Checking transmission levels.

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bongoroy63
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Checking transmission levels.

Post by bongoroy63 » Sun Feb 17, 2019 12:39 pm

Whilst repairing/replacing the prop shaft on my van, I noticed a pipe that comes out of the gearbox was leaking fluid.
This only leaks when the engine is running. I don’t know how long this has been going on for so I’m a bit worried about the transmission fluid level in the gearbox.
Three questions:
1. How/ where do I check the level. Is there a dipstick somewhere?
2. If it is low, where is the cap to top it up?
3. There is only a small length of pipe that is corroded, the rest of it looks Ok. I’m thinking of cutting out the perished piece and replacing it with and equivalent size pipe that I have. If I cut the pipe, is there any way I can seal the pipe to stop the fluid coming out? Will the fluid come out even without the engine running?

It seems like a simple thing to do but as with most things all may not be as I expect.
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by g8dhe » Sun Feb 17, 2019 2:48 pm

Yes the dipstick is under the drivers seat. You need to measure the level whilst the system is hot and running, its no good when cold and not spinning, its also quite fiddly to measure due to the splashing! Yes the oil is pumped round so it will drain a little until your underway when it will spurt out ;-)
Replacement pipes available from the BF shop I believe and elsewhere.
You top up via the dipstick pipe, slowly ......
Yes it is possible to repair, but bear in mind the damage that will occur if you loose the oil whilst out driving, gearboxes are not cheap .....
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by mikeonb4c » Sun Feb 17, 2019 5:11 pm

Interesting one this. My ATF-> cooler pipes corroded then leaked last year. Bongo was home on the drive when I spotted it. I opted to have the rusty sections cut out and copper sections spliced in and it looks a sound repair (so far!) though i may go back and have new pipes fitted in due course. I asked my Bongo savvy mechanic Adrian about making the 40 min drive to him with ATF leaking. He felt that before it got to the gearbox wrecking stage you would know ATF was critically low as gear changing would start failing. As long as you stopped then the autobox should be ok. In the end I made it over with low fluid but autobox still working ok. Nervewracking though!
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by teenmal » Sun Feb 17, 2019 5:32 pm

mikeonb4c wrote: Sun Feb 17, 2019 5:11 pm Interesting one this. My ATF-> cooler pipes corroded then leaked last year. Bongo was home on the drive when I spotted it. I opted to have the rusty sections cut out and copper sections spliced in and it looks a sound repair (so far!) though i may go back and have new pipes fitted in due course. I asked my Bongo savvy mechanic Adrian about making the 40 min drive to him with ATF leaking. He felt that before it got to the gearbox wrecking stage you would know ATF was critically low as gear changing would start failing. As long as you stopped then the autobox should be ok. In the end I made it over with low fluid but autobox still working ok. Nervewracking though!


Its a good job the Hairy Bikers were not following you.

There are many accidents each year due to spilt fluids, some of which are fatal. Motor-bikers are especially vulnerable. Your spilt oil could lead to some family having to cope within someone not coming home ever again, so get it fixed before using the car.
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by bongoroy63 » Sun Feb 17, 2019 6:13 pm

Thanks everyone for your comments.

I only noticed yesterday where the fluid was coming from. I initially thought it was from the rocker gasket as I’ve seen fluid on the ground and I know that needs doing as well. I got my van over a pit to remove the prop shaft and that’s when I saw where it was coming from.
Goodness knows how long this has been going on for and how much fluid I may has lost. I parked it up and that’s where it’s staying for the time being.
After thinking about cutting out the corroded piece my thoughts are that it’s only a matter of time before the rest of it starts to corrode. I’ve bitten the bullet and ordered a new set (not cheap!) but it will give me piece of mind.

One further question, is the ATF cooling system like the water system and need bleeding or do I just top it up to the correct level? Sorry if this sounds like a daft question but I’ve never had to play with ATF cooling system before!


As I mentioned, I removed the prop shaft yesterday to replace the universal joint on the end. When I took it off I could see that where the broken bearing had been so loose it had misshapen the housing where the bearing sits. More expense as I’ve had to buy a second hand prop shaft from Bongo Spares.
Although it’s immaterial now, has anyone ever changed one of these? The reason being is that the cup on the end of the bearing seem to be machined in with the housing somehow ‘crimped’ on the end which seems to me to make it impossible to remove without taking it to a machine shop to cut it out.
Or is it just me :roll:
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by mikeonb4c » Sun Feb 17, 2019 6:28 pm

teenmal wrote: Sun Feb 17, 2019 5:32 pm
mikeonb4c wrote: Sun Feb 17, 2019 5:11 pm Interesting one this. My ATF-> cooler pipes corroded then leaked last year. Bongo was home on the drive when I spotted it. I opted to have the rusty sections cut out and copper sections spliced in and it looks a sound repair (so far!) though i may go back and have new pipes fitted in due course. I asked my Bongo savvy mechanic Adrian about making the 40 min drive to him with ATF leaking. He felt that before it got to the gearbox wrecking stage you would know ATF was critically low as gear changing would start failing. As long as you stopped then the autobox should be ok. In the end I made it over with low fluid but autobox still working ok. Nervewracking though!


Its a good job the Hairy Bikers were not following you.

There are many accidents each year due to spilt fluids, some of which are fatal. Motor-bikers are especially vulnerable. Your spilt oil could lead to some family having to cope within someone not coming home ever again, so get it fixed before using the car.
I considered this teenmal, as an ex biker. I taped the pipe and fixed a tray with towel to catch the drips and stopped at intervals to check things before i reached the motorway. At motorway speeds, even drips going on the road, should that have happened, the concentration would be minimal. So, overall I consider I exercised due diligence. Your point is a good one but when i think of bikers i think of diesel spillage and leaks as that was the one I used to have to really watch out for (and on a Bongo a leaky pump can happily be dealt with short term using a tray and towel sitting on the engine undercover).
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by mikeonb4c » Sun Feb 17, 2019 7:08 pm

bongoroy63 wrote: Sun Feb 17, 2019 6:13 pm Thanks everyone for your comments.

I only noticed yesterday where the fluid was coming from. I initially thought it was from the rocker gasket as I’ve seen fluid on the ground and I know that needs doing as well. I got my van over a pit to remove the prop shaft and that’s when I saw where it was coming from.
Goodness knows how long this has been going on for and how much fluid I may has lost. I parked it up and that’s where it’s staying for the time being.
After thinking about cutting out the corroded piece my thoughts are that it’s only a matter of time before the rest of it starts to corrode. I’ve bitten the bullet and ordered a new set (not cheap!) but it will give me piece of mind.

One further question, is the ATF cooling system like the water system and need bleeding or do I just top it up to the correct level? Sorry if this sounds like a daft question but I’ve never had to play with ATF cooling system before!


As I mentioned, I removed the prop shaft yesterday to replace the universal joint on the end. When I took it off I could see that where the broken bearing had been so loose it had misshapen the housing where the bearing sits. More expense as I’ve had to buy a second hand prop shaft from Bongo Spares.
Although it’s immaterial now, has anyone ever changed one of these? The reason being is that the cup on the end of the bearing seem to be machined in with the housing somehow ‘crimped’ on the end which seems to me to make it impossible to remove without taking it to a machine shop to cut it out.
Or is it just me :roll:
ATF doesn't need bleeding etc. What is likely to happen though (if it hasnt happened and been replaced already) is the rear heater metal coolant pipes next to the ATF pipes will corrode and leak. Mine went about 2 years before the ATF pipes. Also, although I opted to replace the whole metal pipe when the coolant one corroded (for the same reason as you), the fact is (in my mechanics long experience) it is just that exposed area where corrosion really gets going so you can probably get along (and save on cost) with cutting out bad sections and splicing in new piping. But I think i will replace the whole pipe in due course as I like to look after the old girl ;-)

And yes, to refer back to teemmal's point, its the leaking that happens before we spot it that is the difficult thing. But it sounds like we're both owners who regularly look over our Bongos, which along with preventative maintainance is the best we can do.
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by bongoroy63 » Sun Feb 17, 2019 8:28 pm

Thanks for that, it’s one less thing to worry about. I was hoping it would be straight forward.

You’re right about the rear heater pipes they are showing signs of corrosion but hopefully not yet bad enough to replace. I know that will need bleeding, not a job for me I’m afraid, I know my limits! [-X

I’m now just waiting for all the parts to arrive and then plenty of work to do!

Thanks again everyone for your help and knowledge.
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by mikeonb4c » Sun Feb 17, 2019 11:05 pm

Defo get the coolant pipe changed - its almost certainly more corroded than it looks, from my experience :-(
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by bongoroy63 » Thu Feb 21, 2019 9:34 am

My new atf pipes have arrived and I plan to fit them today.

One thing I forgot to ask was can I use ANY auto transmission fluid or is there a specific grade I have to use.

My father in law has some Shell Dexron 11 fluid. Is that going to be ok to use?
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by g8dhe » Thu Feb 21, 2019 9:41 am

The translated specifications are here http://www.g8dhe.net/bongo_images/mazda ... ttings.htm
Most people would buy Dexron III but the spec. does include Dexron II as well so I guess its suitable for it.
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by bongoroy63 » Thu Feb 21, 2019 10:03 am

Thanks for the quick reply.
Judging by that information it should be ok to use the Dexron 11.

Thanks again.
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by bongoroy63 » Thu Feb 21, 2019 10:36 pm

Imagine the scene, Christmas Day and you pull a cracker. Out pops a metal puzzle where you have to use your brain to try and twist and turn the pieces in the hope that you can beat the puzzle by undoing the pieces.
Today isn’t Christmas Day and I haven’t pulled any crackers, but I have spent the day doing exactly this by trying to remove the aft pipes on my van. Needless to say I didn’t solve the puzzle and the pipes remain where they are.

Whoever designed this pipe work had a wicked sense of humour. I have tried every possible way of trying to twist and turn the pipes but I cannot get them out without dismantling the rear heater pipes and even considered taking off the engine cross member.
Because of the way the pipes are shaped it is near on impossible to remove them without cutting them in half and pulling the rear piece from the rear and the front from the front. That’s fine but then how do you put the new pipes in?!

Has anyone done this successfully and willing to share their experience?

My thoughts are cutting the new pipes in half and fittings a brass connector to join them together. I cannot see any other way of doing it without stripping everything out from underneath, but this seems extreme!

Any help VERY gratefully accepted. #-o
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by g8dhe » Thu Feb 21, 2019 11:11 pm

Geoff
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Re: Checking transmission levels.

Post by bongoroy63 » Thu Feb 21, 2019 11:52 pm

Having read the link I agree that little or no thought had gone into how these pipes would be replaced. They seem to be the first thing Mazda installed and then put everything else over the top.

The problem I have is that I’m not confident to remove the heater coolant pipe and then bleed it. It’s this pipe that’s in the way. I’m sure other people will say they should be changed at the same time. I am having this done in March but as the aft pipe has already split I can’t drive it to the garage until I change the atf pipe.

I’m just going to bite the bullet and cut the new pipe to fit it. Unless anyone can suggest different.
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