Help! Transmission fluid low on 2003 Chevy Truck.

[Chris B.]

I checked my Transmission fluid tonight and it showed low. It was just under the "cross hatch hot" mark and in the "cold" zone when the engine was hot, level and at idle in park. How low is this and how much damage is done? The truck has 9,500 miles on it and I don't know how long it has been low. It seem to shift fine and only sometimes shifts hard when I give it a little more gas. Do you think it is toast? I'm bringing it to the dealer tomorrow on my lunch break to have them look at it and top it off. I never had to mess with filling a transmission.

Thanks for the help!

 

[deepsquat]

No damage ...your tranny probably holds around 15-20 quarts of fluid.So percentage wise 1 quart low is not much at all...and yes I know that when you change the fluid it will probably only require 4-5 quarts...my nissan uses 4 quarts at change over...but when I hasd a new tranny installed it took 15 quarts to fill her.

 

[Ken2]

It likely came low from the factory. All the makers seem to be shorting oil and sometimes even filling with below-spec oil, according to a friend who's an oil analysis nut.

Anything to save a coupl'a bucks....


Ken

 

[jeepzj]

My Jeep needs to be in Nuetral when checking my tranny fluid level. Are you sure yours should be in Park? Did you check your manual? I would always check the transmission fluid when it's hot like after a 20 minute city drive. Right before you check, shift the tranny in each gear and hold it there for 5 seconds, then leave it in Park or Nuetral(check manual)to check level.

 

[crashz]

Hot can be a relative thing. If you can hardly touch the fluid on the stick, or it burns you, its hot. If its cool to the touch, then its not hot enough to check. If you fill it when cold and the fluid expands, it can be just as bad as to little.

 

[Mike_dup1]

Let the dealer check it out. I thought the same thing with my 2001 GMC and I was sure it was low. But not according to the service tech. I was misinterpreting the full line.

 

[deepsquat]

quote:

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Originally posted by crashz:
Hot can be a relative thing. If you can hardly touch the fluid on the stick, or it burns you, its hot. If its cool to the touch, then its not hot enough to check. If you fill it when cold and the fluid expands, it can be just as bad as to little.

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WOW! The fluid in my 95 Altima never gets hot! I mean even after a 300 mile run at 8o mph I checked it and it was cool to the touch!

 

[wtd]

Make sure that you are checking the fluid correctly. On my 98 chevy truck with the 4L60E, you have to have the fluid fully warmed up and then place the tranny in every gear for about 3 seconds and then let the truck idle in park for at least 3 minutes.

I don't doubt that it is low because when I bought my truck new, the first thing I checked when I got it home was the fluid levels. If I remember correctly, my tranny and rear diff were low, my engine oil was overfilled and the front diff and transfer case were okay. My salesman was not happy with me when I gave the dealership low marks on their customer satisfaction card in this area. Don't ever assume that the dealers prep new vehicles like they should. I doubt it hurt the tranny, but its a good idea to take it back to the dealer to get it documented in case you have tranny problems down the road sooner than you should.

Wayne

 

[crashz]

quote:

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Originally posted by deepsquat:

quote:

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Originally posted by crashz:
Hot can be a relative thing. If you can hardly touch the fluid on the stick, or it burns you, its hot. If its cool to the touch, then its not hot enough to check. If you fill it when cold and the fluid expands, it can be just as bad as to little.

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WOW! The fluid in my 95 Altima never gets hot! I mean even after a 300 mile run at 8o mph I checked it and it was cool to the touch!

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That makes sense because as you're traveling on the highway, your torque converter is locked up, so the fluid is only lubricating the gears and not being sheared by the TC. If you drive for 30 min in stop and go traffic, you'll notice the tranny fluid is hot enough to burn you. The majority of the heat is built up in the TC due to slippage.