Tranny Problem

[Knoxville_R/T]

Well I believe I have a "little" problem
This is kinda like the other post some1 did but from a different location.

Well today I was changing my oil and found a little something extra that has been happening under the car.
It has had a "slow seep" for a while now. But now it is dripping
Those spots where it is nice and clean is from where I wiped them while I was changing the oil. The drips came back after about only 15-20 mins of driving it.




I am sure the tranny is low on fluid becuase it is starting to make really loud rattling sound even after warm. If you need anymore pics or information let me know. Should I do a tranny fluid flush and refill and see if that helps?(not done one since I got the car with 30K on it, 75K now) And if so, what should I put in it since dcx has switched? Thanks,
-Brian

[MyNeonSaysHi]

Hmmmm my auto class is paying off.... My auto teacher had a student bring in an old Ford f-150 with over 100k on it. He brought in to get the tranny serviced. turns out it never got serviced before. he got it serviced and it fukd it up even more. I guess when a car hasn't been serviced after so many miles and when it does it screws everything up, so with 75k I would get it serviced and have them add Lucas tranny fluid? Its very thick and should fix the problem.

[racer12306]

i thought that it was only on auto trans that had that issue. i wouldnt want to mix lucas tranny fluid and gear oil if he put gear oil in his manual trans.

i have heard that people like redline mtl, amsoil also has a mtf that you could check into.

[refect]

chances are your axel seals have gone bad. that happened to me when i got around the 70k miles, but i never fixed it because i am putting in a new tranny and engine. instead i just kept filling up tranny fluid every so often. haha i was lazy...anyways what is probably happening is when you start to drive it, tranny fluid leaks out from the axel seals and the spinning causes it shoot tranny fluid all over under your car. to fix you gotta go buy some new ones. drain tranny fluid, pull axels, mangle and destroy the old axel seals to get it out, clean where the old seal sat, grab new seal and with a ruber hammer tap it back into place. (this can be a PITA). then put axels back in and everything else you took apart to get axels out. fill up tranny fluid and you are good to go. i recomend mopar tranny fluids. neons seem to like that best.

[Baal]

i vote for redline mtl > mopar : )

[Knoxville_R/T]

Should I do a tranny drain and refill tonight? If I do what is the easiest way to fill it back up?
Any1 else have input as to my problem? could the bolts that hold the 2 cases be loose and it leaking from there? Since i didnt see any drips from that one seal maybe it is coming from the other side. I am gonna jack it up agian tonight and clean it off really well that way I can see where it is coming from maybe.
-Brian

[refect]

you have a manual correct? if it is manual then there should be a drain plug on the tranny. just do it like you would with the oil. unscrew the tranny drain plug and let it drain out. then to fill it up, somewhere on there should be the fill plug. i thin it is on the top front area. pop that out and take a tranny fill tube (you can buy at walmart for like 3 dollars). put it in the where the fill plug goes and attach other end to the quart of tranny fluid. dump it in. i beleive it takes 3 quarts.i am not sure if this will correct your leak problem though. i am really thinking it is coming out your axel seals like i mentioned before. or possibly where you were talking about. keep an eye on both areas. after driving to see if you can tell where it is coming from.

if you have manual then i think this is correct for how it is on those transmissions. ive never worked on one other than the srt4. i believe they look some what similar though....here is how i think it is on yours or similar looking...


number 1 is drain plug


number 1 is fill plug

[Knoxville_R/T]

Ok so they sell a tube that is gonna be able to fit down in there, good. ok now my next question. I called my dealer and they said that I should put the gear lube back in my car and not he atf. I thought that I read they switched over to atf? The guys didnt really know what they were talking about and the person on the phone had to ask 3 different people. So please let me know the correct stuff to put in my tranny. Oh yeah, I drive a 01' r/t
I am gonna do a fluid switch and clean the outside of the tranny housing to see if I can tell where it is coming from.
-Brian

[refect]

not 100% sure but i think on that year they used atf+3 in the manual tranny. i am not 100% sure on this though. might want to ask around about it first. or ask in another thread on here. because i am not 100% sure on that and dont want to tell you somethin wrong and it ruins the car. mopar fluids is what neons seem to like best for that sort of thing too. if it comes down to it and you need to speak with someone at the dealership. ask to speak with a tech and ask him. the majority of the people at the parts counter adn other counters dont know anything. at least thats how it is around here. i always ask them to go get me a tech to speak with.

[Diablo0]

Well... in '00 they FSM states to use Mopar Manual Transaxle Lube (MS-9417). It specifily says not to use ATF.

Where as '02 FSM states to use ATF+4... so you might want them to look it up in StarParts... it should tell them what exactly it takes.

[skuttler]

I have the exact same drip on my 2000 plymouth neon with 90,000 miles. I just got done jacking my car up and pulling out the fill plug on the manual transaxle. It is a rubber plug you can just use a flat head screw driver to help pull out. When I did that fluid actually started slowly dripping out of the fill hole into my eyeball. My haynes manual (and common sense) said this means that it is still full. I have an oil leak on my engine somewhere though. I don't feel like tracking it down since i loose all of 1/2 a quart every 5000 miles. I think, in my case it is just engine oil running down my manual transmission and dripping off the bottom off the lowest point. It also seems to match the color of my motor oil more than the lighter colored transaxle fluid that dripped from the fill hole into my eye. I haven't checked the transaxle fluid in the 14,000 miles and 6 months I have had the car and don't think the transaxle is loosing any oil as it was still full. If I were you, I would pull out the rubber plug and stick my finger in the fill hole (that sounds dirty) and check it. The owners manual says to make sure it is filled to within 3/16 of an inch (75/1000's of an index finger) from the bottom of the fill hole when the car is cold. If it needs some, buy some from your local stealership for $11/quart, use a syringe or funnel with bendy extension to fill up your tranny once more. You are supposed to check it every 7500 miles and it is supposed to last the life of the vehicle. The haynes manual says to change it every 30,000 miles so do what you feel is right (does that mean chrysler thinks the life expectancy of a neon is 30,000 miles?). The good news is that if it's leaking you'd probly never have to change it completely. You'd just be diluting the bad stuff with the good stuff till it's pretty much all good stuff, right? After all, the solution to pollution is dillution.

[refect]

When I did that fluid actually started slowly dripping out of the fill hole into my eyeball.

lol @ that. sorry. it is just funny to me how you said it. hahaha i had similar stuff happen to me. it sucks and burns.