One of the biggest issues we see with old gearboxes is failure due to lack of maintenance. Most people tend to look after their engines well and service them regularly by changing fluids and filter etc. Sadly, they often over look the transmission. A gearbox needs regular maintenance too.

With the LT77 you should be looking to change the oil yearly at the very least, maybe more if you are clocking up high miles. The LT77 takes around 2.6 litres of oil, if you neglect to change or maintain your oil level in an old gearbox then you are just asking for something to go wrong. As you know Land Rover’s are notorious for leaking oil, and if your gearbox has a leak then it wont talk long for you to lose half of what should be in the ‘box, then its only a matter of time before things get expensive.

Changing your gearbox oil is just as easy as changing your engine oil. Heres how to do it.

Firstly, take the car out to get everything up to temperature. This will thin your transmission fluid.

To begin draining the oil you will need to remove the filler plug on the side of the gearbox indicated in this picture in yellow. You can do this from under the car or above by removing your seat/cubby box. When you remove this plug, no oil should come out. The reason we remove the fill plug first, it to make sure we CAN remove it. The last thing you want is to find that after draining all the oil your filler plug is seized.

Next, you can remove the drain plug indicated in red in the above picture. Have your funnel and container ready. Hopefully your gearbox doesn’t leak and you have 2.6 litres of oil when you’ve finished. If you are not so lucky, you may drain a lot less. Also you main find your drain plug looking like this

You will also need to remove the second drain plug and oil filter/strainer located on the bottom of the gearbox.

Remember to pull the plastic oil filter/strainer out. It may put up a fight but will eventually come. Hopefully you’ve been changing your fluids regularly and it doesn’t look like this.

Once the oil has stopped flowing, you can replace the filter/strainer and both drain plugs with new copper washers. You can buy a new strainer and washer kit online very cheap and its worth doing.

There are a number of different ways of filling the gearbox with fresh oil and everyone has their preferences. A good way is with a pressured spray can or even an old school oil syringe.

The LT77 will take 2.6 litres and we recommend using ATF Dextron 2 automatic transmission fluid.

Once you’ve filled the ‘box with enough oil, replace the filler plug and its a job well done!

If when you drained your oil you found that your drain plug was like the one above or that your strainer was heavily caked in filings then its worth inspecting the oil you drained for any other filings or metal shards. If you are in this boat then your gearbox probably isn’t in good health. It could even be on its last legs so it might be worth preparing yourself for a rebuild.

If a reconditioned gearbox isn’t an option at this moment, then try not to work the gearbox too hard. Keep your gear changes smooth, monitor oil leaks and levels in the gearbox.

For more information on the LT77 gearbox click here: Land Rover LT77 Gearbox or click the blue ‘Contact’ button on the left for a quote.