Transmission fluid leak

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Asking for my Dad

He has a 2007 Buick Lacrosse. Auto trans. 3800 V6 engine. 130k miles

He had a quick lube place oil change place change his ATF this summer. Today, it slipped a couple of times. He checked the fluid and it was low. He topped it off, but obviously has a leak somewhere. Nothing makes it to garage floor. Where would we begin to look for leaks?

Thanks
 
Check the cooling lines, they might only leak while driving. Radiator is pretty much the only other place it can go besides the floor. If there's oil in the coolant do NOT drive it.
 
Stupid question, but has he checked the fluid after the change and before today? It's possible it was low all along and now as it's a little dirtier and been subjected to additional stress because of a low fill it finally got the fluid bad enough to slip.
 
I'd use some Valvoline MaxLife ATF to top it off, it has some seal conditioners and should help stop any leakage. If it's ending up in the radiator from a leaking exchanger, you should be able to see it in the antifreeze.
 
If it's any consolation, I have had many tranny fluid leaks in vehicles and unless the leak is in the tranny case or cooler itself, they're easy enough to fix once you find where it's leaking from. I often fix the leak with rubber tranny or fuel line hose. If it's the pan gasket, sometimes a hold down bolt may actually be too tight and unlosten it a crack(start w/ 1/8-1/4 turn). Tighter is not better.
 
I just had a hummer h3 with swapped fluids from a broke trans cooler. It had most of its orange dexcool in the trans and dex6 in the cooling system!

Better check yours real close to be sure that its not doing that.
 
Originally Posted by Chris142
I just had a hummer h3 with swapped fluids from a broke trans cooler. It had most of its orange dexcool in the trans and dex6 in the cooling system!

Yes, driving cycles pump the fluids both ways. When running, the trans is pumping ATF into the radiator, and the ATF rises to the top. As soon as you shut it off, the ATF goes to zero pressure and the pressurized cooling system forces coolant into the transmission.
 
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