Hello all.....I have a two part question I was hoping I could get some guidance on:
The background:
My wife was driving our 2004, 1.8T, 4motion down the highway. Saw smoke and pulled over. I was out of state so she had it towed to a "stealership" and they told her that they needed $6500 to replace the transmission. Once I got back, I had it towed to our house (where I have a barn with a car lift). Looks like the front pump seal (torque converter seal) is leaking. I drained the pan and got no metal but it found fairly black ATF. I was a mechanic many years ago and among other things, I rebuilt transmissions at a chevy dealer so I'm not totally afraid to tear into an auto trans but I have very little time.
Question 1:
I can't find any threads or videos on removing the 4motion transmission and I was hoping to get some advice. I can take out the trans the normal way, which seems the most logical or (big sheepish grin) would it be easier to drop the sub-frame (trans, engine, front end, etc)? I'm asking this because ...Please see question #2
Question 2:
Before I put the car on the rack, I tried the to see if it would go into gear (for a quick second only). It went into forward and reverse solidly with no hesitation. So, my thinking is....if it's not too difficult to R&R the trans, I could remove the trans and replace the front seal, flush the trans as best as possible and refill with new fluid and see if that will take care it. If that doesn't work then I would pull the trans again and rebuild or install a used trans.
Question 3:
Is this seal a common problem or is there another typical issue with the trans that makes it look like a front seal when in real life the trans is destroyed and I would be wasting my time trying to fix a front seal?
Thanks in advance for any input.....
The background:
My wife was driving our 2004, 1.8T, 4motion down the highway. Saw smoke and pulled over. I was out of state so she had it towed to a "stealership" and they told her that they needed $6500 to replace the transmission. Once I got back, I had it towed to our house (where I have a barn with a car lift). Looks like the front pump seal (torque converter seal) is leaking. I drained the pan and got no metal but it found fairly black ATF. I was a mechanic many years ago and among other things, I rebuilt transmissions at a chevy dealer so I'm not totally afraid to tear into an auto trans but I have very little time.
Question 1:
I can't find any threads or videos on removing the 4motion transmission and I was hoping to get some advice. I can take out the trans the normal way, which seems the most logical or (big sheepish grin) would it be easier to drop the sub-frame (trans, engine, front end, etc)? I'm asking this because ...Please see question #2
Question 2:
Before I put the car on the rack, I tried the to see if it would go into gear (for a quick second only). It went into forward and reverse solidly with no hesitation. So, my thinking is....if it's not too difficult to R&R the trans, I could remove the trans and replace the front seal, flush the trans as best as possible and refill with new fluid and see if that will take care it. If that doesn't work then I would pull the trans again and rebuild or install a used trans.
Question 3:
Is this seal a common problem or is there another typical issue with the trans that makes it look like a front seal when in real life the trans is destroyed and I would be wasting my time trying to fix a front seal?
Thanks in advance for any input.....