The Great Bronco Engine Transplant-UH OH!-Part 3

The saga continues. As posted in UH OH! and UH OH! Part 2, I have been in the process of recovering from the results of a failed transmission cooler in the radiator. This allowed engine coolant into the transmission and transmission fluid into the engine coolant. What a mess!

 

Last week I started the third change of transmission fluid. I drained the transmission fluid on Saturday. I don't know if this will be the last time I will change the fluid, so I decided I would change the transmission filter. This required that I removed the fluid sump and unbolt the filter and replace everything. Since I wanted to wait for the sealant to cure, I waited until today to refill the transmission with 9 quarts of new Type "F" transmission fluid.

 

I put three quarts of fluid in and waited a couple of hours to check for sump leaks. None found, I added the fourth quart. At this point I have to start the engine to allow the torque converter to start filling, otherwise the fifth quart will overflow the fill tube. I checked for leaks after starting the engine and there appeared to be fluid dripping from the corner of the sump. Drat! I cleaned it up and checked around and finally concluded that the fourth quart of fluid had "burped" and some fluid had drained down the outside of the fill tube to the corner of the sump and looked like a leak. Transmission fluid is funny stuff, it is thin and yet seems to hang on to everything it spills on and looks like a drip or leak for some time.

 

After pouring in the rest of the fluid, I went for a drive this evening and cannot find any drips. It stills shifts good and I cannot detect any slipping. If this fluid stays clean, I will probably drive it for a few months and change it again with some synthetic fluid that a friend markets. It was the original fluid and I liked how it performed.

 

In addition to changing the transmission fluid, Friday I drained the water out of the radiator, flushed it again and refilled it with a 50-50 mix of antifreeze and distilled water. I was satisfied that the engine and radiator has been thoroughly flushed and cleaned.



 

 

Here is a blot of new transmission fluid on the left and old drained fluid on the right. I am getting a lot closer to getting the transmission clean. The old fluid still has some discoloration. 

 Two gallons of old fluid with only a couple hundred miles of use.

The old filter. It showed some dirt in the screen. 

After cleaning out the shelves of Walmart of all their Type "F" transmission fluid, a friend found a source for fluid. It was being closed out and he bought me the last six quarts for 11¢ a quart! I still had to buy three more quarts at Walmart when they restocked.