QuestionQUESTION: Hi, we have a Freelander 2002. We took it to the Quick Lube for a change of motor oil and filter. The guy at the station said he was filling the transmission oil too because it was empty. My husband questioned the guy but he said that the transmission oil was consumed, he supposedly put 4 "quarts". ONce we took the freelander out the shop, no rear gear. We had a transmission expert check everything electric, soenoids, etc. Now another mechanic told us something about a rear gear valve plug. What do you think happened? thanks,
ANSWER: I'd say you want to have a talk with the people in the Quick Lube place. Checking and filling the transmission in a Freelander takes 1) special tools and 2) special Land Rover fluid. You CANNOT use generic transmission fluid. If your vehicle had been 4 quarts low on transmission fluid it would not have been able to drive to the shop for service.
I have no idea what they filled or did, but I can tell you with certainty that you could not have been driving around 4 quarts low on trans fluid.
It may be time to seek out the services of the Land Rover dealer unless you can find a qualified independent Land Rover place
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QUESTION: Thank you so so so much for your help. Actually, that happened on a Saturday, so we took it again that afternoon and that's when they said that the transmission oil was something the vehicles consume, his explanation for being so empty. My husband told him the same thing you just said. That the vehicle was completely perfect and that by the way he did not tell or gave permission to work the transmission oil. The guy then said "run the vehicle and let the "can't remember the word" get lubricated, some small parts or joints. We took it again Monday and the owner of the shop said all he could do was emptie the oil, fill it again and put some special addittive.
We wrote them a certified letter and we have their insurance people avoiding to pay for the damage. We also took them do DACO (spanish for the government agency that protects consumers). Since we were not sure they did something we took it to the mechanic (at our own expense), he verified all the electrical stuff and he said it was none of that. That's when a friend told him there was a special plug for the rear gear.
I surfed the web and found you had answered a question similiar to mine, and you spoke about that same rear gear valve. Please give me more info on that valve, so I can have info to defend our position> our vehicle was in perfect condition.
Thanks,
Nancy
AnswerAll I can say is, cars do not consume transmission fluid. The only thing thy really do is leak it on the ground. If you do not see evidence of leakage that is your answer. There is nowhere else for the fluid to go in a modern computer controlled transmission. And as I said, your car would not have been drivable if it were truly four quarts low when brought in for service.
As to the location of the filling ports - you really should refer to the Land Rover factory workshop manual. They show all that clearly, and they also say the truck uses special fluid and show how its checked.
Land Rover should have a website for your country that allows web access to service info. There is probably a small access fee but they are the official source. That's what we do here in the USA but our site won't work overseas.
