I was told to properly check the fluid in a ve auto, is you need to run the car till warm...then you put your foot on the brake, and run it through alll gears, from bottom to top....so 1,2,d,n,r,p , stoping and letting go of the shifter at each one until the trany goes into that gear...
But if thats the case, wtf would they have a cold level on the dipstick?

tranny has been shifting slow lately, I just checked the tranny fluid since the car was left over night and hasn't been run yet....the level is just barely below the HOT level......should I drain it until it shows its at proper lvl on the dipstick?

 

You have to check it when it's warm. Then you put the car in D pull the e-brake and check the level with it in gear. I have always done it that way.

 

ok... usually you check it warm or cold, with it in neutral.

Drive... I've never run into anything that required you to have the vehicle in drive. Everything was always neutral and at idle. Also, they do this because it's a safety concern. Check the dipstick, some vehicles state right on there how to check it.

Start up your car, and let it idle, check your level then. If it's still above your cold full line, drop some out. When tranny fluid gets warm it expands, that's why there's a hot line. If the tranny is overfilled too much, it'll sit into the clutch pack area, and cause resistance to it. Of course, I don't think it would cause so much as to make the tranny shift slowly

 

but ti could cause it to begin to slip if oil expands into the clutches?

 

IIRC, the procedure is in the car's user manual: you have to start the engine, depress the brakes, put the shifter in 1, 2, D, R for 10 seconds each and then in P. Then check level.

 

then check lvl with in in park and running? or off and in park...or on in neutral? or off in neutral?

 

maybe thats why youve had a gazillion fafillion tranny rebuilds

 

In park and off IMHO. But check your user manual, damn it!

 

Park, after running it through the gears, with the motor running.

 

Replacement FYI

 

Oh forget it... just get a 5-speed manual. Less of a headache when rebuilding, and you don't run into the lack of fluid problems as much.