[1960 shark]

O.k. so a couple of hours after I got home I found a huge puddle of tranny fluid under my tranny. about 3 ft. wide

i have a 1960 Ventura 389 / hydramatic .

I cleaned it up and noticed a leak coming from under the flywheel/ bellhousing cover plate, i dont know what the actual terminology of the plate is since i cant find it in my book,but the plate bolts up with about 6 bolts and has 1 small louver cut into it.Its definitely leaking tranny fluid where the louver is .

Before I go into dropping the tranny and doing exploratory surgery wanted to know if anyone knew what causes this and what the fix is.
the car was running great,but I did notice the tranny "slipping " a little when punched it.

If it was a (gulp),Ford, i'd know exactly what to do. But ive never pulled a pontiac tranny before and heard it was a pain in the butt.

[stevep]

Bring it to someone who is familiar with that transmission.

You could pull it out yourself and reseal it, but if it was slipping, it most likely needs an overhaul. If you were going to bring the trans to a shop and do the removal and installation yourself, see if the shop wants to drive the car before you remove it.

[1960 shark]

One of the instructors at my union training site told me the hydramatic tranny was an easy rebuild and that we could knock it out in the shop no problem.So rebuilding it isnt an issue.
IMO, I think the tranny was slipping cause it was low on fluid cause it was dripping out as i drove it home. I cold be wrong though.
I just wanted to know if this was a common occurrence or not.

[Bill Hanlon]

Originally Posted by 1960 shark

One of the instructors at my union training site told me the hydramatic tranny was an easy rebuild and that we could knock it out in the shop no problem.So rebuilding it isnt an issue.

Before you let him tear into it, ask him how many forward speeds and how many fluid couplings a "hydramatic" has. If he says 3 and 1, I'll bet he thinks you have a TH350 or TH400.

[starchief1959]

Sounds like low fluid to me since you were leaking and the front seal is pretty easy. You could do it yourself, they aren't too hard but they weigh a TON. You'll need an extra set of hands to pull it and you'll have to brace the engine up since there's only the front mounts.

Did you have all 4 gears? Cause if you ended running in 1 & 3 the fluid coupling is shot and needs to be replaced.

If you do take it in, like Bill Hanlon said, make sure the guy is familiar with the transmission.

[stevep]

Originally Posted by Bill Hanlon

Before you let him tear into it, ask him how many forward speeds and how many fluid couplings a "hydramatic" has. If he says 3 and 1, I'll bet he thinks you have a TH350 or TH400.

Listen to what Bill says. He also may think that it is a Dual Range Hydramatic. Ask him how many bands it has.

[1960 shark]

Thanx for the info, I will more than likely take it to the tranny guru that lives near by to have him check it out for me before i do anything.He specializes in old transmissions so he should be able to give me a diagnosis of whats going on.

I guess all that "peeling out" took its toll.

[stevep]

The peeling out wasn't the problem. It was the 48 years!

[starchief1959]

Originally Posted by stevep

The peeling out wasn't the problem. It was the 48 years!

LOL, agreed.

I heard somewhere that they used to run whale oil in the transmissions (I'm only 26 so I'm kind of ignorant sometimes)? Is this true? And if so, does the "new" transmission fluid have different properties that they just don't hold up as well because if this?

Sorry for the hijack....

[1960 shark]

Im somewhat of a youngster myself, but Ive heard 100 different theories from 100 different people on the types oil to use and which is better.Whale oil???
Sometimes my wallet tops them all and determines what I use.

By the way,,I will agree that the 48 years took its toll on my tranny, but than again , youve never seen me PEEL OUT!! lol

[stevep]

Now that's funny!