Transaxle Fluid Checks
Thread Starter
Race Director
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 15,133
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From: NM
Transaxle Fluid Checks
Is this correct?
On My GMLink, under maintenance, it has a listing for things to be checked at least onece a month. These include things such as loose ore damaged parts, safety belts, wiper blades, greasing weather strips, and "Check the transaxle fluid level; add if needed."
https://www.mygmlink.com/main/US/en/...ubaction=least
Is that correct? I am hoping this is a generic deal and they are refering to a FWD transaxle.
tom...
On My GMLink, under maintenance, it has a listing for things to be checked at least onece a month. These include things such as loose ore damaged parts, safety belts, wiper blades, greasing weather strips, and "Check the transaxle fluid level; add if needed."
https://www.mygmlink.com/main/US/en/...ubaction=least
Is that correct? I am hoping this is a generic deal and they are refering to a FWD transaxle.
tom...
Thread Starter
Race Director
Joined: Apr 1999
Posts: 15,133
Likes: 477
From: NM
No leaks or anything. Just that the maintance was saying to check monthly. That would be a pain to get under the car that often to check levels.
Racer
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 431
Likes: 5
From: Chico CA
I've read in a couple of places that the best thing is to watch for leaks. One of the Corvette magazines did an article on this in a tech section. Checking the ATF in one of the A4 cars is not for the faint of heart. It involves getting under a running car, with a hot stainless steel set of pipes very near you, and removing a plug while hoping not to get an armload of hot fluid down your arm.
In my case, fostering a relationship with a good transmission shop is valuable. Because they do the maintenance on all my cars - my Vette, the Shelby, my wife's daily driver, my son's old Trans Am, and my old Trans Am - they've been really good about checking the fluid if I watch for a slow time. Takes them a couple of minutes on a hoist - would probably take me half a day at the emergency room to take care of the burns afterward.
Really, I've got the oil pans down for all the cars, and have a pretty good idea what's dripping out of them at any point. We could identify the power steering problem on my son's car, and I know the Shelby has a transmission pan gasket leak. Next time it's near the transmission shop, I'll pay them to check and change it. It just dries out from non-use.
One of those long catch pans, or some cardboard (my wife's Pontiac is still nearly new, so cardboard does fine there - same with the Corvette), is not a bad investment.
In my case, fostering a relationship with a good transmission shop is valuable. Because they do the maintenance on all my cars - my Vette, the Shelby, my wife's daily driver, my son's old Trans Am, and my old Trans Am - they've been really good about checking the fluid if I watch for a slow time. Takes them a couple of minutes on a hoist - would probably take me half a day at the emergency room to take care of the burns afterward.
Really, I've got the oil pans down for all the cars, and have a pretty good idea what's dripping out of them at any point. We could identify the power steering problem on my son's car, and I know the Shelby has a transmission pan gasket leak. Next time it's near the transmission shop, I'll pay them to check and change it. It just dries out from non-use.
One of those long catch pans, or some cardboard (my wife's Pontiac is still nearly new, so cardboard does fine there - same with the Corvette), is not a bad investment.
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You might want to check for leaks if you want, but I wouldn't worry about actually pulling the plug and checking the fluid on a monthly basis.
