Radiator keeps taking my Transmission out

[Rocket Man]

I understand that but he stated that it was bypassed (the most recent time), so, makes no sense

Yeah I think I got confused with his timeline.

I also wouldn’t trust Aamco one bit. My uncle went there to have his fluid changed and they told him he needed a new transmission. It had been rebuilt by another shop not 15k earlier and he was just changing the break in fluid. There was nothing wrong, it ended up lasting at least another 75k when he sold the truck. He never went back to Aamco, told everyone they were thieves.

 

[ivin74]

your dipstick is somehow working loose and water is running off of the cowl and finding its way in the tube.

I think this is the only way water is going in the tranny if indeed the radiator was bypass. There is a vent hose on the tranny that can also let water in if its not installed properly, I suggest you check that hose out.

 

[SnowDrifter]

Jesus

So.... If THEY did the radiator, transmission, and install. Don't dick with it. Take it back and let them sort it. Once you start poking around, you give them cause to deny warranty.

As far as the milkshake: See if you can send a fluid sample out for an analysis. See what's going on. Will tell you if it's coolant or water in there, and can start down the path from there.

 

[newtek007]

Correct. AAMCO installed the radiator, bypassed it and rebuilt the transmission. Now that they have found "water" in it, they stated they will rebuild it one more time but they will no longer honor the rest of my warranty.

 

[Alex_M]

I've be looking very closely at the terms of my warranty to see if they even have the right to deny you. I doubt they do. If it dies and they try to deny you, I'd be demanding a refund, under threat of legal intervention if necessary.

I'm with everyone else. Only four points of intrusion. Radiator (now bypassed), dipstick tube, somehow an improperly installed vent tube, or AAMCO is lying to you.

I've start with the dipstick tube. Take some kind of plastic bag and zip tie over the top. That will stop water coming in the top of the tube.

Vent tube is a little harder to check. I'd request they reroute it while the trans is out this time. I have mine run up under the intake manifold.

And AAMCO, I've be checking my fluid a couple times a week to see if it's starting to turn strawberry milkshake again. Also, like has already been stated, make sure they are flushing the cooler lines *and* replacing the torque converter every time.

*If* it fails again after all this, I'd be asking them to use a different core. Offer to pay their core charge, but do not pay for another rebuild. If there's a problem with the core they should have found it while it was apart. Whatever the problem is they should have found it by now.

All else fails, get your refund and head to Amarillo. Those Precision boys are pretty slick.

 

[rockola1971]

*If* it fails again after all this, I'd be asking them to use a different core. Offer to pay their core charge, but do not pay for another rebuild. If there's a problem with the core they should have found it while it was apart. Whatever the problem is they should have found it by now.

I agree with all except copied above. I dont understand the logic in asking for a different core to be used since the transmission has absolutely nothing to do with an engines cooling system. So the core isnt bad and causing water or coolant to get into the tranny. I also believe the tranny shop are morons for bypassing the part of the radiator used to cool the tranny. The tranny needs that cooling. Unless there is a substantially large add on tranny cooler installed, the tranny will fail prematurely. It will get too hot from the lack of designed cooling being bypassed.
The dipstick idea being filled from the cowl is very plausible but GM dipsticks snap down and lock at the top. Definitely worth installing a zip tied baggie over the top to rule out though.
OP never affirmed or denied the vehicle being driven in substantially deep water, so I wouldnt rule out the tranny vent line missing or dangling down either.

 

[newtek007]

OK. Update. I have the truck back. Talked with them. Everyone was reasonable to talk to. They are not going to deny the warranty. They did a pressure test of the core and it held. The cooler up front is not leaking. I got it back home and went ahead and replaced the transmission dipstick with a new one. The old one was very easy to flip the locking thing and when I touched the top of it, the rubber did indeed pop up about half way. I could shove it down in the locked position. Installed the new one and it was much harder to lock and it isn't going anywhere. I am pretty confident this is where the intrusion has been happening.

 

[Rocket Man]

Unless you regularly pressure wash under your hood, there’s zero chance imo that any more than a drop or two of water is entering through the fill tube. Or do you drive around in rain storms with no hood on? Other than those 2 scenarios I don’t see any way.

 

[Mudsport96]

Unless you regularly pressure wash under your hood, there’s zero chance imo that any more than a drop or two of water is entering through the fill tube. Or do you drive around in rain storms with no hood on? Other than those 2 scenarios I don’t see any way.

Same with the breather/vent tube. You have to be in some deep water to get intrusion that way. Just driving in the rain is not going to introduce enough to make strawberry milkshake. Hell, with just the plastic 3 inch tube i would regularly go through floor deep water in my blazer. After i moved the vent to the top of the dipstick tube i would go seat deep and never once made milkshake, even with a leaky pan gasket.

 

[rockola1971]

Im gonna have to agree on the "dipstick theory" too. My advice is keep your doors locked. Someone has a beef with you and is intentionally putting water into your tranny. Get a video camera setup on your vehicle while its in the driveway.