transmission

[redroverv8]

hi all does anyone have any info on why the trns fluid would be forced up thru the filler pipe all over the engine ?,my son had this happen to himself tonite in my 96, vs, asked him if he had left the dipstick out but he said no , any ideas

[EDGE3]

Was the dipstick clipped on tight enough?

[redroverv8]

i,m told it was, but they tell you wat you want to hear .

[EDGE3]

Another thing is that the pressure regulator might be stuffed and is there any chance that there's to much fluid in the trans,this will cause the fluid to come out of the filler pipe and also overheating can cause this

[bruggz351]

My bet is the breather on top of the trans is blocked...
Small tube just down from the bell...

cheers

[EDGE3]

Could be the breather/vent is blocked and also the trans cooler isn't working properly

[redroverv8]

i had wonderd about that, as the hose did seem to be under a lot of pressure ,more than normal, i,ll have to clean it all tomorrow and refill and test the cooling system, thanks for your input, much appreciated

[EDGE3]

No worries keep us posted with the outcome cheers

[Cracka]

+1 on the breather, my 4l60e dipstick doesn't lock tight/properly as its a tad old and worn and it has never had an issue.

Have you checked the rear wheel arches for shreded rubber yet?

[Brett_jjj]

When these transmissions are worked hard and get hot,like when towing on a hot day,they can blow out the dipstick under pressure and spew trans fluid out of the dipstick hole,which can cause a fire.This was a problem that first came up on the early VR's I think it was, and holden recalled them and fitted the locking type dipstick on the transmissions to fix the problem and reduce the fire risk..I think the later VR and VS with towing packages had an auxilliary transmission cooler fitted in front of the radiator to help dissipate heat out of the trans..These locking type dipsticks can wear out and loose their tightness in the trans tube.Its probably best to replace them if they are worn and loose..
Your young bloke must have been giving it a bit of a hard time to get it hot like that,if thats what it was caused from,maybe from pulling the odd burnout perhaps..Id get a transmission filter service kit for $25 and 5 litres of dexron 111(3) type trans fluid for another $25 and give the transmission a good service.

[savage1987]

I've also heard of this happening from cars that don't get thrashed or even worked particularly hard. My understanding is that 304s are more prone to it than V6s but that could be wrong. Anyway all I'm saying is there's a chance your boy wasn't doing anything stupid and it just happened on its own

Sam

[Cracka]

I've also heard of this happening from cars that don't get thrashed or even worked particularly hard. My understanding is that 304s are more prone to it than V6s but that could be wrong. Anyway all I'm saying is there's a chance your boy wasn't doing anything stupid and it just happened on its own

Sam

I would have to agree with this, however it's worth looking for the shredded rubber :P unfortunatly the old 4l60e's tend to be a bit random at times. my vote is still on the breather.

+1 for the service too, may as well add an extra trans cooler onto the front too and replace your dipstick (The one on the car)

[Brett_jjj]

Ive only ever seen trans fluid spew out of the dipstick tube on these transmissions once, when someone was pulling burnouts in a VR.Ive never seen it happen otherwise.But to give your young bloke the benefit of the doubt,check the rear guards for rubber like already mentioned ..I only read about the recall holden did on the early VR's and the reason why the recall was made..Ive never actually seen one overheat when towing etc..Ive towed plenty of cars on trailers with my VSV6 auto and have never had a problem with overheating or whatever, but it has a fairly large trans cooler already fitted at the front of the radiator,and I service it every 20,000 k's..

[Cracka]

As I said, I have seen the 4l60e do plenty of things no one can explain, sometimes the issue has finally been traced to an electrical component which only fails when it feels like it.

manifold pressure switch is a prime example.

Your son may or may not have done the wrong thing, maybe its time he got his own car just to be on the safe side, or failing that, get an electronic trans controller, set it to max its revs at 2k and then setup a "kill" switch for it. when you get in the car disable it.