I've had a puzzling problem with occassional leaks from the vent on my 1976
Palm Beach. (I didn't know it was the vent at the time because I also had
pan leaks) Some days the coach would leak, other days nothing.
Yesterday while replacing the rear headliner, I ran the engine to power the
vent fans and pickup a light charge on the batteries. When I moved the coach
I had a largish puddle of transmission fluid sitting on the ground. I had
replaced the pan with a Ragusa pan and that took care of the pan leaks. Now
it became apparant that the major leak was from the vent.
I checked the fluid - it was at the right level.
While talking to Jeff Sirum today about some other parts I asked him if he
had any suggestions on what to look for. The short version is this: I had
the old dipstick and tube replaced with a long version that mounted at the
front. The dipstick is properly calibrated. The original dipstick had vent
grooves cut in the top to relieve pressure. My longer one doesn't. When the
coach sits for any length of time, the torque converter drains down into the
pan raising the fluid level. Now the dipstick tube projects further down
into the pan than the OEM version. And it has no vent. The result is that as
the fluid heats up, it expands out the vent due to the pressure seal at the
filler tube. The solution is to put a vent hole in the filler tube - or
leave the dipstick loose in the filler.
I checked my transmission cold today - the fluid was well above the full
mark. I then tested the transmission by leaving the dipstick loose. NO
LEAKS! Tried it with the dipstick firmly seated and sealed - leaks.
Hopefully this is the end of this leaking problem.
Henry
Palm Beach. (I didn't know it was the vent at the time because I also had
pan leaks) Some days the coach would leak, other days nothing.
Yesterday while replacing the rear headliner, I ran the engine to power the
vent fans and pickup a light charge on the batteries. When I moved the coach
I had a largish puddle of transmission fluid sitting on the ground. I had
replaced the pan with a Ragusa pan and that took care of the pan leaks. Now
it became apparant that the major leak was from the vent.
I checked the fluid - it was at the right level.
While talking to Jeff Sirum today about some other parts I asked him if he
had any suggestions on what to look for. The short version is this: I had
the old dipstick and tube replaced with a long version that mounted at the
front. The dipstick is properly calibrated. The original dipstick had vent
grooves cut in the top to relieve pressure. My longer one doesn't. When the
coach sits for any length of time, the torque converter drains down into the
pan raising the fluid level. Now the dipstick tube projects further down
into the pan than the OEM version. And it has no vent. The result is that as
the fluid heats up, it expands out the vent due to the pressure seal at the
filler tube. The solution is to put a vent hole in the filler tube - or
leave the dipstick loose in the filler.
I checked my transmission cold today - the fluid was well above the full
mark. I then tested the transmission by leaving the dipstick loose. NO
LEAKS! Tried it with the dipstick firmly seated and sealed - leaks.
Hopefully this is the end of this leaking problem.
Henry
