Checking ATF Level
- Thread starter buck
- Start date
SSpeckerwood
Moderator
I have no idea how to check the ATF on mine. Where would the ATF even be located on mine?
ThatTmoGuy
New member
Check the brown eye plug....
SSpeckerwood
Moderator
That's uncalled for..
ThatTmoGuy
New member
I didn't call for it, I typed it 
nocoolnames
New member
Normally you use the dipstick but it sounds like something is different on these autos. Do y'all not have a dipstick for the tranny anymore?
ThatTmoGuy
New member
GM seals most of the newer auto tranny's, so you don't get ot check it or change it they do...
ThatTmoGuy
New member
That could keep you out of the bedroom for a while
SonicBoy24
New member
Unless the issue is after the warranty expires...
Eric Smit
Enforcer
SSpeckerwood
Moderator
That could keep you out of the bedroom for a while
You're so smart, you must be the hit of the men's room locker....
Maddmatts
Member
Yea GM's autos since the late 90's have no dipstick. There's a plug on the side of the transmission somewhere that you unscrew and pour fluid in until it starts flowing back out. At that point it's considered filled. The car also needs to be oriented as level as possible.
Having a dipstick is handy when you're on a roadtrip and you spring a slow leak. I can't believe they got rid of them.
Having a dipstick is handy when you're on a roadtrip and you spring a slow leak. I can't believe they got rid of them.
SonicBoy24
New member
Well I think that's part of the issue people are having.
Without a dip stick, we can't check on the status of the trannys and won't know if anything is wrong until it blows, and by then it's too late and a very expensive problem.
seanp1
Active member
If you are getting tired rotated and whatnot, ask the tech to check for any obvious signs of leaks while it is up on the rack.
Eric..... The statements "sealed for life" and "no need to change until 100,000 miles" are two recipes for disaster! Automatic transmission fluid should be changed WAY BEFORE 100,000 miles in fact, changing it every 30,000-50,000 miles is the way to go. Period. End of story. "Why" you might ask:
Answer: a transmission may be "sealed" from outside contaminants but there is still "inside" contamination caused by material erosion and there is also fluid breakdown caused by excessive heat. No transmission, even a hermetically sealed one, can escape these forms of fluid breakdown. This is bolstered by what transmission experts tell us are the two leading causes of transmission failures: 1) heat and 2) contamination..........
Lets face it....trans fluid is cheap compared to the cost of a new transmission. A warranty may cover you the first 100,000 miles but most people keep cars well beyond 100,000 miles so why not extend your transmissions useful life by changing the fluid well before 100,000 miles???
ChrisJ
Active member
I cannot speak for the Sonic's auto however every GM auto I had owned had cherry red fluid at 100K. The only trans I had issues with was a Honda 5 speed auto bolted to a 3.5L V6. That trans would burn fluid bad by 25K.
If the Sonic's auto is like all of the GM autos I've owned I would have no problem keeping fluid in it for 100K. For a "lifetime" would make me nervous and I too agree it should have a dip stick.
ColonelPanic
Banned
Too bad the folks in Toledo forgot to seal my transmission for life. opcorn: Still has fluid barfing out all over its bottom, it's been back twice for this so far.
A dipstick on the transmission would be nice about right now. But most manufacturers are moving away from that kind of silliness as it eats into their profits.
opcorn: Still has fluid barfing out all over its bottom, it's been back twice for this so far. A dipstick on the transmission would be nice about right now. But most manufacturers are moving away from that kind of silliness as it eats into their profits.