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TCI 727 Transmission Pan Review

MoparGuy68

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This is a review of the TCI 727 Transmission pan (part# 128000).

When looking at the pictures online, I had doubts that the supplied lock washers for the pan bolts would work, at ALL.. I called TCI and questioned these lock washers. They assured me they are correct for the application and that when the bolts are torqued to spec (13 ft lbs), the lock washers will flatten.. So I went ahead and ordered the pan.

I now have the pan and those lock washers are too large in diameter for the machined space provided for them around the pan holes. After inspecting the lockwashers themselves I seriously doubt they will flatten when the bolts are tightened to only 13 foot pounds. I do NOT believe those lockwashers will flatten unless torqued to much more than 13 foot pounds..

The filter extension comes with one gasket to go between it and the valve body. The extension itself is cast and has no flat machined surface on either side of it. It just has the rough cast finish where it mates to the valve body on top, and where the filter attaches to it on the bottom.

You can see right through the supplied filter. It is made of some sort of mesh screen. Completely different than the filter that was in the transmission and one that I bought with the court gasket said about a month ago. Whether this transparent mesh filter is better or worse than the standard filter I don’t know..

The casting surface of the pan has some areas, on the outside where there are dents in it, little defects in the casted surface.

The provided screws to secure the filter are flat head and have no washers. In contrast those same screws that were in my transmission are also flat head but have built-in washers permanently attached under the bolt heads (you cannot slide the washers off the threaded end of the bolt). Bottom line is the filter securing screws that were in the transmission look better quality than what came with the TCI pan.

The supplied pan gasket is thin and solid black. The TCI guy on the phone couldn’t tell me exactly what it was made of.

The gasket that was on the stock pan is cork but it has metal eyelet reinforcements around the bolt holes. The cork gasket I got with the standard style filter, a month ago, does not have these metal eyelets around the holes.

I’m not sure why the stock pan was leaking in the first place, because the gasket is completely intact the old gasket is not damaged and has no chunks missing from it at all. In addition, none of the 14 pan bolts felt loose when I checked them before removing them.

I’ve checked the shifter selector shaft, the cooling line connections, the neutral safety switch where the dipstick tube penetrates the transmission. None of those locations look to me like they are leaking.. The pan gasket was always wet and saturated all around the perimeter and all 14 of the bolts were always moist with fluid, and the whole bottom of the pan was always wet..

I also don’t notice any dimpling around the holes or warping of the stock stamped steel pan.

So at this point I’m trying to decide what to do.

1. Reinstall the stock pan with a new gasket and filter and return the TCI pan for a refund.

2. Attempt to install the TCI pan if I can obtain washers that fit the pan properly, or maybe put Loctite on the supplied bolts and not use washers at all.
 
Photos..

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Thx for the review, don't look to Speedmaster for a better product, that's for sure.
 
Photos showing the relief machined area around the bolt holes is smaller diameter than the lock washers. Lock washers look like they require a lot more than 13 foot pounds of torque to flatten!

989B2CE1-0C2A-479E-BDA6-991980C88D8C.jpeg 6AE86C1B-495C-4642-A259-3CE9F2C513A2.jpeg 94019019-1B3B-45DC-B4C5-37A94C8A341E.jpeg 90065F0B-4924-45F7-B4BE-570996A44EA4.jpeg
 
The stock pan after removal. Found a few little tiny pieces of metal in one spot in the stock pan, but the rest of the pan was clean. Gasket was intact and not torn or damaged.

3BB5A7CC-6E1F-4A95-99B9-06B031E00C55.jpeg D935C346-AA6C-4807-82AF-110480418EC2.jpeg E3246DFE-BE69-4D3B-A3FA-D38B6FA594F3.jpeg AB4D3ED5-73B8-48F4-8624-56871930B37A.jpeg
 
Have you put a nut on bolt and torqued it? I see what you mean by machined area diameter. Think before you put it on, after that you bought it.
 
Get 14 internal tooth star lockwashers, for the trans pan bolts, use whichever hardware you like best (or, buy some new good quality). Get a new filter that you like.
There is a reason TCI's nickname is "total crap inside".
(I would likely install the pan finger tight with maybe one bolt on each corner, without any gasket after cleaning the surface, and check for gaps with a feeler gauge. If i didnt like what i found, I'd send it back.
The trick will be finding anything much better.
 
If you decide to get something different, I'm using a Summit brand deep transmission pan. Sealed up nice. About a yr now n no leaks.
 
I had the same issue. Did not use the lock washers due to the spot face diameter being to small. Never used lock washers on any pan I've installed.
Doug
 
https://www.jegs.com/i/Mopar-Performance/312/P3690730AC/10002/-1
I purchased this last year. Came with reusable reinforced neoprene gasket, longer pan bolts, pick up extension and best of all
the box said mopar licensed and was made in, Ready for this. "Canada". I would recommend calling to verify they haven't changed manufacturer.
 
I had the same issue. Did not use the lock washers due to the spot face diameter being to small. Never used lock washers on any pan I've installed.
Doug
I am not going to use any washers. The toothed washers suggested above have the same problem, too large in outside diameter.

I may put blue Loctite on the pan bolt threads..
 
I finished the pan install last Sunday. Filled with ATF fluid, ran the engine and drove it this morning. As of tonight, after sitting all day after the drive, no sign of any trans fluid leakage.. Pan is completely dry around the sides and underneath..

I used the black pan gasket that was included with the new pan. Used no washers, just the hex key bolts. Tightened them to 150 inch pounds using a Horror Freight Pittsburgh torque wrench.

I did install the TCI filter.

F4BC4787-B021-4278-98CD-4A1DB8910AD5.jpeg 59065C59-DCA5-4372-84F2-8EFBBD74D611.jpeg 4A21BCDF-34AB-42D8-8F0F-CE4109928E35.jpeg
 
3 days later, the new pan is leaking.. Leaking while the car was sitting without engine being run or driven.

It’s wet along the back and passenger side rear corner. $225 got me a new deeper pan that leaks. So far it appears to be less of a leak, but still leaking.. The wet areas are from the pan gasket downward.

I have two aluminum cooking pans on the floor underneath the transmission. The cooking pan underneath the passenger half of the TCI pan has some fluid in it. The cooking pan under the driver side half has no fluid in it, completely dry. The passenger front corner where the dipstick tube is located is dry. The pan rail along the driver side where the speedometer cable, the shifter selector shaft, neutral safety switch and cooler lines are all located is dry.

Checked the TCI pan mounting surfaces with a metal Straight Edge for flatness. According to the straight edge the TCI pan mounting surface was pretty darn flat..

The straight edge used is for working on guitar fretboards, so it is a precision made straight edge known to be a true flat surface. Checking the old stock pan with the same straight edge revealed it to have some warping, which is why I chose to go ahead and actually install the TCI pan.

Meticulously torqued all the pan bolts in criss cross fashion to 150 inch pounds when installing the pan.

Bottom of the transmission case looked clean and in good shape. I made sure no old gasket material was on it. TCI pan is a lot straighter than the stock pan it replaced.

I don’t know what more I can do, except drain out and waste $50 worth of trans fluid and buy another “better” gasket and hope maybe it will magically stop the leaking.

D0EE2E16-3C4B-430A-8773-919C5F2428D8.jpeg 790956FF-B623-4A82-A32A-255E229A6D93.jpeg C5387DC1-A8F6-4F02-8DDF-43EBC95B21EF.jpeg 262391ED-1A48-423F-BADF-27A3D358B8B0.jpeg 1D153204-1121-4693-8FDD-8139382DC9AF.jpeg
 
You don't have to waste the transmission fluid. Drain it into a clean container and then filter it through one of those paper mesh cone filters the painters use (the local paint shop should give you half a dozen for nothing if you ask nicely).
Clean up the surfaces and try again with a thin smear of Permatex Ultra Black Gasket Sealer on both sides of the gasket. Pinch up the bolts and then torque down one hour later.
 
They do make a trans fluid safe sealant for pans , I had a BMW I could not get to seal well after several attempts I got it with that stuff.. You may try a gasket from Mopar for the 46RE, it’s reusable too and works well, it’s a one piece that will seal well.
 
Before you put it back together, double check both the pan and the trans itself for any warpage or problems with a good straightedge..... Definately save the fluid you just bought, no reason to change it out yet. Also, consider this gasket, especially since its reuseable.

Moroso 93110 Moroso Transmission Pan Gaskets | Summit Racing
 
It’s wet along the back and passenger side rear corner.

Leaks back and to the right

Your first picture post 15 you can see the tail shaft tang that covers the pivot shaft for the low reverse band

It has an o-ring on that pivot shaft that gets dry and hard over time

Stick your finger above your transmission pan on backside inside the groove where your pivot shaft recessed area is behind that tang and tell us if you get transmission fluid on your fingers

I can’t tell you how many individuals have done exactly what you are doing and it was attributed to a .15 cent o-ring

Billions LOL

Problem is the labor involved to replace the o-ring the correct way
 
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Clean any suspect area and above pan rail so if something above is leaking you can spot it. Put talcum on suspect areas. Believe dvw suggested in a post, not my idea.
 
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