on the road (it was already apart when we realised we could get the kit quickly) for the missus.

Any suggestion that you require a full rebuild to solve the VERY common torque converter shudder issue is a straight up lie and they are taking you for a ride. Get a second, more expert opinion from someone like MR Automotive or British Off Road, both reasonably close to you.



Good luck.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200903/ec5c065ba63a6443f24eb518ac35c068.jpg

[Bigbjorn]

Take a trip to Sydney, park it in Redfern, and report it stolen a couple of days later. By then there will be nothing left of it on the street except the oil leaks.[bigwhistle]

[PerthDisco]

Don’t forget to inspect and grease the splines going into the Transfer Box while apart

[Fozzie]

Hi All
thanks for the sound advice

based on your learned input I am
1. keeping the
2. taking it to Mr Automotive in Redcliffe - Brisbane - lots of good reports about them from all of you and others
3. going to get the TC replaced/Transmission serviced and timing belts, and maybe that pesky coolant pipe in the middle of the "V" done in one hit -- OUCH!!

better that then spending a Shed tonne of cash on a new vehicle

Will advise you all on my experience soon ans well as the prices
BTW MR Automotive is booked out for 6-8 weeks - another good indication

Thanks again all

[imaz]

Hi All - Desperate need of Advice
from experienced LR owners

Vehicle: 2012 - D4 , TDV6 2.7 - 175K on the clock
Problem: like others I have shudders in my transmission and they say that the issue is associated with the Torque converter -- and the transmission needs to be rebuilt!
[B]Cost: $7-8,000 (ouch)
Added woe: in the last 8 months I have replaced the inter-cooler (due to a crack), and replaced the air-con Compressor - $3-4,000 already spent!!

[B]The questions - is it worth fixing the transmission?

what else is likely to happen to the car?
will I fix this and then (on average) something else major will go wrong costing another lump of cash - is my beloved D4 now becoming a money pit?
I know this is a hard one to answer - but what are the other things that USUALLY go wrong, and how much do they cost?

I have some technical capability but not enough to rebuild hydraulics etc

Please Help - Thanks
Fozzie

Are you sure it cost 7-8k to rebuild?

I would get another quote. I enquired this before purchasing my car from an independent transmission shop who is familiar with this very box - He said around ~$4k, Perth Technical Transmission though.

[libertyts]

Are you sure it cost 7-8k to rebuild?

I would get another quote. I enquired this before purchasing my car from an independent transmission shop who is familiar with this very box - He said around ~$4k, Perth Technical Transmission though.He is heading to MR Automotive to do the work for him and opting out of a full rebuild. As many of us have experienced, that is rarely a requirement for these boxes, there are a few known "failures" that can be sorted reasonably easy.

Your quote was not likely for a full rebuild unfortunately. That is definitely too cheap in my opinion. It's easily 12+ (more likely closer to 20) hours of labour alone. Plus a full rebuild would include the valve body, either rebuilding or replacing (not sure why you'd need to impress catastrophic failure had occurred) and the amount of parts start to add up in cost.

That being said, maybe the guy you went to is just crazy cheap... Hahaha. I've seen quotes from $5,500 (still seems pretty cheap) through to $10,000 (damn there are some massive penises out there!) for a full rebuild thrown around. So OP's quote seems in the ballpark. Unfortunately, the smarter, smoother, "better" the more parts there are and the more expensive it gets.

[imaz]

He is heading to MR Automotive to do the work for him and opting out of a full rebuild. As many of us have experienced, that is rarely a requirement for these boxes, there are a few known "failures" that can be sorted reasonably easy.

Your quote was not likely for a full rebuild unfortunately. That is definitely too cheap in my opinion. It's easily 12+ (more likely closer to 20) hours of labour alone. Plus a full rebuild would include the valve body, either rebuilding or replacing (not sure why you'd need to impress catastrophic failure had occurred) and the amount of parts start to add up in cost.

That being said, maybe the guy you went to is just crazy cheap... Hahaha. I've seen quotes from $5,500 (still seems pretty cheap) through to $10,000 (damn there are some massive penises out there!) for a full rebuild thrown around. So OP's quote seems in the ballpark. Unfortunately, the smarter, smoother, "better" the more parts there are and the more expensive it gets.

My mistake. It is $3k for the torque converter and valve body. 8-9k was the rebuild.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200909/362fcd8204c54563f92bcce9b76bd2f1.jpg

[Fozzie]

Update

I have completed the mid-life crisis work on my
TDV6 2.7 2012 D4- got it back on Friday

I.e
Torque converter recondition
Transmission service
Both timing belts
And the coolant pipe between the V

So it seems to be working not as smooth changing that I expected
It changes and there doesn’t seem to be any TC shuddering but not silky smooth

But considering 180k on the clock maybe there are other “things” that I am feeling and I am asking too much (any ideas)

Also I have noted that WHEN the transmission is changing “seems” to be different

Is the D4 computer re-learning with its new TC?

Does it do that?

[woko]

There is a drive cycle to do for the auto to relearn the adaptions. Go from 0 to 100 using normal acceleration. It must get into 6th gear. Then go back to less than 5km. Do not use the brakes while doing the drive cycle. Do this a few times.

[Fozzie]

She has re-learnt all good now