Could be something as simple as a loose hose clamp, bad hose, or a bad drain valve. Check the simple, easy and cheap to replace things first.

 

okay, so check around the tranny hoses? or is the coolant i should be more worried about?

all day i have been thinking if i just spend 5300 on something i will need to put 2,000 more into to rebuild the whole tranny, or turn it to a stick.. :-/ some good news? or somthing to cause less bad new?

i want the whole truth and nothing but the truth, just shoot, so i know what to be worried and what to look for.

 

If your transmission fluid and coolant look normal in color and the transmission still works correctly, I don't think you have to worry about the above. If it is just coolant, you just have to find the leak and fix it. You can buy an aftermarket fluid cooler and bypass the factory unit completely if you are worried about the fluids mixing. They are right around $30-$40 for the size the Neon needs, and should cool better than the factory unit as well.

 

maybe the 35 hours of no sleep is getting to me, but what colors are they? and what fluids are the correct replacements? My sister has shop access and i can get some things done.

I am a noob with mechanical stuff, but very interested in learning about them, just not sure if i should take college classes for it...

my old auto shop teacher was a big A** so i didnt take it, but have loved cars!

 

Traditional coolant is green. I'm not sure what color the Dodge/Mopar coolant is though. I run the green coolant in everything I own and it works fine. ATF is red, and you need ATF+4. Only use that fluid.

 

what about transmission fluid? how would i tell if coolant got into there and started causing problems?

 

If coolant mixes with your transmission fluid, your transmission will stop working properly. Look at Pablo's post.

 

is that an instant thing? or are there a few precautions besides what you said (Could be something as simple as a loose hose clamp, bad hose, or a bad drain valve)?

 

here's an update from me and a recommendation

I had more work done on my car...extensive..after blowing a head gasket... the guy that basically did it for me, I worked closely with him.... we had the radiator out and I have seen this stupid trans cooler that caused me so much grief...

I now have read, maybe because I am looking, or maybe it's the season... ALOt of posts about coolant leaking coupled with ATX trans quirks and leaks...

I would highly recommend purchasing an aftermaket trans cooler and putting it in. The guy said u can get them for as little as 16 bucks at the local auto parts store.. and looking at the stock one (all it is, is a big brass looking tube inside the bottom of the radiator with 2 connections)..the hardest part would be mounting the thing somewhere, maybe in front of the radiator and connecting the 2 hoses to it.

 

Aftermarket ones should be installed in front of the radiator.