Thread: synthetic vs mineral in the auto

Originally Posted by B92 8NW

Are you shifting through all the ranges to 1 then back to P first?

The trans temp light comes on at start up, is on the LHS. Its a gearwheel with a thermometer in it.

1. Sorry, why would I need to shift through all the ranges just to check the trans. oil level?

2. Oh, that's what that thing means! Thanks.

Originally Posted by simonr23

... but i think the whole system holds about 9litres and draining from the pan removes just over 5litres.

So, are you saying I should have 10 litres on hand, just in case?

You should shift through all the ranges to fill up all of the relevant hydraulic circuits in the valve block. It mentions this in the "Owner Maintenance" section of the manual.

There's no need to have 10L on hand - The total capacity is about 9.something litres but only about 4.5 litres comes out as the valve block and torque converter retain some fluid. Each time I do mine exactly 4L comes out, which is handy as a single 4L pack refills it.

The factory recommended interval is 40,000km, so bear in mind that changing it every 5,000km is probably not absolutely necessary, not to mention 8x less cost effective.

B92 8NW, 40k is along time to leave the same fluid in. i've always checked/changed my fluid when it starts to go from red to brownish and the smells a bit burnt. during my time (ony 9 years admittedly) my vr commodore only needed 3 changes in 110k(was all country driving) my tr magna i didnt bother as it was a hack(still wouldnt die, until i was rear-ended) in 40k, my ba falcon hadnt been done until i got it (@80k) i did it then and sold it at 105k and it was needing another change at that point. city driving, off-roading and towing can really shorten the life of trans fluid. a good cooler will go a long way to extending it's life.

you can definately feel the difference in the shifts and continuity of the "clutch" feeling with fresh fluid/ new filter(if needed)

Originally Posted by simonr23

B92 8NW, 40k is along time to leave the same fluid in. i've always checked/changed my fluid when it starts to go from red to brownish and the smells a bit burnt. during my time (ony 9 years admittedly) my vr commodore only needed 3 changes in 110k(was all country driving) my tr magna i didnt bother as it was a hack(still wouldnt die, until i was rear-ended) in 40k, my ba falcon hadnt been done until i got it (@80k) i did it then and sold it at 105k and it was needing another change at that point. city driving, off-roading and towing can really shorten the life of trans fluid. a good cooler will go a long way to extending it's life.

you can definately feel the difference in the shifts and continuity of the "clutch" feeling with fresh fluid/ new filter(if needed)

Given the things Land Rovers tend to do, I'd agree 40k is a long time. I do it every 10-15 just because I like the way it drives after fluid replacement.

In a car used as a car I'd have no problems with 40k. One of my friends is bitching about losing 3rd and 4th in his commodore auto. Not bad for a 4L60E that has done 315,000 km with only three fluid changes.

I put in Transmax Z and the difference in shift quality was amazing.
yes, its expensive.
yes, its much better at dealing with heat.
yes, you can feel a difference afterwoods.

I will probably do as Simonr23 says and just rotate 5 new litres through it every 40 or so,,

when I went to synthetic ATF they did a full flush and used a valvoline synthetic oil that " is compatible with castrol Transmax". I didnt notice any shift difference but thought that with the driving I do that the better ability to cope with getting hot (I dont have an extra or bigger cooler) would be an asset. The oil looks fine on the stick. How often does the filter need changing generally? If you drop the pan do you need to replace the gasket?

i dont know if there is an exact answer to how often the filter needs changing. if your car's been drowned at any point, it's probably wise to though...

my car has done 207k and i just did a filter change yesterday. it appears it was the first time its been done...

when you buy the filter it comes with a new gasket and a couple of o-rings.

the gasket is really just a rubber surround, my old one was still fine and i would have been happy to keep using it, but since one is in the kit i just used it.

the filter itself was full, but from what i could see and what came out of it, it probably would have still been fine to use for a while longer. there was a bit of crap on the magnet, but if this was the first time the pan's been dropped, it wasnt much.

I'd say drop the pan once you've drained off the fluid from it. its only 6 easy access 10mm bolts, look at the filter, which again is only held on by 2 low torque torx bolts(which the right sized allen key can get off if you dont have the torx keys) and then 1 more which goes thru the filter and holds the pickup tube on.
if nothing scary is living in the bottom of you pan, and the same for what comes out of the filter, i'd be happy to keep using it. and as long as your gasket/rubber seal isnt perished or torn, just re-use it if you dont need a new filter. check the magnet too(it sits somewhere in the pan.)

the filter kit cost me $65 from trs, so not a big expense for an important part of the car.