Is There Anyone With A High Milage Car That HASN'T Had To Replace Gearbox Or Peddlebox!? A Poll...

[JoeyEunos]

Recently (Ok very recently, actually yesterday ) I picked up my first Lupo, an SDI 2001 model with FSH and in great nick with a full years MOT but with 120K on the clocks for the princely sum of £550... For all I know it's had the gearbox done, although I suspect not as it looks very similar in the levels of oxidisation to the casing etc to the rest of the oily bits, same goes for the peddle box.

I knew before I got into this about the inherent boggles with gearboxes and peddleboxes that blight the lives of many of you Lupo folk, but I bit the bullet anyway as frankly it was a very cheap car! None the less, I couldn't help wondering about just how common this is! Then it struck me, why not create a poll!?

Are there any of you running high milage cars that haven't had to replace the gearbox and/or peddlebox? Is it pretty much a foregone conclusion that these will go at some point?

Thanks in advance for any experiences/musings/insights!

 

 

Edited April 26, 2016 by JoeyEunos

[lupo1.0se]

My black 1ltr got to over 100k before i sold it. It did have the pedal box (around 75000 miles). Gearbox was still fine though

 

A mate  has a black lupo (slightly older than mine). I suspect his has the pedal box issue and that's only done over 50000 miles!

Edited April 26, 2016 by lupo1.0se

[JoeyEunos]

Hmmm, interesting.

I'm thinking that at 120k it's quite likely mine has had the pedal box replaced already....? Am I right in thinking that there was a 'revised' predal box fitted as a replacement to avoid the same issue occuring in the future?

RE gearboxes, what I'm really trying to ascertain really is what kind of milage is possible on the original box... Given my car's high milage it's a concern to me TBH.

[Pete]

I think there were like 5 revisions as the previous ones kept failing too.

[Blue Loop]

My SDi (130k) has been owned since new and we've never had to recondition the gearbox. Pedal box is not a problem on European cars tho.

[JoeyEunos]

130k on the original box is quite encouraging  Certainly beats my 120k...

[wehey]

My tdi has just clocked 147k and has a crunchy 2-3 gear change.

i have just brought a spare and will swap it out next month

[JoeyEunos]

Kudos! 147k on the original gearbox makes you the leader so far 

If you don't mind me asking have you picked up a second hand 'box as a replacement, or is it a recon unit? If it's the former surely there's a chance it's no better than your existing one...?

Edited April 26, 2016 by JoeyEunos

[wehey]

It's still perfectly drivable as it is as long as the gear change is done carefully. it would probably go on for years like this ?

The replacement box is a second hand unit from a Polo with 90K on it. Of course there's no telling if it's any good but it came from a reputable dealer.

i just couldn't  justify paying nearly the value of the car for a recon box

[Skezza]

Almost 170k on original SDI gearbox. 

Don't forget though, I've done a slight modification which I believe will keep it running for many miles longer than it's brothers

[Mobieus_uk]

195k on a sdi, I have no idea whats been done to it if anything, but it does come with standard vibrating seats when on idle, I like to call them massage seats

[jon_273]

6 hours ago, Blue Loop said:

My SDi (130k) has been owned since new and we've never had to recondition the gearbox. Pedal box is not a problem on European cars tho.

Have you changed the oil in it yet?

[JoeyEunos]

2 hours ago, wehey said:

It's still perfectly drivable as it is as long as the gear change is done carefully. it would probably go on for years like this ?

The replacement box is a second hand unit from a Polo with 90K on it. Of course there's no telling if it's any good but it came from a reputable dealer.

i just couldn't  justify paying nearly the value of the car for a recon box

Completely understand, recon boxes do seem slightly un-economical.

 

2 hours ago, Skezza said:

Almost 170k on original SDI gearbox. 

Don't forget though, I've done a slight modification which I believe will keep it running for many miles longer than it's brothers

Don't just leave us hanging! What is this wonder modification you speak of!?

1 hour ago, Mobieus_uk said:

195k on a sdi, I have no idea whats been done to it if anything, but it does come with standard vibrating seats when on idle, I like to call them massage seats

Your story brings me hope, thank you 

[Blue Loop]

2 hours ago, jon_273 said:

Have you changed the oil in it yet?

Yes, but can't say for sure if once or twice...

[Skezza]

2 hours ago, JoeyEunos said:

Don't just leave us hanging! What is this wonder modification you speak of!?

Haha. Nothing that big or clever. I changed the oil for 80w90, as opposed to the recommended 75w90. The sdi gearbox is an old design and was used very successfully for many years prior to the Loop in industrial engines. It wasn't designed for 75w90 and I believe the majority of sdi gearbox failures are caused by this thinner oil. The failures are not at all related to the 1.0 gearbox which suffers from a serious design fault. 

I changed mine to 80w90 not long after 100k miles. The gearbox is holding firm and it's smoother than others I've tried. Don't get me wrong, it's not that nice on a cold morning and you can see why VW changed it. Little old Betty wouldn't like it, but for me, it's an essential piece of preventive maintenance.

[JoeyEunos]

10 hours ago, Skezza said:

Haha. Nothing that big or clever. I changed the oil for 80w90, as opposed to the recommended 75w90. The sdi gearbox is an old design and was used very successfully for many years prior to the Loop in industrial engines. It wasn't designed for 75w90 and I believe the majority of sdi gearbox failures are caused by this thinner oil. The failures are not at all related to the 1.0 gearbox which suffers from a serious design fault.

I changed mine to 80w90 not long after 100k miles. The gearbox is holding firm and it's smoother than others I've tried. Don't get me wrong, it's not that nice on a cold morning and you can see why VW changed it. Little old Betty wouldn't like it, but for me, it's an essential piece of preventive maintenance.

 

Thats a massive help, I'm going to 100% copy/follow suit

What brand of oil was it you used? Any chance of a link?

FWIW the box on mine shows no signs of any leeking, in fact TBH it's the driest/cleanest looking box I've ever seen... My other cars are a 1989 MX5 and a 2001 Golf 1.4 16V and it puts them to shame with both respectively showing obvious signs of minor 'sweating' of oil, that's not to say that it isn't perhaps running on 0.5l of oil after 120k's worth of service though

[weslangdon]

Pedalbox replaced on my Arosa Sport at 125k. Re built gearbox on my TDi, 3rd gear syncros failed at 150k; my sons Lupo 75bhp needs a gearbox at only 65k miles, 5th gear failing. Wife's 1.4 Lupo auto is fine though, but as an autobox its leisurely compared to a Mercedes and it doesn't hold on inclines so as a unit I'd only give it 6/10 .

TDi gearboxes struggle with the torque the engine generates and the 3rd gear gets the most use, SDi gearboxes have far less work to do so last longer. 

Edited April 27, 2016 by weslangdon

[Skezza]

45 minutes ago, weslangdon said:

Pedalbox replaced on my Arosa Sport at 125k. Re built gearbox on my TDi, 3rd gear syncros failed at 150k; my sons Lupo 75bhp needs a gearbox at only 65k miles, 5 gear failing. Wife's 1.4 Lupo auto is fine though, but as an autobox its leisurely compared to a Mercedes and it doesn't hold on inclines so as a unit I'd only give it 6/10 .

TDi gearboxes struggle with the torque the engine generates and the 3rd gear gets the most use, SDi gearboxes have far less work to do so last longer. 

Interesting. This is a common failure on the 1.0's because (the design defect is) the oil gallery is roughly the same height as 5th gear. This already means that 5th isn't being supplied with enough oil, or perhaps just enough. Any kind of oil leak will result in 5th gear being starved and the inevitable gearbox failure. 

It's certainly a good reason to change (or at least top up) your gearbox oil once a year.

[pond]

pedalbox replaced at 54K miles and the only addition to new pedalbox was one extra run of weld about 10 mm long. Gearbox totally fine but will check for silt next time i change oil.

[weslangdon]

4 hours ago, Skezza said:

Interesting. This is a common failure on the 1.0's because (the design defect is) the oil gallery is roughly the same height as 5th gear. This already means that 5th isn't being supplied with enough oil, or perhaps just enough. Any kind of oil leak will result in 5th gear being starved and the inevitable gearbox failure. 

It's certainly a good reason to change (or at least top up) your gearbox oil once a year.

I've edited that to the 5th gear failing, but you are right the problem first occurred because the g/box oil was low, topping it up regularly since it first started jumping out of gear hasn't rectified it, but it did sort it for 9 months or so

[FlipFlops]

My Lupo Tdi is on 230k and on the original gearbox. It's smooth in all gears, it doesn't crunch or make odd noises, it drives perfect tbh. Going by what some of you have said i think i've got lucky with mine?

[weslangdon]

or lots of folk have had their TDI's re mapped

[Mobieus_uk]

I have no idea, car has got 198k on it and still running, the only thing I know failed was the heater matrix, could be a bit of a triggers broom so don't know whats original or what work has been done, when you buy a car for £650 and 195k you tend not to get hung up on paperwork and service history, its runs so good enough for me

[Skezza]

13 hours ago, Mobieus_uk said:

I have no idea, car has got 198k on it and still running, the only thing I know failed was the heater matrix, could be a bit of a triggers broom so don't know whats original or what work has been done, when you buy a car for £650 and 195k you tend not to get hung up on paperwork and service history, its runs so good enough for me

Wow, a failed heater matrix  Not heard of that happening for years

[JoeyEunos]

On 27 April 2016 at 1:34 PM, weslangdon said:

 

TDi gearboxes struggle with the torque the engine generates and the 3rd gear gets the most use, SDi gearboxes have far less work to do so last longer.

I wasn't aware that the TDi models ran the same box as the SDi?