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Date:         Thu, 26 Aug 2004 13:48:01 +1000
Reply-To:     Stephen Overmyer <S.OVERMYER@UWS.EDU.AU>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Stephen Overmyer <S.OVERMYER@UWS.EDU.AU>
Subject:      Re: should I get a new transmission?
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"

Dan wrote:

I'm going to take a 3 week road trip in September. My '85 is running well, and I'm confident it will stay that way.

The only item I'm concerned with is the infamous 3-4th gear failure. My Westfalia just flipped 140,000 miles - from what I read, this is the spot on the odometer when the transmission is most likely to fail.

1) Should I get a new one now, or wait for this one to bust? I plan to keep the van for few more years.

2) What's an easy way to see if the trans has been replaced before? I bought the van without any records of service. I did have it out to replace the clutch last fall, but didn't notice any signs of work. (but I wasn't really looking)

Dan,

If you haven't already done so, it may be worth the trouble before your trip to drain your gearbox and refill with synthetic transmission fluid and a bottle of nulon transmission additive(or equivalent).

Seems to extend their life from my experience and observations, and without service records to check, it's prolly better to assume the transmission has not had a fluid change in some time....er, unless you did this when the clutch was changed?

Otherwise, enjoy your trip. Transmissions usually give you some advance notice when they are no longer happy.

Cheers, Steve O NSW Australia '92 Transporter WBX Kombi '00 Transporter Double Cab '03 Transporter Double Cab (work truck) '78 Landrover Series 3 Soft top (ex-Aust.Army)


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