Tranny fluid leaking from vent

[Ugly John]

The other day I was working on some projects in my garage, and I had the Mustang out in the driveway. I noticed a small puddle in the middle of the floor. At first I figured it was just AC condensation dripping, but then I remembered I hadn't run the AC at all that day. I checked, and it was definitely oil, so I made an apt with my dealer to check it out.

I had been in to have my first oil change with them a couple weeks ago, so I figured it was just a matter of them not tightening the oil filter or drain plug enough.

But the service manager said they checked it out, and it was definitely transmission fluid that had leaked out of the vent, and was coming over the side. I had autocrossed last weekend, and when I checked my accelerometer reading, it showed I had run 1.07 G's in both directions. He was guessing that this hard driving sloshed the fluid enough to come out the vent. They cleaned the fluid off, and took it for a test drive with no other leaks.

I've searched the forums, but haven't seen anybody else having this issue. Is this an unusual occurrence? Was the tranny fluid just slightly overfilled? Any cause for worry?

Mods - While this is a transmission problem, I'm going to double post to the autocross forum since those folks are more likely to be pulling higher lateral G's...

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[Joebroni]

Can't say I've autocrossed the car yet, but it doesn't sound implausible. Has the transmission been serviced? Perhaps it was over-filled then. If it hasn't been, was that your first autox in it? If this was like your 10th time and never had a leak after other events, that is unusual.

Really as long as it's still not leaking, there isn't a concern past their inspection. If you are a DIYer and baby your vehicles, maybe after every event, check the fluid level and see if you need to top it off. I personally wouldn't do it that often, maybe after a few events I would check it, but to each their own.

 

[Optimum Performance]

Could have been on the high side or the vent was pushed in (closed off) and it fixed itself.

 

[Ugly John]

Update:

About a month after my original post, I brought the car back in for another look as it was still leaking, and making quite the mess.

This time I actually talked with the service tech, and I got a copy of the Ford hotline assistance request. The first time I brought the car in he had put the request in, and Ford said if I had been operating at high RPM or high speed, the fluid levels were correct, and the vent was properly installed it was normal leakage due to the spinning of the internals. If I wasn't running at high RPM, they would need to drop the tranny, disassemble, and do a complete inspection.,

We chatted about it, he cleaned it up, and away I went.

Well, it's still leaking, and I haven't autocrossed or driven it hard. I'm tired of leaving an oil soaked piece of cardboard in my garage, and my girlfriend is not happy about me leaving oil puddles in her driveway. I'm taking my other car out of town for the holidays, so I just made an appointment to leave the Mustang in the shop while I'm out of town. Hopefully it'll be an easy and quick fix and it'll be good to go when I get back home.

 

[Optimum Performance]

Update:

About a month after my original post, I brought the car back in for another look as it was still leaking, and making quite the mess.

This time I actually talked with the service tech, and I got a copy of the Ford hotline assistance request. The first time I brought the car in he had put the request in, and Ford said if I had been operating at high RPM or high speed, the fluid levels were correct, and the vent was properly installed it was normal leakage due to the spinning of the internals. If I wasn't running at high RPM, they would need to drop the tranny, disassemble, and do a complete inspection.,

We chatted about it, he cleaned it up, and away I went.

Well, it's still leaking, and I haven't autocrossed or driven it hard. I'm tired of leaving an oil soaked piece of cardboard in my garage, and my girlfriend is not happy about me leaving oil puddles in her driveway. I'm taking my other car out of town for the holidays, so I just made an appointment to leave the Mustang in the shop while I'm out of town. Hopefully it'll be an easy and quick fix and it'll be good to go when I get back home.

Keep us updated John, still sounds like a vent issue or fluid being overly aerated for some reason. Enjoy your Holiday.

 

[Ugly John]

The dealer said it appears the vent tube was having a problem closing, so they order and installed a new part. The install was supposedly easy, but they had to drop the transmission for access. It's all done and waiting for me to pick up when I get back in town.

Here's a pic of the vent tube. I asked for them to hold it, but they said they have to turn it back in since this was warranty work.

 

[sum1]

@Flyhalf

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