Transmission fluid loss - permanent damage? (1 Viewer)

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Apr 27, 2012
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Had the family packed into my 07 lx470 with 128k for a turkey day trip to the WV mountains this afternoon. Exiting the DC beltway to get onto 66W, I thought I felt the transmission slip. Merging onto 66, I definitely felt it. Made it to the shoulder and limped to the next exit so I could park the truck. Get out and notice fluid spray on my driver side running board. Looked under the truck and saw fluid all over the undercarriage. Popped the hood and the engine bay was drenched. My wife caught an uber back home to get her outback. We moved everything over to the outback and had the truck towed to a nearby yota dealership. Dealer says that the t-cooler rubber supply line was popped out of its retaining clip and got cut by the fan. They're replacing the line and flushing the trans to try to clear any bits of cooler line that may be in there and then we'll see how things drive. I'd say I went 1-2 miles after the initial slip. No idea how hot things got but carputer didnt throw any codes.

Any thoughts on how likely it is that I have serious damage or what else I should be doing/asking the dealer? If everything works fine after getting fluid in it am I likely in the clear? I suppose there could be some decrease in longevity but doesn't seem like there's any way to know for sure if things are working now. An independent shop replaced the alternator yesterday. I'm sure they'll say they didn't touch the lines but would it be typical to move the line, for example, to pull the alternator from underneath? Seems very coincidental that something like this happens so soon after having work done. I basically hadn't driven the truck since I got it back from them yesterday evening.
 
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Can't speak to the life of your tranny but or the alternator it's awfully possible/probable that the alternator swap could've bumped or clipped something as they are in the same general vicinity. I would look for marks of force on your fan shroud or any lines around the alternator as evidence they weren't careful.
 
Your trans might have a shorter life span, but if it was moving you're prob fine, no fluid will be pumped to the gears that are not being used, so if you were idling along in 1st gear and it was moving fine then you had enough fluid for that gear but maybe not 5th gear, so any clutches above whatever gear it had shifted into should be fine.
Only time will tell, but most likely you're fine.

As for the indie shop buggering something up, it's possible but you're not going to be able to prove it.
 
I do not think it is a big of a deal - your transmission is fine, glad that this happened on you drive , not your wifes. you got it at the right time.
 
Tranny is probably fine. Yes, you have to wrestle the alternator past the transmission lines (even if you loosen the brackets) in order to get it out from the bottom.
 
Regardless I would take a swing by your indie shop and give em an ear full and see what they say, if anything, as that could have been much worse
 
Thanks for the responses. Glad to see what seems to be consensus on trans likely being ok. I'm waiting to hear back from the dealer later today and will update when I have more info. I agree with the comment that it will be tough to prove the shop's error even though I'm pretty confident they're responsible--128k miles with no problem and then 10 miles after they work in the same area the trans pukes up all it's fluid. Hopefully this ends up being nothing more than a headache, mess in the engine bay and lesson learned to stay far away from this particular shop.
 
Alright. Dealer says it’s filled and test drove fine. Hopefully no early wear. Stopping by the indie shop Monday. They were adamant they were nowhere near the line when I spoke with them today but did say they took the alternator out from underneath.
 
Alright. Dealer says it’s filled and test drove fine. Hopefully no early wear. Stopping by the indie shop Monday. They were adamant they were nowhere near the line when I spoke with them today but did say they took the alternator out from underneath.


Ask them if they disconnected the lower radiator hose. IF not..then I guarantee you...they wiggled the alternator past (and against) the tranny lines.
 
If yours is a sealed Transmission with no dip stick (2004-2007), I would check the fluid level.
And then check the fluid level a few weeks later.
A lot of mechanics don't really fill sealed transmissions properly.
 
I picked the truck up and everything is shifting/working fine. The tech who did the work at the indie shop stuck to his story that he didn't touch the line but as soon as we put the truck on a lift and the owner/lead mechanic saw where the line sat in relation to the alternator, he took responsibility, apologized for the mistake and asked what I wanted him to do. We agreed to split the dealer bill (towing was covered by AAA), which I felt was fair because I planned to have the trans fluid exchanged soon anyway. Still need to check the fluid level as suggested above but it's tough because I don't have a flat piece of ground and live in a townhouse where they don't like you crawling around under your car. Thanks again for the help guys.
 
To check the trans fluid level you will need a 5mm Allen wrench and a empty parking lot.
 
To check the trans fluid level you will need a 5mm Allen wrench and a empty parking lot.

My Isuzu Troopers also have sealed transmissions and one of them has a slow leak that I check at every other Oil Change.
The procedure for them is to drive the Trooper for a few miles to warm the Transmission Oil,
park on a level ground, shift lever through all positions (Reverse, Low, etc), leave Engine running.
Then crawl under and open top fill bolt. If no fluid comes out, pump in until it overflows.
Some say to just loosen top fill bolt and if some comes out you are OK but you still might have an
overfill situation.

Don't know if the recommended process for the Lexus LX470's is the same.
This is the reason I wanted a 2003 or older LX470. I hate sealed Transmissions especially if you got one that is leaking. Wifes 2009 Camry has a stick for the tranny. Most Oil Change places don't know how to check fluid level in sealed transmissions. Sealed transmissions are bad idea.
 
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My Isuzu Troopers also have sealed transmissions and one of them has a slow leak that I check at every other Oil Change.
The procedure for them is to drive the Trooper for a few miles to warm the Transmission Oil,
park on a level ground, shift lever through all positions (Reverse, Low, etc), leave Engine running.
Then crawl under and open top fill bolt. If no fluid comes out, pump in until it overflows.
Some say to just loosen top fill bolt and if some comes out you are OK but you still might have an
overfill situation.

Don't know if the recommended process for the Lexus LX470's is the same.
This is the reason I wanted a 2003 or older LX470. I hate sealed Transmissions especially if you got one that is leaking. Wifes 2009 Camry has a stick for the tranny. Most Oil Change places don't know how to check fluid level in sealed transmissions. Sealed transmissions are bad idea.

It's easy on the Cruiser, warm the transmission, level ground, engine running, crawl under truck, in the middle of the transmission oil pan is a recessed Allen head bolt, remove it. If fluid drips like your grandpa trying to pee you're fine.
If it pours out it's over full, if nothing comes out it's to low.
I have mine somewhere in between grandpa peeing and a race horse.

"Sealed for life" and "lubed for life" and "long life coolant" are ways to lower CAFE fines, fewer petroleum being used and fewer fluid changes are ways to pay less money to the government in polluting fines and raising the overall fleet MPG.
 

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