Reading Tranny fluid level

boybach

boybach

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2020
1,033
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Well after several attempts at determining my transmission fluid level today I had to sort of guess what it was as the fluid was practically invisible
on my dipstick. I did the check by the book, hot, moving through gears, engine idling etc.

Maybe it's these old eyes but the level is damn hard to determine - thought about painting the business end of the dipstick white - anyone done that?
Trying to check the tranny fluid level is a total PIA IMHO

Larry
--
Larry - Victoria BC -

1977 Palm Beach 40,000 miles, PO said everything working but forgot the word NOT. New Atwood fridge, water heater & furnace. New SS exhaust system,
6000w Onan, Iota Converter, R134A A/C, New fuel lines & heat exchange hoses
 
I agree with you Larry. We can put a man on the moon, but we can't design an accurate way to read transmission fluid!

Not only is it hard to see the contrast of the fluid against the stick, but the curve in the tube assures the fluid will get smeared along the stick!
Then if you need to add some fluid, you have now covered the inside of the dipstick tube with fluid, so good luck reading that!

I drilled a couple of small holes at the Add and Full marks. If there is fluid in the Add hole, but not in the Full hole, then it is somewhere
between Add and Full.

The usual response I get from Engineers is "works as designed!" To which I reply "But not designed to work"

Don't get me started on grease nipples (zerks).

--
Bruce Hislop
ON Canada
77PB, 455 Dick P. rebuilt, DynamicEFI EBL EFI & ESC.1 ton front end
http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/showphoto.php?photo=29001
My Staff says I never listen to them, or something like that
 
Are you referring to those greasy things that either won't stay connected
or won't disconnect?

Ken H.

...
Don't get me started on grease nipples (zerks).
 
Ken,

More that they leak no matter how clean you get them.

Same crappy design and issues from my Dad's 30's and 40's vintage farm equipment as a kid growing up, to my GMC and my new Kubota BX diesel tractor.
Likely the same things are on my '17 GMC pickup and '19 Dodge mini-van too, but I just take them to the dealer for service.

I told you not to get me started!

--
Bruce Hislop
ON Canada
77PB, 455 Dick P. rebuilt, DynamicEFI EBL EFI & ESC.1 ton front end
http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/showphoto.php?photo=29001
My Staff says I never listen to them, or something like that
 
> Are you referring to those greasy things that either won't stay connected or won't disconnect?
>
> Ken H.

Ken,

This is why the LockNLube grease coupler was invented. Yes, they are expensive, but they work. If you look at the others that have arrived on the
scene, you will know why you want the original for a GMC. Mine is on a Lincoln one handed grease gun (also not cheap) that I bought when the HF gun
wouldn't lock back to reload. Together with the expensive Valvoine grease, I have the most expensive grease I have ever owned and if something
happened, I would replace that exact kit tomorrow. Grease is cheaper than parts.

I also have caps on most of mine and none leak anymore.

Matt

--
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
> I agree with you Larry. We can put a man on the moon, but we can't design an accurate way to read transmission fluid!
>
> Not only is it hard to see the contrast of the fluid against the stick, but the curve in the tube assures the fluid will get smeared along the
> stick! Then if you need to add some fluid, you have now covered the inside of the dipstick tube with fluid, so good luck reading that!
>
> I drilled a couple of small holes at the Add and Full marks. If there is fluid in the Add hole, but not in the Full hole, then it is somewhere
> between Add and Full.
>
> The usual response I get from Engineers is "works as designed!" To which I reply "But not designed to work"
>
> Don't get me started on grease nipples (zerks).

Bruce,
A man last walked on the moon 40 years ago......

I can tell you why the OE engineers all say things like that....
They drive lease cars that they don't service.
When they do work on something like a "Level Indicator" (aka dipstick), they do it in a clean quiet lab with all new stuff. The best one (and you
will like this) a lot of the test and mule vehicle are drive between heated garages and never with the driver wearing snow boots.

I found it helps if you make the surface of the stick rough by sanding it. Then the level is where it is shiny and it us usually pretty clear.

Matt - has to go out and put wheels on his 50yo Gravely.

--
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
One trick I learned, IF you have access to a bead blaster, is to bead blast
the business end of the dipstick. The fluid does a better job of showing up
on that surface. But the long narrow snaky tubes don't help one bit. But,
if a long, conviently placed dipstick is not accurate, does it matter if it
is easy to use? I think not.
In realistic terms, it does not hurt to open that hatch up once in a
while, if nothing else to check for critter nests built under your air
cleaner, packed against the exhaust crossover passage that you were going
to block off soon. Nothing like the aroma of roasted baby critters wafting
gently through your cab.
Plus, that straight in dipstick is a whole lot more accurate than that
long snake is.
Just my 2 cents worth.
Jim Hupy
Salem, Oregon

> > I agree with you Larry. We can put a man on the moon, but we can't
> design an accurate way to read transmission fluid!
> >
> > Not only is it hard to see the contrast of the fluid against the stick,
> but the curve in the tube assures the fluid will get smeared along the
> > stick! Then if you need to add some fluid, you have now covered the
> inside of the dipstick tube with fluid, so good luck reading that!
> >
> > I drilled a couple of small holes at the Add and Full marks. If there
> is fluid in the Add hole, but not in the Full hole, then it is somewhere
> > between Add and Full.
> >
> > The usual response I get from Engineers is "works as designed!" To
> which I reply "But not designed to work"
> >
> > Don't get me started on grease nipples (zerks).
>
> Bruce,
> A man last walked on the moon 40 years ago......
>
> I can tell you why the OE engineers all say things like that....
> They drive lease cars that they don't service.
> When they do work on something like a "Level Indicator" (aka dipstick),
> they do it in a clean quiet lab with all new stuff. The best one (and you
> will like this) a lot of the test and mule vehicle are drive between
> heated garages and never with the driver wearing snow boots.
>
> I found it helps if you make the surface of the stick rough by sanding
> it. Then the level is where it is shiny and it us usually pretty clear.
>
> Matt - has to go out and put wheels on his 50yo Gravely.
>
> --
> Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL,
> GMCES
> Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum
> Brakes with Applied Control Arms
> SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
>
 
I don't have the long snake, just the short tube under the lid.
My daily driver is an old Jaguar and even though it is a British engineered car they had the presence of mind to add a 4" WHITE plastic tip to the
trans dipstick which makes the contrast of light pink fluid easy to see.

So, as painting the grease laden metal dipstick doesn't sound too successful I have decided to re-engineer the goddamn thing.

Today's project will be shrink wrapping the dipstick end with white plastic shrinky-dink tubing. We'll see how that does. It certainly can't be any
worse.

Larry
--
Larry - Victoria BC -

1977 Palm Beach 40,000 miles, PO said everything working but forgot the word NOT. New Atwood fridge, water heater & furnace. New SS exhaust system,
6000w Onan, Iota Converter, R134A A/C, New fuel lines & heat exchange hoses
 
Well the white stuff I had on hand was too skinny but I had yellow which was just as good. The max - min notches/marks under the shrink tubing were
easy to spot so I recut them into the tubing. The fluid level now shows up clearly against the bright yellow sleeve. Another thing fixed!

Larry
--
Larry - Victoria BC -

1977 Palm Beach 40,000 miles, PO said everything working but forgot the word NOT. New Atwood fridge, water heater & furnace. New SS exhaust system,
6000w Onan, Iota Converter, R134A A/C, New fuel lines & heat exchange hoses
 
Well, I guess I'm having trouble understanding the problem. Owned my coach for 18 yrs and have had no trouble reading the trans dip stick. The deep
pink color shows up quite well on my OEM stick. I do have trouble sometimes reading the engine dipstick right after an oil change. The clear color of
0W40 Mobil 1 that I use can be nearly invisible when it is clean. Put on a couple of hundred miles, and the tinting gets easier to read. What brand
trans fluid are you using? Is it clear in color or pink out of the bottle? Just wondering....
--
Larry
78 Royale w/500 Caddy
Menomonie, WI.
 
> What brand trans fluid are you using? Is it clear in color or pink out of the bottle? Just wondering....

Motomaster ATF (Canadian tire) Dexron 111/Mercon fluid, same stuff I use in the Jag

https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/motomaster-dexron-iii-mercon-automatic-transmission-fluid-0281502p.html

Larry
--
Larry - Victoria BC -

1977 Palm Beach 40,000 miles, PO said everything working but forgot the word NOT. New Atwood fridge, water heater & furnace. New SS exhaust system,
6000w Onan, Iota Converter, R134A A/C, New fuel lines & heat exchange hoses
 
> > What brand trans fluid are you using? Is it clear in color or pink out of the bottle? Just wondering....
>
> Motomaster ATF (Canadian tire) Dexron 111/Mercon fluid, same stuff I use in the Jag. Light pink.
>
> https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/motomaster-dexron-iii-mercon-automatic-transmission-fluid-0281502p.html
>
> Larry

OK, I see what may be the problem. If you look at the specs on this, it's max operating temp is 70* C or 158*F. Minimum operating temp is -20*C or
-4*F. Both are really out of the operating range for our application. While I can't note it in the spec description, it appears to be a Dino fluid and
not a synthetic. IMO, for our application we should probably be using a synthetic like Mobile 1 or one of the Amsoil products. Both are a deep red in
color. The light pink is not dark enough to show on your stick. Just my opinion, but if it were mine, I'd switch to one of the synthetics. Cost is
double, but better protection.
--
Larry
78 Royale w/500 Caddy
Menomonie, WI.
 
I always wondered if someone made a pink dye that could be added to trans fluid and motor oil.
--
Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana
 
I should clarify that my issue with reading the transmission dipstick is not that I can't see the fluid, its that it is smeared up the dipstick making
the level hard to determine. I don't have any extensions to the tube, just open the engine cover and pull it straight up.

Seems like the tube gets covered with oil and the small curve in the tube as it enters the transmission likely makes it worse.

Also I live on a rural county road with a fair bit of traffic. So slowing from 55mph to turn into the driveway likely forces some fluid up the tube.

Matt:
The space race to the moon was in the '60's, same time as the TH425 was being developed.

--
Bruce Hislop
ON Canada
77PB, 455 Dick P. rebuilt, DynamicEFI EBL EFI & ESC.1 ton front end
http://www.gmcmhphotos.com/photos/showphoto.php?photo=29001
My Staff says I never listen to them, or something like that
 
> Matt:
> The space race to the moon was in the '60's, same time as the TH425 was being developed.

So fairly recent then? AFAIK the 455 motor dates back to the late 1940's [like me] :p

Larry
--
Larry - Victoria BC -

1977 Palm Beach 40,000 miles, PO said everything working but forgot the word NOT. New Atwood fridge, water heater & furnace. New SS exhaust system,
6000w Onan, Iota Converter, R134A A/C, New fuel lines & heat exchange hoses
 
>
> Matt:
> The space race to the moon was in the '60's, same time as the TH425 was being developed.

Bruce,

The last man to walk on the moon did it in December 1972. TZE was in production.

Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
> So fairly recent then? AFAIK the 455 motor dates back to the late 1940's [like me] :p
>
> Larry

Larry,

The 455 as we know was introduced with the 1968 model year in the Toronado. It was passed to other models in the 70my.

Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
But, the 455 was engineered at least ten years previously to when it came
as equipment in the Toronado. The first overhead valve V-8 in Oldsmobile,
the Rocket 303 cubic inch first appeared in the 1949 model year, the same
year that Cadillac changed from huge displacement valve in block design.
The overhead valve engines were 331 Cubic inches.
I had a 1938 Olds vith a in-line flathead 6 cylinder engine. I pulled
that 6 out, and bolted in a 303 V-8. Later, I added 3 ea. 2 barrel carbs,
and solid lifters with adjustable pushrods which promptly flattened the
lobes on the hydraulic lifter camshaft. So, I called Ed Iskendarian and he
set me up with a good 3/4 race solid lifters cam, new lifters, and
adjustable needle bearing rocker arms. That really woke that Oldsmobile up.
And started a long relationship with Iskendarian.
So, my personal relationship with Olds engines goes back to 1949. I
was 19 years old at the time. I went through 303's, 354's etc. Clear up to
present day. I have a 455 and a 403 in my shop right now on engine stands.
So that is 70 years of Oldsmobiles in my experience bank. They are good
engines stock, and can be made into great engines.
Personally, I prefer the 403 to the 455 due to the fact that the 403
is Oversquare and the 455 is Undersquare. The 403 likes to Rev up, the 455
is not so happy above 3000 RPM's
Jim Hupy
Salem, Oregon

> >
> > Matt:
> > The space race to the moon was in the '60's, same time as the TH425 was
> being developed.
>
> Bruce,
>
> The last man to walk on the moon did it in December 1972. TZE was in
> production.
>
> Matt
> --
> Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL,
> GMCES
> Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum
> Brakes with Applied Control Arms
> SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
>
 
My math was a bit fuzzy there. I have 60 years experience with Olds, not
70.
Jim Hupy
Salem, Oregon

> But, the 455 was engineered at least ten years previously to when it came
> as equipment in the Toronado. The first overhead valve V-8 in Oldsmobile,
> the Rocket 303 cubic inch first appeared in the 1949 model year, the same
> year that Cadillac changed from huge displacement valve in block design.
> The overhead valve engines were 331 Cubic inches.
> I had a 1938 Olds vith a in-line flathead 6 cylinder engine. I pulled
> that 6 out, and bolted in a 303 V-8. Later, I added 3 ea. 2 barrel carbs,
> and solid lifters with adjustable pushrods which promptly flattened the
> lobes on the hydraulic lifter camshaft. So, I called Ed Iskendarian and he
> set me up with a good 3/4 race solid lifters cam, new lifters, and
> adjustable needle bearing rocker arms. That really woke that Oldsmobile up.
> And started a long relationship with Iskendarian.
> So, my personal relationship with Olds engines goes back to 1949. I
> was 19 years old at the time. I went through 303's, 354's etc. Clear up to
> present day. I have a 455 and a 403 in my shop right now on engine stands.
> So that is 70 years of Oldsmobiles in my experience bank. They are good
> engines stock, and can be made into great engines.
> Personally, I prefer the 403 to the 455 due to the fact that the 403
> is Oversquare and the 455 is Undersquare. The 403 likes to Rev up, the 455
> is not so happy above 3000 RPM's
> Jim Hupy
> Salem, Oregon
>

>

>> >
>> > Matt:
>> > The space race to the moon was in the '60's, same time as the TH425 was
>> being developed.
>>
>> Bruce,
>>
>> The last man to walk on the moon did it in December 1972. TZE was in
>> production.
>>
>> Matt
>> --
>> Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL,
>> GMCES
>> Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum
>> Brakes with Applied Control Arms
>> SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
>> _______________________________________________
>> GMCnet mailing list
>> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
>>
>
 
Jim,

I, too, am having trouble with your math: "...back to 1949. I
was 19 years old at the time.". Seems to me that would make your birth
date in 1930, 7 years before mine. Since I'm 84, that makes you 91 -- and
here I thought you were one of those "Young Whippersnappers" (=Younger
than me, like most folks!)

Ken H.

> My math was a bit fuzzy there. I have 60 years experience with Olds, not
> 70.
> Jim Hupy
> Salem, Oregon
>

>
> > But, the 455 was engineered at least ten years previously to when it came
> > as equipment in the Toronado. The first overhead valve V-8 in Oldsmobile,
> > the Rocket 303 cubic inch first appeared in the 1949 model year, the same
> > year that Cadillac changed from huge displacement valve in block design.
> > The overhead valve engines were 331 Cubic inches.
> > I had a 1938 Olds vith a in-line flathead 6 cylinder engine. I
> pulled
> > that 6 out, and bolted in a 303 V-8. Later, I added 3 ea. 2 barrel carbs,
> > and solid lifters with adjustable pushrods which promptly flattened the
> > lobes on the hydraulic lifter camshaft. So, I called Ed Iskendarian and
> he
> > set me up with a good 3/4 race solid lifters cam, new lifters, and
> > adjustable needle bearing rocker arms. That really woke that Oldsmobile
> up.
> > And started a long relationship with Iskendarian.
> > So, my personal relationship with Olds engines goes back to 1949. I
> > was 19 years old at the time. I went through 303's, 354's etc. Clear up
> to
> > present day. I have a 455 and a 403 in my shop right now on engine
> stands.
> > So that is 70 years of Oldsmobiles in my experience bank. They are good
> > engines stock, and can be made into great engines.
> > Personally, I prefer the 403 to the 455 due to the fact that the 403
> > is Oversquare and the 455 is Undersquare. The 403 likes to Rev up, the
> 455
> > is not so happy above 3000 RPM's
> > Jim Hupy
> > Salem, Oregon
> >

> >

> >> >
> >> > Matt:
> >> > The space race to the moon was in the '60's, same time as the TH425
> was
> >> being developed.
> >>
> >> Bruce,
> >>
> >> The last man to walk on the moon did it in December 1972. TZE was in
> >> production.
> >>
> >> Matt
> >> --
> >> Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL,
> >> GMCES
> >> Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum
> >> Brakes with Applied Control Arms
> >> SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
> >> _______________________________________________
> >> GMCnet mailing list
> >> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> >>
> >
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
>
 
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