well fudge....water in tranny

Tonight's spring get ready for summer project was change tranny fluid. Glad I did, because I don't do that every year. Well here is my raspberry shake. (looked fine on dipstick)



Even though we don't get real cold down here, we obviously get cold enough. I know this from a neighbor who toasted his engine a few winters ago. So I am very careful to drain after any use before or during the winter. That always includes removing both hoses from either end of the tranny cooler and blowing the water out. (I just learned tonight the cooler has two drain plugs....now I know) Anyway, I took the cooler off (yeah, that was fun, so hopefully not prematurely) I blew into the water intake and plugged the outlet. No air made its way into the tranny fluid lines.   And I did every combination looking for possible communication and found none. So my question is, is there some way water could have gotten into the tranny without the cooler being compromised? (I ran the boat in the driveway for about 5-10 minutes last weekend, that's when it would have happened) Or is it a given and the thing is shot, even though there appears to be no air route of communication. Do I just put out my APB for a cooler now, or do I put it all back together to see if my new fluid turns into a raspberry shake? (hence my comment about premature removal.) Let me know, so I can go over to parts wanted and beg for a used cooler ASAP.

Thanks.

If your cooler does turn out to be bad I don't think it's worth your time to put a used one on----

Larry,
Sorry to hear about the potential problem. Tim and Gary have great advice. I'd like to know more about how you tested the trans cooler. Pressures? Did you pressurize both the water and trans sides? I suggest putting the cooler in a bucket of water during the testing so you can look for bubbles. Is your dipstick the threaded type and by chance is the breather on the trans plugged? If so, a vacuum can be created when the trans cools drawing water into the trans from the cooler. Testing for this requires pressurizing the water side of the cooler and looking for the bubbling on the trans side.

Ha, nothing engine manufacturer specific about a trans cooler! Trans hose fittings are likely going to be standard, only length and water hose diameter matter.

If you think the cooler is perfectly level, try parking the boat on a slope or raising or lowering the tongue. Most coolers aren't mounted all that solidly, just gotta get it tilted for a few seconds to drain.

Does anyone have a good picture of an oil cooler mounting on a pcm in the late 70's early 80's ?

75 Tique wrote: Pete, good suggestion on checking under water, but its all put back together now. If I take out again, I'll try that. Pressures? I just blew into it. Up and downstream on both circuits. Where'd I look? Just White Lake Marine, so far. Adam, thanks for the heads up. I was totally flummoxed as to what happened, at least now I know there was a good reason. Yea, Tim, I figured not particularly brand specific.

It really isn't much water as Tim said. I would have tested it about as well as you did and then put it back together with fresh fluid a clean breather and hope for the best. Its possible you have a small leak that would only manifest itself when you had a pressurized hose hooked up, possibly even only after you turned on the hose and before you started the boat. I can bring you down a used cooler or two to white lake next month to try if you still seem to be picking up a drop or two somewhere.

Larry, there could be the possibility that the water in the tranny is just from Condensation going on inside it. You do live in the south now and 50 degree temp swings in a 24 hour can occur resulting in condensation on ANYTHING cold soaked.

When we hit mid 60's from lows in the upper 20's I had condensation on everything metal and very slippery garage floor from the drastic temp swing. I walked across the floor in my bare feet and it was ice cold and sopping wet. Could have happened in the tranny as well. This is the very reason we top off the fuel tank in the winter months. To reduse the amount of water in the tank come spring.....We don't do that with the transmission. I'd bet that's where your water came from if you don't find any leaks in the cooler itself.

Larry, be aware that the pump and other internals hold a decent amount of fluid, so you'll still see traces of milkshake after another change or 2 even if all is well. It should be incrementally better with each change.

Tim, the case condensation crossed my mind, but I've never seen it happen. Have you heard of such a phenomenon actually occurring?

What keeps coming back to me is that during one or both of the last two summers, I got caught off guard once or twice with severe rains and an uncovered boat resulting in water to the top of the stringers. (yes, it took a real man to confess this) I can't picture where the breather is on my tranny so I don't know if it would have been submerged or not. I don't like to think about that, tho, because it makes me wonder if I actually ran the boat hard with that crap in there. Have to check relative elevations tonight, not that it matters at this point, I guess.

When I forgot my drainplug a few months back, I had water breach the engine compartment and start spilling out from the dog house. when I changed my trans fluid afterwards, there was no signs of water.

Should I be concerned about my breather?