transmission seal weeping..?

[ahoier]

OK....this 88 Aries had the transmission rebuilt last year, 8/28/10....well, went in for an oil change yesterday at Walmart, and the tech noticed ATF 'weeping'/wet under the vehicle....so they let me know. they let me go into the lower bay but I did not really know what I was looking at....


I know 2 OCI's ago the seal was "damp" too...figured the seal was just "setting"....well, now it's apparantly worse.


Funny thing is, the previous OCI was done at the Dodge dealership, and they did not even say anything about it.....wonder if they just use(d) a "top ender" nowadays...? I could understand it...since this 88 Aries has the spin on PH3614 filter side-mounted on the side of the engine, so it's easily changed from up top.


In fact at Walmart, they changed it/drained it from the bottom, but sent the filter up stairs with me for the guy in the upper bay to install, due to the way it's mounted, it's hard to mount from under.


Anyways, the change before the dealership was at one of those "far and few between" Pennzoil quick lube joints with the ASE tech on duty, and he was the first to mention the "wet" seal, but he (and I..) thought maybe it was just because the seal was "setting" from being recently rebuilt.

Soooo....this morning I call up the shop who did the work a year + couple months ago, and they got me an appt set for tomorrow..

This receipt shows nothing of a "warranty" so no idea what to expect when I go in tomorrow...if they will just go ahead and replace it...or what.

any ideas? The car has put some miles on since; but then again, no documentation of mileage on the receipt. Any idea of the typical warranty on trans rebuilds? And I'd think all seals would be included in a rebuild, right?

I know the Pennzoil lube mechanic (yes, he was ASE certified) said the seal did look new, and he figured it would seal with age, but yea, there was a lot of "wet" down there.

BUT, since the rebuild I've only needed about 1 qt. of ATF...no drops at my parking spots either. but I know, when it comes to Oil it only takes a little bit to look like a lot...


On the phone they asked what seal was leaking....I couldn't answer that though. But was not the "transmission pan" - it's one further back. And yes, was definitely red/ATF, not motor oil leaking.

any ideas, pointers, suggestions?

 

[Mud]

I don't know of any new seals that get "set with age", that's baloney. When I install a new seal it needs to seal right away, that's why I'm installing it in the first place.

Some of these seals will have a small diameter backing spring that helps the rubber lip part of the seal put pressure against the shaft that it goes around.
- Wacking the seal in place too hard can sometimes dislodge that seal.
- Sometimes the perimeter steel part of the seal can get a leak. I use a wipe of sealant around the outside edge of seals before installing them, also helps the install.
- hopefully the seal was installed straight into the bore.

Not sure about an Aries, but in general it's not a good idea to leave a torque converter hanging in the transmission for too long as the weight of the converter can sometimes distort the seal enough to cause a slight leak. Best is to install the converter just before the transmission is installed and the converter is bolted up to the flexplate.

If there is no mention of a warranty, well you may be on your own unfortunately.

 

[Lead Shoes]

letting the TC hang on the transmission is the same as supporting the transmission on the output shaft on a manual, you can bend the shaft, and make the rear main leak, same applys on an AT seal, try some HM ATF.

 

[ahoier]

Either way, gonna take it down there tomorrow and see what they say....if they won't do it for cheap (free....or close to it) I'll get a written estimate and check around...there's a BUNCH of trans shops in my locale....lol. So I can try greener pastures if this one doesn't work out....