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Ianh

Member Since: 17 Sep 2018
Location: Essex
Posts: 2557

Lightning, I’m aware you have ordered a good pump to refill the gearbox, which if cleaned correctly is also good for filling the transfer box and diffs with their spec oils.

However if anyone else wants to know of a cheap and accurate method to fill the gearbox, then a 1.2 metre length of 12mm Outside diameter clear plastic pipe does the job nicely. Just feed it from the engine bay , under the body and into the fill hole of the gearbox ensuring you hang it so it’s supported with no dips. Stick a funnel in the engine bay end and pore the correct measured amount of oil into the funnel. About £5 -10 in total. I purchased a 1.5m length and use the 300mm cutoff length with funnel for filling the transfer and diffs.

13th Oct 2025 3:15pm

blackwolf

Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 18058

2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 DCPU Stornoway Grey

By clang I mean, I suppose, thud. Make sure the pedal is fully down.

13th Oct 2025 3:37pm

lightning

Member Since: 23 Apr 2009
Location: High Peak, Derbyshire
Posts: 3552

Yeah, now l've cut away the corner of the heavy duty floor mat, l can feel the pedal hitting the end stop.

Click image to enlarge

13th Oct 2025 5:45pm

Dinnu

Member Since: 24 Dec 2019
Location: Lija
Posts: 3656

2012 Defender 90 Puma 2.2 CSW Santorini Black

On later vehicles, the clutch pedal box has a bolt to limit the down movement of the pedal. Thats the thud that you should hear. Only very early vehicles had the foot well as a limit.

As for master cylinders, I had what supposedly been a highly regarded brand (with its associated price) fail in just 8 months. When I opened it up, I found a burr along the top of the piston (just beneath the seal) that gouged the bore beyond a possible rebuild repair. It was always hard for me to get more than 2 years - locally need to use the clutch A LOT until I modified the piston to expand the seals a bit more. It made a massive difference.

Not done to the Puma yet, but on my old 90 I am using dot5, not to be mistaken with dot5.1, which is silicone based. As it will eventually leak, at least I do not have a mess to the paintwork. Dot4 is highly corrosive. 1988 90 Hard Top, 19J Diesel Turbo, Shire Blue - Restoration ongoing
2012 90 CSW, 2.2TDCI, Santorini Black

13th Oct 2025 7:22pm

HardCharger

Member Since: 03 Mar 2013
Location: Manila
Posts: 831

2011 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 SW Stornoway Grey

jbcollier wrote:
"They all leak into the driver side floor (LHD) eventually."

Define eventually. Everything wears and leaks "eventually". I would not find it surprising if I had to replace the clutch master every four to five years in regular use. The clutch is used constantly and always to its full travel -- unlike a brake master which doesn't really move that much.

Every year? That would strike me as excessive. Unless it is used commercially, driven most days, and all day long, then I would hope for maybe every two years?

If there is no visible bore wear, you can just fit a kit.

My Defender is my daily driver. Clutch is operated frequently given local driving conditions and horrendous traffic jams.

I reckon it took about a year before I started seeing the occasional drops on the driver side floor mat. It's not a full fledge weep like one of my previous clutch masters but you can see the fluid form a trail over a couple of days especially when the mat is dusty or covered in dried mud.

I experience the darkening of the clutch fluid at about 6 months in after a new master cylinder. I just have the fluid purged at the next service and monitor. No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy

14th Oct 2025 1:21am

custom90

Member Since: 21 Jan 2010
Location: South West, England.
Posts: 21044

Fluid in the clutch system goes dark fairly rapidly, but depends really quite how much it has.

Once you know how, it is pretty easy and fast to change the clutch fluid in no time, you’ve just got to be gentle with the bleed point as you can break it if over tightened, so you close it by hand nothing more, it doesn’t need tightening in any way and opening just a little.
A cheap vac bleeder will work, but will gravity bleed anyway.. ____\We|Will|Win/___
____/🇬🇧🇺🇸\____
_//*⛽️🛢️⚙️🧰*\\_

Last edited by custom90 on 15th Oct 2025 8:50pm. Edited 1 time in total

14th Oct 2025 5:29pm

lightning

Member Since: 23 Apr 2009
Location: High Peak, Derbyshire
Posts: 3552

One thing that makes it more difficult to drive smoothly is the throttle lag at certain times, say you are in third gear and come off the gas at 20-25mph then if you get back on the gas there's a second delay before the engine responds.

This of course causes a lurch as the power kicks in, and it takes up driveline slack. It's possible to avoid it by careful use of the gas pedal.

My 2022 Defender did it when it was new, but for a different reason....slowing down and then applying the gas pedal the engine revs would shoot up and it took a second for the transmission to engage which caused a significant lurch as if you'd been hit from behind.

Over time it diminished and eventually stopped doing it after about 10,000 miles.

15th Oct 2025 6:55pm

custom90

Member Since: 21 Jan 2010
Location: South West, England.
Posts: 21044

Turbo linkage getting sticky and or clutch switch can be culprits of that, the latter does actually cut toque a little bit momentarily.

You can bypass the clutch switch to stop that, but it also then will induce more shock load to clutch and driveline. It does drive a little nicer with the clutch switch bridged and you can put power down nicely but, I feel it can does compromise driveline integrity as you are then having peak torque applied.

LR did factor that in for good reason, but it can cause problems when the switch gets sticky. ____\We|Will|Win/___
____/🇬🇧🇺🇸\____
_//*⛽️🛢️⚙️🧰*\\_

15th Oct 2025 8:53pm

lightning

Member Since: 23 Apr 2009
Location: High Peak, Derbyshire
Posts: 3552

l've got a new clutch switch to fit, as l read that somewhere else as well. Do you have to bleed the system after changing the switch?

l don't recall doing it when l replaced the switch on my TD5.

15th Oct 2025 9:05pm

blackwolf

Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 18058

lightning wrote:
... you are in third gear and come off the gas at 20-25mph then if you get back on the gas there's a second delay before the engine responds....

That shouldn't happen and is a fault. Mine has never done that.

15th Oct 2025 9:18pm

lightning

Member Since: 23 Apr 2009
Location: High Peak, Derbyshire
Posts: 3552

lt only happens if you are slowing down on a trailing throttle, that is foot off the gas pedal. Then give it some gas.

lf the clutch pedal is pressed a little the response then becomes instant.

To be honest if you slow down in my 2022 Defender with your foot off the gas pedal then give it some gas, there's a short delay before the engine responds.

17th Oct 2025 8:18pm

lightning

Member Since: 23 Apr 2009
Location: High Peak, Derbyshire
Posts: 3552

So this weekend l decided to change the gearbox and transfer box oil.

The gearbox oil level was okay but the oil was thin, brown and looked past its best. The transfer box only had around 1.6 litres of oil in it.
The oil was black and looked like it was due a change.

Now, the "clashing" noise has disappeared and gear changes are noticeably better.

The "thud" as drive is taken up from a trailing throttle seems to be just slack in the transmission somewhere.
As it also does it in reverse gear when you come on and off the gas.

20th Oct 2025 12:36pm

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