So a couple months ago a transmission intercooler line popped off while I was cruising at highway speeds. In fact in happened twice in the same day. Smoke and high revs were apparent and no acceleration response. Presumably all the fluid was drained on the road. Since then I have replaced the filter once and drained/refilled the transmission about 4 times now, manually. I plan on replacing the filter again but was hoping to wait until I got all the dark fluid out of the system and the fluid flowed a nice light red color. But despite 4 fluid changes the fluid comes still comes out pretty dark. I mean its lighter than before and there is a slight dark red tint to the fluid but still a faint burning smell. Ive been refilling the fluid about every 2-3 weeks.

So here is what the fluid looks like now. Should I keep draining/refilling until the fluid flows light red or is this actually a normal color for transmission fluid? Should I install the new filter now or wait until Ive done afew more flushes?

2004 D2
215,000

 

Might want to edit the thread title. Not sure why it says manual if you presumably are not talking about the R380

In answer to your question I have seen worse fluid quality

 

that fluid color looks OK. It will never come out as bright and shiny as fresh from the bottle. The "burnt" smell is more concerning though, although odds are its just picking up small amounts of material from the clutches from when you blew the line and got stuck free revving and burning up the trans. Put a new filter, new fluid, and call it a day

 

You are making sure it's topped off while the vehicle is running and warm, yes?

How far did you drive without fluid? I've emptied mine twice on the road and she's been fine both times.

Wait, three times.

 

2 ways to flush the transmission as far as I know. Power flush using special machine or manually where you drain and refill until fluid comes out clean. 😆

The tranny went without fluid long enough to make it smoke a bit and cause the rpms to skyrocket. Probably 2 hours of driving before I was able to get to a place that had fluid.

As for how I refill the sump. Usually start filling while the truck is cold. Once full I start the truck and warm it up, shifting through each gear several times. Then while idling I add additional fluid to the sump until fluid flows out of fill hole.

 

Lee fully understand, you drove 2 HOURS without fluid?

Well that's your problem. That's like driving 2 hours with zero oil in your engine. I'm honestly surprised it still moves under it's own power at all.all three times I 3mptied my trans I pulled over and parked as soon as I either smelled trans fluid, saw fire (atf on exhaust), or saw my rpms increase. Immediately.

The ZF is truly a resilient transmission.

If I understood correctly, you've cooked her. Just drive it till the trans croaks and replace it.

 

QUOTE=TRIARII;651782]2 ways to flush the transmission as far as I know. Power flush using special machine or manually where you drain and refill until fluid comes out clean. ��

The tranny went without fluid long enough to make it smoke a bit and cause the rpms to skyrocket. Probably 2 hours of driving before I was able to get to a place that had fluid.



As for how I refill the sump. Usually start filling while the truck is cold. Once full I start the truck and warm it up, shifting through each gear several times. Then while idling I add additional fluid to the sump until fluid flows out of fill hole.[/QUOTE]


Draining the trans fluid Only drains about 6 qts from the pan. It is impossible to drain the torque converter without disassembling the trans...or hooking it to a trans flush machine.
The trans flush machine Willl pump all the fluid out, and refill the torque converter, which holds another 6-8 qts, not including the 6 in the pan.
One trans flush is all that is needed too.
And, as Alex said, if you drove around near empty, you ruined the transmission.

 

Roughly 10-15 minutes of driving with the intercooler disconnected. Got off the highway, and refilled sump and reconnected line. Another 1.5 hours driving with very low fluid later that night when the line came loose but not fully disconnected. Stores were closed and stuck on the highway. Very strong transmissions in these trucks.

 

Off topic, but.... THAT'S NOT AN INTERCOOLER.

An intercooler lowers the temperature of the air coming into the engine. Cooler air = denser air = more oxygen = more power.

 

Yes be careful with terminology. You meant transmission cooler.