transmission problem Cat 16g

[Catlover95]

looking to purchase a 16g cat grader 93U serial number, the machine is going cheap 35k au. The owner states it drives fine and pushes hard in gears 1-4, however 5-8 will not drive. Has anyone got any idea on where to start? how likely is it to be an internal repair?
any info appreciated.
Regards

 

[Nige]

Losing those gears indicates the high range clutch is not engaging.
On a machine of that vintage with no electronics the possibilities are:-
External - Control cable adjustment or a problem inside the transmission control valve itself, which are unlikely but should be checked.
internal - failed #8 (high range) clutch. Most likely.

If the seller will agree, remove the two suction screens on the rear side of the transmission case. See illustration below, they are located behind the covers. If one or both of the screens contains flakes of burnt clutch friction material then you will have your answer.

 

[Catlover95]

Thank you for your reply, I agree it sounds like a high range clutch to be the most likely problem. If it is how big of a repair is this. Does the entire trans have to come out of the machine or can I access this clutch through an inspection plate. Thanks

 

[Nige]

The whole transmission has to come out of the machine to repair/rebuild it. You’ll need some fairly heavy lifting gear, it probably weighs somewhere in the region of a ton.