sbtots

Hello All, I've done a tranny filter change and measured the atf and replaced the exact amount (5 litres) but is puzzled by the markings on the dipstick. How can cold be lower down on the stick than hot? Is it to be the other way round?
What if the tranny had in the wrong amount to begin with? How much ashould it take after a filer and transfer box drain?

Iluvlexus

As fluid heats up it expands, so the level will rise. To properly check, drive the car for about 15 minutes to bring the tranny up to operating temperature. Park on a level surface. With your foot on the brake slowly shift from park thru all the gears and then back to park pausing a few seconds at each stop. With the engine running check the level. Should be between the hot notches.

sbtots

Thank you Iluvlexus, I did not know that fluids expanded when hot, I thought that was for solids or if it expanded it would be by that much. Thanks again.
I run the engine for 8 minutes, move the lever through the gears, pausing as you suggested but I will take it or a drive later on and recheck.

trips1

Also please can someone comment if the level indicator shows higher than the hot mark.
Should we try to remove the extra ATF by opening the drain plug or it is not a serious concern.
It looks i may have filled little extra after my filter change!!

salimshah

Couple of little things .... sorry I am nitpicking ..

To read, the transmission needs to warm ... you need to drive for 15 to 20 min. The cold mark is to ensure there is enough fluid and then it needs to be read when warm.

General consensus is that it is ok to be tad low but it is detrimental to overfill. To remove small amount, the best option is to suck it out of the dip-stick. I would not remove the drain bolt, although letting it drip by loosening the plug a bit [you always run the risk of not sealing the drain plug ... never over-torque it].

ps: Never reuse the sucked out fluid or drained fluid.

Salim

LA4Mead

I've successfully drained a small amount of tranny fluid by removing the cooler return line... A few to several ounces, then reconnected and washed up any residue.

A note about viewing the level on the dipstick... sometimes there are small amounts in the dipstick tube that show up as blotches on the stick (especially after adding fluid)... The real level is the line of fluid without any blotches, in other words, read from the bottom up, just up till the line where the stick was submerged... Does that make any sense?

trips1

Thanks for your reply.
So is there a need to remove the little extra ATF? Or my RX can live with little extra.
I am just trying to understand if there can be any harm to the RX with little overfilled ATF

salimshah

Tell us what is "little overfilled". Hairline above, half inch above, ??

I would remove some if it was 1/4" or more above max.

Once again warm transmission mean 15+ minutes of driving and not idelling.

Salim

tarzan17

I find the dipstick hard to read. One side of the dipstick is always different than the other. One side always shows above HOT and looks like oil was splashed on it (ie. no distinctive level marking) while the other side has a clean cutoff indicator ... is it just my car or what?

carguy07

Not that unusual, always wipe it off once and reinsert it before looking at it. The lower level is always correct. Mine seems to be dead on with 4 1/4 quarts on a drain and fill. I don't make much of an effort to check it anymore since it's always right where it needs to be.

jbl-1985

My RX's apparently are freaks of nature, defying physics altogether. Both cold, they read a little above the hot mark. When hot, the level DECREASES to right at the hot level. And the COLD markers would insinuate that the level should decrease significantly when cold. Not here...

Yes the car has been driven for 30 minutes, checking on a level surface after cycling through the gears, blah blah...never made sense to me so I settled for the hot level being where it was supposed to be and stopped fretting over it.

My 2 cents...

carguy07

Cold and running, or cold and off?

salimshah

Not sure but for 'cold' I thought is engine not running (all chambers full and fluid in Torque converter).

Hot I am pretty sure is with transmission in Park, engine running (all chambers full).

Volume change due to warm up would never equal the marking difference. <= just my 2cents

Salim

jbl-1985

Sorry I wasn't clear...when hot, it is right at the hot markers. When cold, it reads about 1/2 inch ABOVE the hot markers. Again, makes no sense, as it should read at the cold markers(according to the dipstick), which is way lower.

I figured it is where it's supposed to be at operating temperature, so I stopped worrying about it.

Salim: Definitions for me: Cold is car being off overnight. Hot is on for 30 minutes.

carguy07

It always has to be running for the dip stick to mean anything of value. When the car is shut off, fluid drains back into the pan and will make it read overfilled.