My car has always had an ATF leak somewhere and I finally got around to digging around for it. It seems to be leaking from a certain bolt on the transmission, I've tried to identify what the bolt is for as well as to tighten it down some more but it still leaks when shifting.


There's where I identified where the leak was coming from peaking in through the driver side wheel well.



A shot further back for reference.


Thanks in advance.

 

That looks like one of the bolts on the transmission end cover.

See pg 14-252 of the factory SM for reference. Pic attached.

I think it looks like P in the photo.

 

Ahh thanks for that, so do you think I could remove and replace the bolt without getting soaked in fluid?

 

Duno, could be bad if you make the leak worse.

The gasket may be damaged at this point and need to be replaced.

I don't know that you can do that with it in the car.

 

Damn so it sound like its gonna be an expensive fix...

 

Do you know for 100% that it's coming from that bolt and not the mating surface where the outer cover meets the middle cover?

 

Not sure yet I'll have to take a closer look in the daylight one of these days. I'll clean it up and take a few more close ups and perhaps a video while shifting.

 

so are you saying it burps fluid on each shift? how much fluid is leaking?

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...KyaRec390#t=51

That's an early video I shot to try to see where the leak was coming from, that view is below where the bolt is. It just gives an idea of how much is leaking.

 

Does it do it in reverse and in drive? No leak when idling in park? There's probably a hydraulic circuit that's energized when you put it into gear that travels through that part of the case. Sometimes you can get lucky and dip the bolt in silicone and screw it in and it might fix it. I wouldn't get my hopes up though, unless the leak is from under the head of the bolt.

 

It seems to only spew out some ATF when engaging different gears. Lets say I do the silicone trick and it does stop the leaking, is the problem "fixed" or is it just prolonging something more sinister? Should I just have it sent off to be rebuilt? The car has 116k miles and is a salvage from a passenger side hit. I have no maintenance records from the previous owner.

 

If it is "P" in the diagram as mzilvar posted, you should be able to fix it in car. I remember pulling the cover off many, many years ago to service 5th gear while the transmission was in the car. I would not get the trans rebuilt over a fluid leak.

For right now I would spray it all down with brakleen and get it 100% oil free. Start it up and pinpoint exactly where the oil is coming from. You don't want to tear it apart for no reason. If it is coming from under the bolt head and not the cover gasket, the silicone may work. If it's coming from the side cover gasket, I know they have been serviced with the transmission inside the car but the one I did was not in a TL.

If you take it to the dealer they will automatically tell you it needs to be rebuilt. I would take it to a good independent transmission shop once you pinpoint the source of the leak yourself (so they can't take advantage of you).

 

Looks like it was coming from above those bolts, there's some solenoids right above there that seal to the case too.

Definitely pin point it before you start pulling stuff apart.

 

Got it I'll take a closer look at it again and then perhaps take it over to a good reputable shop afterwards. Thanks!

 

Took it to a shop they saw a line running above the bolt and figured it could've been leaking through a gasket around that area and dripping onto the bolt. They replaced the line and gasket but it still leaked, upon closer inspection they found that it was leaking next to the bolt in question. They gave me two options: 1) Rebuild the entire thing for roughly $3,200 or 2) Just have the transmission opened and gasket replaced for ~$1600.

So now I'm considering selling the car out for something else or dish out the money to have it fixed...

 

can you put some of that RTV silicone gasket around the edge where its leaking from?
That might help stop the leak.

 

The mech told me that such measures wont work because of the high pressures that's involved inside the transmission. Could be BS but it's a pretty reputable shop. Maybe its still worth a shot.

 

but the leak isnt shooting out due to the pressures.

You can also try mighty putty
Worked on my s4 when I cracked the oil pan.