Damn, sucks to hear about the auto issues Arron. Hopefully, you'll be able to source a cheap replacement as it'll cost and arm and a leg to get it rebuilt.

Have seen 1 or 2 V8 auto boxes on Trade Me in the past, but the average asking price has been around the $400 mark.

Yeah it was a pretty big kick in the nuts. The boxes are quite rare here so will pull down the box and see if we can do anything with it.



I will stay away from trademe for the this one as second hand boxes are a total gamble.

I'm going to leave it for a couple of days before I drop the box anyway. Its the worst time of the year to be playing with cars.

Decided to drop the auto out of the V8 Fairmont this morning. Took a couple of pictures before putting up on the hoist. The paint looks dull as I flattened off the clear coat and haven't waxed it since.





The 6 cyl Fairmont I bought for parts has more than paid for itself.



About 10 minutes after I took this photo a 4.9 earthquake hit. I was happy not to be standing under the V8 fairmont that was the hoist at the time. I fully expected it to fall off as it was swaying and shaking around a lot. It was still swaying about nearly a minute after the quake had stopped.

We debated if we should actually risk working under the car after the quake but decided just to get on with it. While we were under the car taking the auto out there was another 2 earthquakes a 3.2 and 3.6 but not big enough to get us running from under the car.

After taking the auto out of the V8 I decided give my old EF a wash. It looks a bit average now the 17" wheels have been taken off.

Not normally; but there's been about 10 today that I've actually noticed. Since the big quake in September I think there has been over 4000 after shocks that have been over 3.0; These latest ones have all be centered in the city and quite a shallow depth so have been quite violent.

Either way the last place you want to be is under a car on two post hoist or axle stands when the ground starts shaking. I'm not sure the car would have stayed up there if the quake was much bigger.

Pulled down the auto out of the V8 Fairmont down and it's not too bad. There is a blown o'ring in one of the servo's and 1 set of clutch packs were metal to metal. All the gears and hubs are ok.

My brother had a low km's AU 6 cyl auto box that lost drive (blown planetary hub) that he scored from his work. All the clutch bands and clutch packs are like new so I have enough parts to put the V8 auto back together. Just need to get the torque converter flushed / tested and a gasket set.

I'm driving the white EF for the first time in 3 years. It still goes ok but I think i have vacuum leak so will pull off the inlet manifold today and throw some new gaskets in.

The White EF has been a bit of a b**ch in the last couple of days. Sitting around for three years has not helped.

It was hunting at idle and surging when held at consistent revs. I threw in a new set of plugs and leads and it made no difference. Picked up a new inlet manifold gasket but decided not to fit it just yet.

It also developed a whine in the front serpentine belt. It sounded like it was the power steer pump so I swapped it and the tensioner from one of the wrecks. Cranked the key and it still had the whine. Whipped the belts off again and checked all the pulleys; the alternator didn't make any noise when turned by hand and the bearings felt smooth. Swapped it for another one I had and sure enough the alternator was the cause of the issue. Strange as it made whine exactly like a worn out power steer pump. I pulled down the old alternator and the bearings were a bit dry but it still shouldn't have made that much noise.

With that sorted it was back to the hunting and surging issue. After a bit of poking about I got the s**t with the LPG system; so I ripped all the LPG gear out and removed all the LPG wiring loom, lines and tank.

The car runs so much smoother and the hunting and surging has stopped too. The LPG loom was integrated into the ECU and ignition looms and I always suspected it was the cause of the problem. As soon as all the LPG gear was off the average litres per 100km dropped from 16 to 10 litres per 100 km's.

I sold the commodore wagon I'd been driving since I got back in NZ so will drive the White EF until the auto is back in the V8.

The Commodore was my brothers but he was still stoked as I made him a tidy little profit on the sale. I can't complain as I'd clocked up over 5,000 k's in it over the last month and only put petrol in it.

I was over spinning spanners by the end of the first week. It's been like a full time job but I'm getting there. I just want to spend some time driving the V8 rather than just working on it.

You must have itchy feet by now Ash; not long to go. Have a good new years.

The white EF is sold; the new owner took it away today. Hard to believe I owned it for 10 years.

I'd never had the EF XR6 running so got it going today. Started first crank, the auto was slipping but after a bit of poking about discovered it was simply low on ATF. After a top up it was functioning well. Dropped the pan just to see what condition the auto was in and it all looked ok.

The headgasket was obviously blown so took the cylinder head off to see what was salvageable. Looks like it had been sitting around a bit to long and theres a bit of pitting in the cam gear and the blocks not looking to flash.

Will have a better look tomorrow and pull off all the cam gear so I can get the head crack tested.

The V8 Fairmont is still a glorified paper weight; I have to wait till the 10th before I can get the torque converter tested and any parts so i we can reassemble the auto.

Yeah that plays in to it a bit; but also my old man is heading up North before the 20th and I don't think I'll have access to his workshop or tools while he's away.

For any kiwi's following this thread I have the following items for sale:

Trademe listings:

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Members/Listin ... ber=113870

Apart from what is listed I trademe. I have a EF XR6, EF GLi and EF Fairmont being dismantled for parts.

Finished assembling the auto yesterday and refitted it to the car; but didn't have time to road test it.

Got it going today and it road tested ok; but the shifts were a bit harsh. Put the car back on the hoist and dropped the pan and removed the valve body and had another look at it. Decided to fit an AU valve body instead as there are quite a few upgrades to the later valve bodies. After road testing the car again it shifts a lot smother but still have a couple of little issues to look at tomorrow.

how long are you here for?

Will head back to Canada mid to late next month

Dropped the pan and there was quite a bit of dust from the clutch bans in the pan. Decided to remove the trans and will dismantle and check it over again as a precautionary measure.

stupid f**k car

so about another month.
is the trans prob with the v8?

Last edited by Troy on Mon Jan 17, 2011 4:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.