Im new to the forums and have a question about my transmission.

I have a 1996 Discovery 1, 153k mi, 4.0L with the automatic. As i was walking out of school today i noticed a small puddle of fresh fluid.it appeared to have came from a hole on the bottom my transmisson about the size of a pencil eraser. Is the hole supposed to be there. and my fluid checked out to be a little low and i havent had any problems with slipping or hard shifts.

any info would be great thanks

 

Yes this hole is normal. The fluid leak most likely is from the main shaft seal that is inside the bell housing. That's if the fluid is draining from this hole. That hole is for water drainage from the bell housing. Normally if there are no leaks the bell housing has no oil to leak. It is just the empty space where your torque converter is mounted. Do you have rough or sperratic shifting? Check your fluid level to see how much is gone. You may want to service your transmission SOON. Also from looking at the fluid leak, it appears to be engine oil. Possibly from the oil pan gasket. Double check before you drive it again and make sure you know what is leaking, and from where.

 

Thank you I thought it might have been a serious issue like i knocked a hole in it on some rocks or something. and no i havent had any shifing issues. It just scared me that i might be needing a new transmission, and I just checked it is oil. My disco tends to start leaking when its getting close to needing its oil changed.

 

I leak oil from that... I posted pictures on flickr. However, I don't leak enough to worry about it. Just enough to have my parents on my butt about how I need to clean up the oil in the driveway....

 

Yeah it looks like engine oil, but you definitly want to be sure. What size puddle was there? Now is the time to change out those gaskets. Could be the oil pan gasket or the rear main crankshaft seal.

 

it is engine oil. and maybe about the size of a half dollar. and i know the oil pan gasket is pretty easy but how hard is it to change the crankshaft seal?

 

Need to unbolt the transmission and drop it a bit to get access to the rear main seal. Or just take it out completly and clean it up. About a six hour job.

 

White Shepard oil stop leak and seal conditioner, add to the crank case and drive for a hour or more.
The leak will stop, total cost is under $30 plus gas.

 

Or White Shepard which is a seal fixer, and while it may not fix it forever, it may allow you time to save for and schedule the other work.

 

Additives in your engine are no better than Fix-A-Flat in a tire. Do not use them. Sealants do not belong in your engine, just the manufacturers recommended lubricants. Come on people, real mechanics know better than to give advice like that.