I have a '98 Neon, DOHC, Automatic. The transmission pan was leaking, so I took it down, cleaned it up, bought a gasket and filter and replaced it all. (there was no gasket from the factory, just silicone)

Upon finishing the job, there is still a tranny leak. I did not use silicone on the rubber gasket when I put it back up. I just cleaned off the pan surface and the tranny surface, put the gasket on and then mounted the pan again. I tightened the bolt fairly tight, but not too tight.

Why would I still have a leak? Should I not have used the gasket at all? If someone's done this before, please give me some tips and instructions, because I'll be doing this job again tomorrow and I want to make sure it works this time. Thanks in advance for any help.

- Brian

 

Buy that black ATF silicon & throw your gasket away!!!
It WILL NOT leak!!!

 

Great! Thanks for the helpful info.

Two more quick questions:

1. Do I need to let the ATF Silicone dry just a little before I bolt up the pan, or should I just bolt it right up without waiting. (sometimes you are supposed to let the silicone dry a little so it creates its own seal, then bolt it the rest of the way up)

2. The tranny drains ATF fluid for HOURS. drip...drip...drip... This causes the mating surfaces to have fluid on them when you go to put the pan back on. Will this cause the silicone to leak? Or should I let it drain COMPLETELY (for hours...) and then apply the silicone to the now DRY surface and bolt the pan up?

I ask because I'm not sure if ATF Fluid being on the mating surfaces, when you bolt them back up, will cause it the pan to leak.

Thanks again for the help!

 

I have the pan down and I'm about ready to put the black silicone on it and put it back up...I'm going to hold off for just a little while to wait for a reply from someone that's done this before. Preferably JCswm. If not, don't worry about it.

I just want to make sure I get it right this time, so I'm being very cautious. Also the pan is just SLIGHTLY bent. (in other words, when I turn the pan upside down and place it on a flat surface, it does not sit completely flat. If I push down on onside of the pan, the other side just BARELY comes up...barely. Is the pan still useable, and since it's slightly bent, will it still seal if I don't use a gasket? (I'm all for NOT using gaskets, but I was curious if it is needed now that I have discovered the pan being slightly bent (and I really do mean slightly...hardly noticable).

Thanks so much.

- Brian

 

Oh, I thought of one more thing. (sorry for all the questions) The tranny holds 4 quarts of ATF, total. Does that include what's in the torque converter? (heck, do these cars HAVE torque converters??) After I finished changing the tranny pan and filter, I put 4 quarts back in, and now it's over filled. How much would I put back into the tranny if the torque converter is holding some fluid? Thanks.

- Brian

 

You did ok....... warm it up and run it through the gears before you check the level again.
You changed SOME of your tranny fluid, a full flush takes like 16 quarts.

 

Awesome! Thanks so much. I appreciate the help! I'll go take care of it now.