'88 Bird with 3.8 and AOD tran leak?

[JKATHRE]

Hello,

Recently noted a small drop in tranny fluid on the stick. The stick has a slash mark on the reverse side and the high fluid mark COLD is exactly at that mark----for all the years of this Bird. Lately falling short by maybe (a guess) a half pint (one cup?). I havent checked underneath yet but do not see any mess either. Is Lubeguard an additive one can use on this tranny? I have seen much talk about it? Which kind? ....I will still have to determine what the cause is for the recent shortfall. The fluid itself is fresh and not a cause for alarm.

John R

[V8Demon]

Check your lines where they go into your transmission cooler. As the plastic part of the fittings age they will sometimes start to leak. They usually do this right before they pop off and shoot tranny fluid all over the place (I've had it happen twice!)

Also check the top of your dipstick where the handle goes through the cap that rests on the tube the dipstick goes into. The seal on mine went bad and tranny fluid was able to pass through it. This did not leak very much, however it DID leak.

[JKATHRE]

Thanks Paul,

The lines and stick appear OK. I haven't had time today to check much else on the Bird--working on a relatives car. Will be checking other possibilities.

[Thunder Chicken]

Also pull your rad cap and make sure there's no oil in there (it might look like a milkshake) - if the cooler leaks you could end up losing fluid into the rad. You can also lose coolant into the tranny, so if it's leaking fix it right away.