Oldssupreme

Hi! Haven't started the car yet. I'm preparing by filling all the fluids. Was filling in my TH350 with 10 quarts as directed , after a full drain, pan drop, filter change. I got 8 quarts in, and heard a gurgling sound. Looked under the car and apparently a bunch had spilled out of the overflow vent tube??? Maybe 1/2 quart overflowed. Checked dipstick, and fluid is literally halfway up the stick. Should I suction out? Or once I start the car will the fluid go into the torque converter and lower the overall level? Not sure how to proceed. thank you! Chris

joe_padavano

If you have not run the trans before, you should have the rear wheels off the ground the first time. Yes, the oil will fill the converter, but you'll need to run it for a little while,and shift through the gears. Wheels off the ground minimizes the load on the trans when it isn't fully filled. Normally, you'd want to only partially fill the trans to avoid this problem, run it, then top it off.

matt69olds

If you poured 8 quarts in the trans without the engine running, it’s no wonder it started puking fluid. Without the engine running, the converter or trans cooler won’t fill. The pan will hold maybe 4-5 quarts, the rest of the fluid is hiding in the converter and related plumbing. Other than making a mess, no damage done. I’m betting it will smoke bad with the exhaust covered in trans fluid.

Schurkey

Define "full drain". Unless you specifically dumped the fluid from the converter and the cooler, you'd need something like 5 quarts to re-fill.

HOW did you drain the converter and cooler?

Oldssupreme

Well I took the pan off with the trans out of the car, tilted the trans at odd angles and let all drain out that would. Did the same to the radiator with the lines disconnected. And did the same to the torque converter. I guess maybe I didn't really drain much at all??? Thank you.

droldsmorland

Did you prefill the converter before you stuck in back on to the trans??