Transmission seal restorer.

[Histoy]

Last Fall we purchased a car that had been sitting in storage for about 12 years. It has an automatic transmission, and now a few of the seals are leaking. Has anyone had success using a product to soften the seals and minimize the leaking?

 

[sleepar]

After 12 years of sitting then driving around will wipe out the trans. The fluid would be full of varnish. I would rebuild the trans for the seals and to clean out the crap. Nothing but brake cleaner and proby flush a few times to get the lines clear the converter is hard to clean and I would replace it.. for the price of a new trans you can rebuild that one for about 1/2 about a grand...
If it sat for that long all the rubber and fluids need replacement or it gets expensive to run it like that... even if people get away with it they don't for long.

 

[70redbee]

While I agree to put in new seals, I don't think you have to rebuild the tranny. I have never seen varnish from tranny fluid. New seals and change the fluid and filter should be fine if the tranny shifts ok.

 

[prplcar]

Lucas makes a good leak sealer, but I do not recommend it as a solution. It will get you to the parts store and back or around for a few weeks so you can save up to flush the trans and replace what needs. If you plan on racing or putting more power to it rebuild would be best.

 

[Meep-Meep]

I have heard of people adding brake fluid. I had a case where I needed to move a car and I dumped everything that resembled oil into that tranny and it worked - and stopped leaking. Significant amounts of motor oil, brake fluid, PS fluid (both regular stuff and Honda type), type F, dexron and possibly something else.

 

[bm02tj]

The sealer just attacks the seal to make it swell a little then evaporates so it is a short term fix

 

[68GTX440]

Trans-X used to be good solution. (not to sure anymore as the EPA has made all chemical company's tone down the good stuff for our safety blah blah blah)

If you are going to add any other type of oil to your trans use cooking oil!!! It has about the same properties and also has a high temp value.

You should never add motor oil or brake fluid you will definitely need rebuild then. You can add any type of other trans fluids but must change to the correct fluid soon. Some will foam and other don't have the correct properties and will eat all fiber material in the trans.

The only time and yes it happens trans fluid will varnish bad is if the fluid was burnt from extreme overheating over a long period then sat for a long time. What a nightmare to clean.

I have heard of people adding brake fluid. I had a case where I needed to move a car and I dumped everything that resembled oil into that tranny and it worked - and stopped leaking. Significant amounts of motor oil, brake fluid, PS fluid (both regular stuff and Honda type), type F, dexron and possibly something else.

 

[MT_Mopar]

Last Fall we purchased a car that had been sitting in storage for about 12 years. It has an automatic transmission, and now a few of the seals are leaking. Has anyone had success using a product to soften the seals and minimize the leaking?

Leaking trannys are such a bitch, I tried ATP Reseal below, it worked a little. I park in a garage so I ended up getting a giant cookie sheet to catch the leak. I rebuilt my whole drive train, so I bought a replacement transmission.

If it is the shift lever seal that is leaking they are replaceable but you need to pull the pan and valve body, the seal itself is cheap.

Good Luck

ATP Reseal: http://www.amazon.com/ATP-AT-205-Re-Seal-Stops-Bottle/dp/B000NVW1LM/ref=cm_cr_pr_sims_t

 

[transman]

The sealer just attacks the seal to make it swell a little then evaporates so it is a short term fix

X2 on this. ALL products that say they fix oil leaks are just as above. When I was a teenager, I worked at a small used car lot and we used brake fluid to seal engines, transmissions, diffs. etc. Quick and cheap. The Lot of course didn't care, as they were a just a bunch of bandits anyway.

 

[satman72]

Unless you know the history of the car, and I mean "really" know the history. I would reccomend rebuilding the tranny. It would be a real bugger if you spent time & money changing seals and fluid, only to have something else go shortly after.

 

[Histoy]

I ordered the AT-205-Re-Seal and will give it a try. I'll let you know if it works.

 

[sleepar]

The mopar transmission is cheap to rebuild bands clutch packs and seals.... to save the pump and bearings and expensive stuff....
It's like asking if there's something I can spray on my brake pads in stead of replacing them.... the only thing the seal swelling junk will do is cost you big later....

 

[Histoy]

Just an update... I wiped down the underside of my transmission and added the AT-205-ReSeal. It had been leaking from 3 spots each time I drove it and would leave a spot on the garage floor about the size of a tennis ball in each spot. I drove the car Thursday, Friday, and Saturday for anywhere from 1 to 2 hours each time. The next morning there was just 1 spot on the floor each time under the selector shaft, and it was about the size of a nickel. The transmission operates normally. It wasn't a 100% fix, but I'm satisfied for the cost of the product.

 

[BIGSHCLUNK]

Brake fluid is the all purpose seal restorer. granted if the seals are cracked/torn there done. But if they shrunk a little give it a try. that's whats in half that tranny stuff for 3x the money anyway.