I am getting ready to change my 2002 coupe's auto - filter and fluid and am not familiar with the corvette's rear transmission layout, where do I find the fill plug?
celticrebel

 

On the side of the trans pan, I know it sounds dumb, but that where it is. Make sure you follow the procedure for checking the fluid level when your done.

 

In case you're not aware of it, draining the fluid only gets about 50% of the fluid out. I would recommend you consider having someone power flush the AT. My 2 cents.

 

Power flush is a waste of money, most of that excess oil is in the torque converter, it fills through a small hole when empty and is almost impossible to empty when full, even when out of the car, which will run you about $400 labor.My 98 has original fluid in it, I checked it once[ what a job]it was full had no burnt odor and the sample i pulled with a hyperdermic appeared clear and clean.My owners book only recommends changing at 100k, unless most of your driving is severe duty.At 50k i will drain mine and replace filter and add a deep pan, and not worry about the torque converter, which Im probablly going to change out before then anyway.

 

I would suggest anyone to spend some time at www.bobistheoilguy.com and studying up on tranny fluid. You can't determine that a fluid is still "good" based on color and cleanliness, although the opposite is true. If it is dirty, burned, etc. then you know it's bad. Transmission fluid contains a number of additives to control viscosity and friction and they decompose and the pH of the fluid changes without changing the appearance of the fluid. The result is increased transmission wear.

Considering that you can't get all the fluid out, it is better to drain and refill with clean on a regular basis (no more than 20K miles or maybe every 4 years, whichever comes first) to ensure that the fluid's properties are maintained (what's a couple quarts of Mobil 1 ATF cost anyway....Amsoil or Redline for that matter).

If wanted, you can 'flush' the fluid by running the car in neutral (same as you would to check the fluid level) with the tranny cooler return line unhooked at the transmission and draining into a container while pumping new fluid into the transmission fill plug. The procedure is detailed in the GM service manual.

If you run it fairly hard, or have an aftermarket torque converter, 15,000 mile changes are good preventive maintenance.....and fairly cheap.

My .02