This Jeep Wrangler Transmission Service Didn't Go as Planned!
My wifes Jeep Wrangler is a 2018 JL with the 8 speed 850RE transmission. Depending on the year make and model of your Wrangler, the fluids, filter, gasket and procedures of this service might be different, so be sure to refer to your owners manual before getting started.
We are doing this fluid change in the shop on a lift to make it easier to document and share with you, but this is something you can easily do yourself in your garage on some tire ramps or jack stands with some basic tool…. Doing it here is just easier for me to get that perfect camera angle.
Shift Autowerx: www.shiftautowerx.com
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Funny when you said do it yourself like we did. You had a mechanic do it lol 😂😂😂
The ZF8 speed needs to have the engine running for the final fill and at a certain temperature range. I’ve done the service on my bmw and it’s the same transmission.
The trans fluid needs to be at operating temp and engine running after going thru all gears to get the proper fluid level. If your sending them out without doing them that way they are low on fluid and might cause damage in off camber or steep slope situations
Pro DIY tip - always remove the fill plug first, before the fluid is drained out. If you can't fill it, best not to drain it until you sort that out. Unfortunate that Stellantis didn't include a drain plug and high fill port, such as through a dip stick.
Seems like going to see Jerry is a good idea 😅
120,000 miles between services? Just how many miles does Regina have on her Jeep? LOL!! As the owner of a repair shop may I add that oil and filters are cheap. I would recommend doing the oil changes every 50,000 miles. May save a transmission later. Also, don't know what Jeep was thinking, but the first time I change my oil I'd be adding in an oil drain plug kit! But gotta give you kudos. Very informative video. We like watching videos like these as much as any of your others!
I’m also curious to see how many miles Regina’s Jeep have. I have the same one 2018 and I’m a little under 60k.
I have a 2018 Jl Rubicon as well, I'm at 33,000mi. 👍🏼
Jerry is a pro! I wish I lived closer to his shop!
Thanks for the instructional video. Good to see Jerry in the video.
Great narration throughout.
Excellent job Jerry.
Thank you Brad, very informative👍
Great video. Jerry has a wealth of knowledge. It was great meeting him this past weekend.
Great content and informative for anyone doing it DIY. a transmission service can go south very fast 😅
Very good and informative video! I just changed the fluid in my JLUR with the 8 speed transmission. It's easier than the 2 door in this video. I didn't even need to loosen the exhaust crossover pipe to drop the pan out, but I did have to remove a cross brace at the rear of the pan. I had to rotate the pan clockwise and move more to the right of the Jeep and it slid right out. It required ~5.5 quarts to refill after all completed steps. Some of it was spilled as seen in this video so the exact amount is actually a bit less the 5.5 quarts.
Thank you Jerry!
Crazy, I have purchased everything I need to do the transmission, transfer case, and both diffs. I just hadn’t started it yet and this video popped up. Good info! Glad I saw this before I started in on the project. Should make everything go much smoother now.
Great content because I always do my own service now I know what to look for. Definitely getting a fluid pump.
Now that is a very good video full of good information. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for documenting this. Really appreciate your maintenance videos !!
Thanks!
Man! I’m sure Mopar is glad you do what you do. Not only do you make the brand look amazing, but you drop a lotta coin with em too.
Great video. Thanks Brad!
Thanks Brad for this educational video.
Thanks Jerry!
Hi Brad, very nice video. Thank you so much for sharing. 🚗
Thank you for this!
Jerry and Shift Autowerks has become our go to mechanics for our TJ and JL. Already have plans for him to do this trans service on my JL. This stuff, though doable, I like to leave to the experts and I like supporting small businesses. 😉✌
You always have good information
Did mine at 30,000 and 60,000. Due again at 90,000 on my ‘16 Wrangler.
Awesome video! Jerry and the crew at Shift Autowerx are so passionate and knowledgeable. Well worth the drive out there!
I’m trying to find the best place to make this comment but can’t really figure that out. I have some issues with my truck that I wanted to get addressed and based on Brad’s videos and Jerry’s comprehensive work, I emailed them at night last night and got an almost immediate reply from Jerry. Didn’t expect that. I’ll be taking my truck to them next week and I’m already pretty confident they’ll be able to figure out the best solution for my suspension issue. I can’t wait to have it fixed.
@@jamesherman2808 you're not going to be disappointed. These guys are passionate about the what they do and it's shows in their work
Nice work, very informative 🤘
Clearly the engineers at Jeep need to be dragged out of their offices and forced at gunpoint to preform these services themselves
They weren’t designed for ease of service. They were designed to be assembled as fast as possible. The consumer/mechanic ends up with the short end of the stick.
And to help make more money for the dealers.
I have read the fluid level check must be done at a certain fluid temperature, and on some models with the pan rail level, which may mean raising the rear of the vehicle, in some instances.
Wow!! That was very labor intensive! The skid plate aside, the fill procedure is kind a pain. With out a dipstick tube to fill the trans, "burping" the trans is a little bit of a pain in the you know what.... Wow!... Great info Brad!!
Really racking up those miles in that thing. Ita good to see
Yes, the trick here is that after the initial refill you need to get the temp up on the transmission fluid, keep the vehicle running and fill up till it runs out. This is similar to certain BMW and ISUZU Trooper auto transmission services.
Catching that filter, inspecting new parts life lesson learned.
i did this transmission service on my 2019 power wagon, ZF8 speed... the fill procedure is absurd but it does work. gotta be in a certain temp range, run through gears, fill until it comes back out of the hole and good to go.
Highly informative, well done video. Will keep Jeep service techs gainfully employed, though.
I'm pretty sure the proper fill procedure requires you to fill while running after cycling gears and trans Reno must be in a specific range. Then you fill tillnit runs over.. nice helpful video l! Mine is coming up soon in my jt
Glad you did this, my jeeps a 2023 with 25k miles on it and I ran it without gears in Utah with heavy rims and tires and feel like the transmission oil might have been burnt or something. I'm looking to do mine soon after I stock up on more oil. I've taken mine back to the dealer a few times and they basically told me if there's no light on or codes there's nothing they can do with it and just send you on your way until those come up. Nerve racking not knowing why my jeep sounds like a diesel in reverse and knock or chatters until you give it gas. Oil pressure is normal and all the other oils seem normal also.
Great video overview showing problems that can occur... You want a friend like Jerry if you don't have the experance
Love your videos! I saw something in this one at 4:50. Check your passenger side rear tire. You might have a nail in it. Or it could have just been a rock. Keep up the great work. You are keeping my sanity as I am waiting to do axle seals and a hub on my JKU.
Those BFG K02 series are really bad for holding small rocks in those tapered grooves of the outer shoulder blocks, my brother bought a JL this summer with the stock 35's ( Rubicon with the XR package ) and we live out in a rural farming area with gravel and it hardly takes any distance driven on the gravel and those smaller stones stick into those grooves and they are very stubborn to come out once they get in, even driving at speed down a highway for many miles won't kick them all out at all, that is a bad aspect of that tire design unfortunately.
I don't own a Jeep but still very interesting. Glad that whine went away,👍
wow very nice experience friend
Thanks for the video. I'm not due yet on my Gladiator but doesn't seem too difficult watching Jerry. Or maybe I'll just bring it to him! 😂
What a great video
So glad I have my Supercharged Gladiator at your shop to get fixed.
Good info!!!!
Definitely supposed to do the final top off with the engine running and fluid over 86 degrees. Hope he hasn’t sent too many ZF’s out under filled 😮
None under-filled all topped off running
Hardest part about this job is getting the fluid level right. You can get aftermarket pans that have drain plugs. One of the superior things about the JK w/ W5A580 trans is there is dipstick.
Awesome!!!
Ugh…exhaust bolts. I did a transmission service on my 2016 Colorado. To get the transmission pan off/out, you need to take the exhaust apart because of the crossover pipe. One of the exhaust flange bolts that was hard to get to (no power/impact tools) rounded off. Dremel cut off wheels, an air chisel, and several hours later, the nut was off. I had to rethread the stud. A different bolt size for the one, but the transmission got serviced and the exhaust went back together.
Me, in a manual JLU with a completely different transmission: ah yes very good information to know. Why am I like this.
Same same
Good stuff to know.
Great video! It would be great if you posted the part number. Thanks!
Can you continue to do maintenance videos on the 392 specially?
Thanks for the video! I would use a shop that has a trans flush machine to get all the fluid out of the torque converter and and system and it properly refills the transmission and system
In San Diego?
Great video. What a pain the ass to get to proper fill level
Morning CMC.
Ahh yes...Jerry the mechanic, good thing we all have a Jerry in our home towns and dealerships
Dont forget yearly Cleaning of Undercarrage (having those skid plates makes add more work to that yearly maintenance)
Also, the trans skid covers the exhaust so encasing it to reflect even more heat towards the trans pan... ever consider wrapping that part of the exhaust with thermal material?
awesome
I remove the fill plug first the use a vacuum pump to suck the fluid out of the transmission then remove the pan.
Just had mine done last week. Jeep dealer near me charged $430 wish I would have waited for this video and would have saved me some money 😭 😭
She already has 120,000 miles on her Jeep? Wow, she really drives that thing! Love it!
Any thoughts on a PPE Aluminium NAG1 Transmission Pan? For example, as a replacement for a JKU? It adds a magnet to the drain plug. Interested to hear what Jerry would say.
ZF8 is 70-80K service intervals
There’s a fill plug on the other side of the trans. I have a JL with the 3.0 ecodiesel and my plug is right beside my exhaust. Then I looked at the other side and realized there’s another plug.
My Jeep has 68K on it and have been thinking of a service on the trans.
Now I just need to find a Jerry with a shop like his...😉
Make sure your Jeep is level when you check the fluid level and not up on car ramps or jack stands.
What is the part number for the oil pan gasket and the transmission oil filter ?
Great video. I wonder who makes the transmissions for Jeep. I've heard ZF and Asin are used in some Chrysler products.
The Wrangler & Gladiator 3.6 version (850RE) is a ZF design built by Chrysler/Stellantis in Indiana. The EcoDiesel version (8HP75) is built by ZF in Germany. Both great transmissions; the 8HP75 is designed to handle more torque, and is also used in Hemi vehicles.
Yes, ZF built under license.
ZF recommends service at 60,000 miles the 8 speed transmissions.
Interesting you say every 120k miles service intervals. ZF recommends 60-80K miles intervals depending on how you use the vehicle
Thanks for the video, however a few crtics. 1. Fluid in that was very discolored and a pan only change is not complete enough. One way to minimize this is to change way for frequently, another is to do a flush which is more complicated but worth the trouble. This is done by interrupting the flow at the cooler lines and and punping fluid in/adding fluid as you start the vehicle while pumping into a bucket. This is much more complicated as you need multiple competent people to start and stop engine as another adds fluid and this is further complicated because it doesn't have a dipstick and tube. There are some videos out showing this however, Use caution as one said they flushed until it started bubbles or cavitated. I dont recommend letting it do the cavitation, hence the 2 competent person method. The flush is possible because the fluid comes from the pump to the cooler via the cooler lines. You do have to know direction of fluid in the line you intercept. I am about to do mine at about 27k miles including both pan and flush. To me as dirty as that oil was in the yellow Jeep. The mileage and pan only change were insufficient. Better than nothing but could be much better. Hope this helps those wanting a more complete service. The level checks on this type of transmission is also more complicated than conventional older transmissions. Happy trails. 😊
Assuming a weekend warrior Jeep, mostly stock, mostly street miles, what would you recommend for the interval for drain and refill pan method (non-flush)?
Anyone use lubelocker gaskets?? I have and been pretty happy with them.
Wish my DIY projects involved having a professional Jeep mechanic do the work for me.😂
I wish I had a Jerry in Arizona for my jeep. Lol.
Is there any updates on the 2024 3.6l v6?
should an automatic transmission fluid be changed at 120,000 miles as well, or sooner? when is the best mileage you can charge it?
My hometown
Everyone needs a Jerry - Mine is named Raffi and he's great...
Sold a kidney for that fluid! 😂
So the original gasket had a aluminium backing support all the way around it. The replacement was just rubber. Which one is better?
When should I change my wranlger 392 trans fluid ?
Everyone needs a Jerry
Can a drain plug be added to the pan?
Can you change the manual to automatic transmission of a 2021 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon
Trail Recon, if this is 9 speed ZF transmission, l have work on these transmission when I was at the Acura dealership, they have lots of software problems, under early 9 speed 2015-2017 had transmission cooler will go bad and leaks into the engine coolant side, replaced bunch of them transmission during warranty. You have to get the engine temperature up to 120F and let the ATF fluid leak out of the weep hole side inspection bolt.
Jeep uses the ZF8 which is a longitudinal transmission. From what I've heard it's a proven transmission.
@@bwofficial1776 the transmission are good, the transmission warmer were leaking and caused the transmission to fail, you had to replace all coolant hoses, flush out the coolant system in the engine, it was a pain to flush out, because ATF fluid was all over the engine and radiator, if you don’t get it all out, you will have a coolant hose leaking, they had software update constantly,
@@bwofficial1776 the transmission was built in South Carolina, when l was still working in the dealership 8 years ago, the head of ZF and American Honda engineers came out to the dealer and was trying to figure out what was failing, because we had a few transmission here they were looking at.
Stellantis uses the 9 speed ZF trans in the Cherokee, Renegade & Compass, the Chrysler Pacifica & short-lived 200, and some Ram ProMasters as well. Early models experienced software issues as well, which could lead to hardware failures. Wranglers, Grand Cherokees, Ram 1500s, and the full size RWD cars all use the ZF 8 speed, with very few failures.
@@jimstoneman1732 the transmission were all designed by ZF, and sold to bunch of Automotive dealers, the transmission case were slightly different to adapt to the engine, because l had talked to the ZF technician back then and they were trying to figure out what to do with this problem, l had replaced more than 20 of these transmissions back then. It had too much electronics systems tied to the whole car, when you replaced and updated the software, you had to flash bunch of other control units on all the systems, they all worked together. The car pretty much can drive itself if you design a program for it, most of sensors are there, my guess is they don’t want the liability it something goes wrong.
at 4:35 is that a nail in your tire?
No drain plug? crazy
Ok, I must be misinformed. I thought the JL auto trans was lifetime fluid?
I would not wait that long to change the trannie fluid, 120000 miles or in my case 193000 kms, personally I'd be doing it every 40 to 50 thousand ks or 30000 miles. Just my opinion.
Does the jeep have 125000 on the clock?
You took it to Jerry and his shop to have it done but you also said you can save a lot of money “if you do it yourself like we are”? How are you doing it yourself?
How much does it cost for this service ? I have 2023 jl at 12k miles , drive super carefully on trail and through some mudding ( 2 or 3 times ) … then the transmission is leaking . Slipping gear , low acceleration , low gas mileage , sound coc coc coc when reserve shift … Bring to local dealer to diagnostic … Dealer refused to cover the repair because they see some mud left in the skid plate ( already wash before i come to dealer ) … they told me it was abuse in mud 😢😢😢 I’m stuck rightnow … should i pay dealer to repair it or come to local jeep shop like this and order a used tranmission parts online to replace ?
Large tires and actual offroad use why not change the fluid sooner? Fluid change cheaper than transmission replacement.
boy, that fluid is burnt like a forest fire1 It was well over due for a change.
Ah ATF I can smell it through the camera