Cardi

Feel very stupid about this as I've done extensive maintenance on all my old second hand cars.

Where do I find the drain plug for the transmission fluid? Asked around and checked under the car but found nothing as expected. It seems I'll have to do serious stripping which is not on since I do not know that much about auto boxes.

Is there some other routine? Anything will be much appreciated, Thanks.

octaneman

Hi Cardi


To drain the transmission fluid just remove all the bolts holding it. Once they're off use a screwdriver to pry open the pan.


Note: Hot transmission oil can result in serious burns please be careful.


Good luck !

Cardi

Thanks octaneman. Looks easier than first takes.

Ta for the reminder about hot oil not to mention the shower you can expect when splitting the pan off the flanges. Seems I'll need a large flat pan to catch it all. Could be a real messy lark, heh?

Interesting that the car feels just like a slipping clutch although it does not over-rev. It just seems sluggish and out of kilter with the sound of the engine. Suppose it must be the viscosity of the oil gone south or something.

Any ideas on mileages for transmission fluid between changes?

Thanks again.

octaneman

Draining the pan is always messy work that is why it's always a good idea to have a bag of oil absorbent handy, using plain ole rags to clean up spills just makes it worse. Another medium you can use to soak up spills is saw dust, it works extremely well, is environmentally friendly, and allot cheaper.


The mileages for transmission fluid replacement varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, because of the orientation and materials used in the construction of the internal components. Allot also has to do with a person's driving habits also, thermal break down of the oils' viscosity is due largely to allot of stop and go situations which causes the most damage to clutch bands.

The rule of thumb applied to transmission oil that I know of is for every 20 degrees above 175F the temperature cuts the life of the fluid in half. The recommendation I say to customers is replacement of the fluid and filter is every 50,000 miles or 80,000 kilometers.

Cardi

Thanks for the tip on saw dust. Completely forgot about it and I make lot of it when I make kitchen cupboards.

Thankfully my driving habits cooled down considerably now that I have the auto. Actually its a lot more comfortable and enjoyable. Kickdowns and gearshift limits in first and second are also not too frequent given that I live in a very aggressive traffic environment. The car does haul a lot of tools though. Then gain I drive as smoothly as I can ... well ... both for gas mileage as for strain - the buggy is twenty odd years old.

Ta, the info on how the oil temperature affects the quality of the oil is especially helpful. Maybe not "scientific", but gives a very good grip on general conditions. Not so much for oil changes or not as for doing them a little early to avoid strain on the engine.

Thanks octaneman, your responses and info are very handy and helpful. Will definitely keep to it. The saga continues ...

Snoopdogie187

Just in case. Check the condition of the a/t fluid before changing it out. Darker is ok, but from everything and everyone, when its brown, or has a burnt smell, don't even attempt to change it.

As far as changing it, it is messy. I used a shalow storage container (bought at walmart) and it was wide enough to catch at least 95% of all of the oil.
When I did it, I didnt have to pry the pan off at all, but I don't know if that is normal, the bolts weren't tightened anywhere close to specs (and one was stripped). We just bought the car not long ago, and except for regular maintence it was good, we just got lucky it needed a radiator and I figured, well I will already have the transmission lines off, I might as well change the trans fluid also.

It wasn't hard to change at all, just a little messy (and an extrem pain when we found the stripped bolt, but if you do it nicely you shouldn't have this problem). The actual change only took maybe an hour at most.

Cardi

Snoopdogie, I don't understand your first sentence. If the atf is brown or has a burnt smell then surely that is just the reason to change it? Dead give away for stuff not working anymore, innit? Maybe the dipstick should then have told you it is high time to do sometihing.

I've been going on about wear on the engine, but I woke up with a fright this morning when I realized the more important thing is to look after the damage bad fluid can do to the internal fibre parts of the transmission (octaneman's posts). Worst is I don't know how this is built inside. So, the messes I'll suffer to keep the box good.

Especially since it cost me some US$1300 some time ago to replace said drive-train. You do the entire thing between the flywheel and the half-shafts. Otherwise scrap it. Save up and do everything including inner and outer CV (ball) joints.

If its an old model car, do yourself the favour of replacing all shock absorbers, road springs and if you have a snap crunch on the left side in short turns (not the CV clickety marbles) replace the top mountings for the shocks.

No shouting but;

DO USE PROPER CLAMPS WHEN HANDLING ROAD SPRINGS. IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT GO FIND OUT FIRST. INATTENTION WILL KILL YOU.

This is not negotiable.
The spring inside a truck's air assisted spring brake is as thick as your thumb, has four coils about five inches in diameter and from end to end it is about five inches long. It nominally stores about nine tonnes of energy. Your car's road springs are less powerful, but you have been warned. Do not undo bolts without proper control over the spring.

DO NOT USE A BENCH VICE.

Also pay attention to the left hand tie rod end. Here they sell you the whole rod. Fit it, to various degrees these are all life and limb parts. Build your own service record for the day you sell it privately. Note mileages. Keep the invoices. The car will vouch for it.

Snoopdogie187

If the aft is brown or burnt smelling, it means the internal of the transmission already wore down too much, and by changing the fluid will cause it to act even worse. (Sorry, I did a lot of research right before messing with the transmission). If it is brown or burnt smelling, its always suggested to have it rebuilt right away. If the aft isn't brown, but darker, that is when you should change it, if not sooner.

Cardi

Thanks Snoop, didn't get that together. Luckily I haven't been in that position yet as you've seen that I have a fairly new box. Maybe it also came from the fact that my new a/t fluid was a nice cherry red to start with. I thought it would go brown before charcoalish or black. Learning never ceases.

Thanks for your time spent to answer that question.
Many happy miles to you and yours.