Jimmy has been sitting a while as the last time I drove him, I notice it took a moment to shift into gear. After checking the transmission fluid level, I found it was low, by a fair bit. But what could be the reason? Digging deeper, I decided to check the transmission oil pan. Indeed, there were leaks. I hadn’t really seen any leaks in the garage (except from the engine, likely valve covers) so I was concerned.
Anyway, to cut to the chase, he sat for about a year and a half, getting started and warmed up about once a month–eventually I misjudged the interval and found the battery to be dead. Well, I pull the battery, locked him up and that was that.
My wife, when pressed on what she wanted for xmas, said she would love Jimmy to get up and going, so here we are.
The Initial Parts List.
Since I knew it was past due on his transmission filter replacement, and his fluid flush, I took the liberty of ordering everything ahead of time; or so I’d thought.
12 – Quarts of ACDelco Dexron VI
1 – ACDelco Transmission Oil Pan Gasket
1 – ACDelco Transmission Oil Filter
The Actual Maintenance.
- First, up on stands, all four wheels.
- Gather tools: Coveralls, creeper, ratchet, 12mm deep & short socket, 3/8″ extension, catch can, cardboard, rags, magnetic dish, small tool cart, eyewear, and rubber gloves.
- Get under the car and start removing the pan bolts. This is where it gets interesting.. They were, like all 18 of them, hand-tight. This clearly is where the leak was coming from also.
- One interesting note to be had, there is a shift lever on the driver side of the pan, that obscures one bolt completely, and has one more bolt, easy to get to, holding it in. I had to switch to a 10mm short wrench (both these bolts are 10mm, the others are 12mm) to get it out, and barely a 1/3rd of a turn per stroke–takes a while.
- Once all but two rear bolts were removed, I was able to pull down on the front, break what seal it did have, and drain it–bewarned, the fluid will go wherever it damn well pleases.
- Once the pan was off, I pulled out the old filter with a gentle pulling with a back and forth twisting action, and then attempted to get out the filter seal–not an easy task. Apparently Harbor Freight sells a slide hammer that has an adapter to pull it, I highly recommend using one as it is not easy to get this thing out. Eventually I had to get a hammer and flathead screwdriver out to get it to buckle so I could pull it out with a pair of pliers. Invest in some time here, you don’t want to damage the mating surface.
- Putting the new one back in, I used a hammer and a 17mm deep socket. Clean up everything and coat it in transmission fluid, get it seated by hand, and then line up the socket and tap, tap taaaap it in. Easy if you keep it straight. Same thing with the filter, a little fluid, align it proper, and spin it in place (really back and forth but you get it).
- Then I cleaned up the pan, removing the old gasket with a putty knife (hey, use what works), wiped it out and then hit it with some brake cleaner. Having installed lots of gaskets before, I know the key to success is making sure they are aligned properly, which can be a pain. A little trick I used is a dab of super glue in the four corners, and then under any section that needed it..Just a couple. This will hold the gasket in place while getting it into position.
- Next, I cleaned up the transmission mating surface, and put the pan back on, tightening in a circular pattern, just a little bit at a time. Hand tight, then small finger ratchet tight, then a quarter turn on each about 3 times around, then one final torque at 108 in/lbs. The manual said 8-10 ft/lbs, and I chose 9.
- Then refill with 4 quarts and proceed to flush. This requires a special tool, which is essentially a brass fitting to plug into the return line of the oil cooler/transmission. I have another GM vehicle, so I already had this tool. I removed the return line clip retaining ring, removed the retaining clip and pulled out the fitting. Installing the brass plug, with some clear tubing attached, I asked my wife to help me.
- What you do is, get a 2 quart bottle (ish), have someone start the engine, while you keep the hose in the container, yelling to “shut ‘er down” when you hit two quarts. Then, you drain that into a catch can, and add 2 fresh quarts in the fill tube and repeat this process until you get fresh red fluid out the line, or when you get to 12 quarts added, hopefully at the same time. Be sure to have your helper cycle through each gear (so I’m told) to clean out all the passages in the transmission.
- All done! Or so I thought. The back right wheel wasn’t turning, even with some considerable effort by myself. Well, looks like the brakes may need some help!
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