Rover SD1 - GM180 Automatic Transmission & 5 Speed Manual Gearbox Solutions

I think it’s fair to say that the key elements of this essay are mostly the result of original
thought (not to say that other people hadn’t thought of them too, but I had not previously
heard of most of them).

Frequently we are reminded - "Top up the gearbox". It's easy to say, isn't it? Not so
frequently we are reminded - "Drain the gearbox ---, etc" and don’t they both fill your
head with dark thoughts. Here are a couple of ideas that make things really easy.

Fitting Drain Plug to GM180 Auto Box

Time will come, eventually when you have to remove the oil pan of a GM 180 automatic
box for cleaning, maintenance or just straightforward fluid replacement. Even the most
skilful owners will suffer a flood of transmission fluid. My VDP Auto box didn't have a
drain hole so any oil changes (however infrequent) would always involve pan removal
and the inevitable mess, but not any more!

• With the pan removed and cleaned, I braised an 8mm steel nut onto the lower rear
edge at a 45-degree angle, so that the bottom of the hole was level with the
bottom surface of the pan.

• I then carefully drilled out the blinded hole and ran a matching tap through the nut
to clean up the threads, followed by cleaning off the burrs and any residual
swarfe.

• A short 8mm bolt and copper (or fiber) washer completed the modification and all
future fluid removal is now completely straightforward with less risk of a mess.

Refilling a Manual Gearbox

• When topping up or refilling a manual box, the oft recommended method using
squeezy bottles and flexible pipes has the disadvantage of proving Newton's 2nd
Law of gravity that states: "It's easier to oil your armpit than to fill a gearbox from
below!"

• A neat method to refill or top up the gearbox is to run a large bore plastic hose
from the filler hole, up past the bell-housing and into the rear of the engine bay.

• Fit and secure a suitable funnel on top and pour in the replacement oil without
difficulty. Do it slowly to prevent overflow.

GM180 Auto Box Transmission Fluid Leaks

Apart form the plainly obvious source of leaking transmission fluid, from the sump pan
and gasket; there are three really awkward places a GM180 box can leak.
1. The filler tube seal
2. The kick down cable seal
3. The gear selector shaft

On a 3500 model, these are difficult to pinpoint and fix because the exhaust Y
pipes mask access to the three problem areas. And it’s only when the leaks get so bad that
you have good reason to dismantle your exhaust system, right? Unfortunately there is
little choice, I'm afraid, and when I tackled the problems I also removed the down pipes
which were being replaced anyway.

1) The filler tube seal

a. If you haven’t already drained the box, be prepared for some oil spillage and
remove the filler tube and its top hat seal. Inspect the seal and replace if
necessary.

b. Mine was reasonable so I used a trace of silicon instant gasket and refitted the seal
and tube.

2) The kick down cable seal

a. Disconnect the gear selector rod from the selector arm. Mark the radial position of
the arm and gearbox inhibitor switch for accurate re-assembly. Remove the arm
and switch complete with its brackets.

b. Remove the forked plate that retains the kick down cable and disconnect the other
end of the cable from the throttle assembly also.

c. Withdraw the kick down cable from the transmission and note the condition of the
"O" ring on the plastic tube. It's probably flat!

d. Replace it with a suitable new ring. Note that for extra sealing potential I also
positioned a slightly larger diameter; very thin "O" ring against the shoulder of
the plastic tube. It’s a neat dodge because it creates a second independent seal and
also ensures that the plastic tube is a firm fit in its hole when the forked retaining
plate is refitted.

e. Re-engage the cable nipple and (using silicon grease or rubber lubricant) ease the
tube and new inner seal into position. Replace the forked clamp pushing it tightly
home.

3) The gear selector shaft

a. Inspect the selector shaft where it enters the box and note what type of oil seal is
present. Mine had an "O" ring here but it was loose and damaged. Carefully clean
 out the adjacent (fairly large) recess. Obtain an appropriate sized seal, but at the
time, I could neither identify the correct or suitable seal so I came up with the
following solution using concentric compressed “O” rings.

b. From my box of a million “O” rings, I selected two different sizes, plus a fiber
washer. The first ring fitted snugly on the shaft. A second, larger ring neatly fitted
the outer diameter of the recess. The fiber washer was reduced in diameter to
exactly fit the recess, thus pressing both rings firmly and concentrically together
when the inhibitor switch was pushed back onto the shaft.

c. Upon re-assembly of the lever to the shaft, tightening the retaining nut efficiently
compressed the washer and two rings to create an effective and lasting seal.
Silicon grease enhances the seal.

d. Reconnect the selector rod and the kick down cable (at the engine) and refit the
exhaust system. Make the necessary adjustments and top up the box with ATF
according to the handbook.

The above procedures have effectively stopped all three annoying GM180 auto box leaks
in their tracks for over six years. Strangely though, when the car is laid up for a long
period (several months), there is a slight leak that drips on the O/S exhaust pipe near the
heat baffle coming from the inner part of the filler tube seal. I believe this is because
during lay-up, the torque converter releases all its fluid into the sump. The level rises
quite high up the filler tube, thus generating a “head” of fluid that can gravitate past the
top hat seal. It’s a smelly world for the first few miles after a lay-up.

Radical Cure for a Nasty 5 Speed Manual Gearbox (and a Differential Bonus too)

• Here is a radical solution to an unfriendly 5-speed gearbox. My Vitesse used to

• During a routine gearbox oil level check, I noticed how dirty the lubricant had
become so it was obvious it had to be flushed and changed. It had the
recommended ATF which Rover had been forced to specify, because the gearbox
was unreliable when filled with conventional lubricant.

• By coincidence, I had been told by an Ex-Mobil employee that Mobil 1 or Castrol

• With the car on axle stands and the back wheels off the ground I drained the box
and re-filled it with a flushing mixture of 2:1 white spirit and ATF (I did say
radical and it was a last resort!).
• With the engine running at idle speed only, I put the car through all the gears and
let the drive train run off-load for 5 to 10 minutes.

• Upon draining the flushing mixture I was amazed at the filthy color and state of
the drained fluid. It was as black as ebony with lots of sediment!

• I repeated the above with a clean batch of mixture to flush out the residues. One
can imagine the washing machine action inside the box allowed the solvent
component to reach into every recess.

• The box was then refilled with 5W40 "Castrol RS" (0W40 "Mobil 1" is virtually
the same and I have subsequently used both with no discernable difference).

• I then added a recommended dose of Molyslip Gearbox Treatment. This stuff

• The transformation was miraculous. It has run for over 8 years without any of the
original symptoms and is a total pleasure to use.

• The oil has been replaced twice in that period with Mobil 1 and the same
Molyslip gearbox additive each time.

• As an experiment I used the leftover Molyslip treatment in the Vitesse rear axle
differential.

• After thoroughly warming the axle with an electric fan heater I sucked out all the
old lubricant with a large medical syringe and some flexible plastic tube. It was
then refilled with fresh hypoid oil (as specified) and the mentioned Molyslip
treatment.

• The rear axle differential was transformed. Taking both treatments into account,
the whole drive train has been silky smooth ever since. So good in fact, I treated
my Vdp axle to the same deal.

Giving GM180 transmission the Elbow

• At the rear of the GM180 transmission is a vacuum controlled actuator valve.

• This senses the vacuum condition at the engine intake manifold, and determines
what action the transmission should be taking regarding gear change or kick
down.

• The connection between the manifold and the transmission is made with a metal
tube connected at each end with rubber elbows. Two things can go wrong.
• The pipe can be displaced from its retaining clips. And the elbows can be
damaged or displaced.

• Either way, the integrity of the vacuum line can be breached.

• This in turn can have two extremely negative effects.

• The inlet manifold will receive unwanted air, which will definitely upset the idle
speed mixture and in the case of an Efi system, might even stall the engine.

• The gearbox actuator valve will cease to function upsetting the gear change
process.

• Check the integrity of both these little rubber elbows and replace if necessary. It
may result in a transformation of performance.

So there you have it, a collection of gearbox and transmission related ideas that really
worked for me. Perhaps they could work for you and transform the performance of your
Rover SD1 too. If you decide to give them a try let me know how things work out.

Ramon

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