I thought I had serious transmission problems on my 85 TD. It started through the intersection, then slipped and left me stuck. Only when I restarted the car would it drive. But shifting was really sloppy.
As I added up the cost of a rebuild or used tranny, I decided to do something smart for a change and check the fluid. Down two quarts.
That fixed the problem but I will have to deal with the leak eventually. Even at 273,000 miles the tranny shifts smoothly.

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Stage Wizards Lighting and sound designer
1981 SD 328,000
1985 300TD, 266,000
1984 300 TD, 267,000