repercussions of overfilling Transmission

Pulled the transmission pan cover and put on new filter.

Owners manual says that the capacity is 9.6 litres (about 9 1/2 quarts).

Filled it with 9.5 quarts and now is really overfull.

What are my repercussions of driving with too much ATF, and, outside pulling the pan and draining a bunch, how can I release some of it.

Finally, can I get away with driving 100 or so miles on it overfull?

If I had to guess, looking at the dipstick (the one in the engine...not me) I would say I overfilled by about 4-4.5 quarts.

Thanks!

Drain plug in the pan. Drain some. Otherwise, you're going to drain a considerable amount through the dipstick...onto the exhaust...and all over the back of the Jeep. Ask me how I know this.

Jim www.yuccaman.com/jeep

Depending on the year, you may or may not have the drain plug. If it is on your 2001 without the drain plug, another option is to suck it out through the fill/dipstick tube using a suction gun and a long piece of tubing.

Definitely a pump thru the dip stick is easiest.

Just FYI in case you are wondering why it read overfill when you put 9 quarts in, is when you drained it, you didn't drain all 9.5 quarts, but more like 5. The other 4.5 quarts sits in the torque converter and it's impossible to drain it unless you disassemble the transmission. That's why transmission flushes can be better. They pump out the old fluid while at the same time refilling new fluid via the transmissions own oil pump, thus getting all of it out.

You don't need to bring it to some dealership to get it done also, it IS possible to do in your own driveway with two people, but you need to be comfortable with doing it because if you slip up it could damage the transmission. Anyways, the jist of doing it yourself is, pull the return line off the transmission and attatch a clear hose to it, and put that end in a bucket. Turn the vehicle on and it will start to pump fluid out. It won't be like a pressure washer. At the same time, pour new fluid into the transmission, at about the same rate as it is being pumped into the bucket. Usually you would use about 20 quarts to flush a 9.5 quart transmission.

Overall a filter change and a drain/refill every 35-50k miles will make your transmission happy. The AW4 in my Cherokee has gone 245k miles so far without a flush or drain. (don't tell anyone lol)

So, bottom line is....

...if I do nothing at all, the worst that could happen is that it keeps bubbling out the filler, ,smoking off the exhaust and the undercarriage and back of the Jeeps stays a little messy.

I haven't a suction gun to suck any back up, so that is not an option. I thought about just dropping the pan again and getting a bunch out that way...probably could get about 3-4 quarts out that way. It's just messy as hell.

But....no chance of any internal damage or transmission going kablooey or anything (dealer doom and gloom) if I let it be.

4-5 qts of atf into the engine compt WILL make a REALLY BIG MESS!

---ATF burns fast and hot when it ignites.--- Bye Bye XJ!

IT WILL get on the exhaust and REAL bad smokeing FOR SURE. AND Possiably ignite (REAL EASY!) = Bye Bye XJ

Overfilled trans IS REALLY BAD for the trans.
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-Get a few feet of plastic tubing and a cheap hand pump and get the excess ATF out. (Or drain plug.)

Go for 'add' mark . Run 20-30 minutes to fully warm up trans ATF. Then get XJ real level and adjust atf to 'full' mark, Idling in neutral, Brake on.(NEVER ABOVE FULL MARK.)

:cheers:

orange is correct. the fluid will foam up if overfilled as well, you're asking for big trouble and a big mess. the risk of a fast spreading hard to smother fire should be enough to make you want to at the very least get a piece of tube and a siphon pump, you can get one at any decent oparts store for less than 10 bucks for the squeeze bulb type, and it will take you 10 minutes to do.

3 things you don't half ass if you like your vehicle:
1.) brakes
2.) engine
3.) transmission

just pull a cooler line off, start Jeep , let it pump out into a suitable container. Hook line back up, check level, repeat as needed.

A google with automatic transmission overfill will get you info that is essentially what others have already posted here.

One report of a practical solution for removing the excess ATF is to use small diameter plastic tubing down the filler tube -- fish tank tubing or similar -- attached to a common squirt bottle sprayer.

Found and easier solution....

Cracked the seal around the pan and let it drain out into a catch pan.

Drained about 4 qts and then tightened it back up.

I'll let it sit and cool, then check it again after I get it hot. Should be ok w/i about .5 qts at best now.

Hmmm...should have thought of that earlier!

Just pulling the drain plug/filter change will net you about 3.5 quarts. Putting 9 liters back in means you have around 6 qts. too much fluid.
If you then drained out 4 qts. you still have 2 extra qts.

Best thing to do is drain your tranny, and only put 3.5 back in.

Yes the tranny HOLDS ~9 ltr. but the bulk of it is in the torque converter, pump etc. All of won't drain out, just the 3.5 - 4 qts.

Never drive with an overfilled transmission.

It can create a "frothing " condition which can lead to damage, not to mention that your seals are in jeopardy.

It's not hard using one of the above methods to get it back to the correct level....

The dipstick is your friend...

Yucca-Man said:

Drain plug in the pan. Drain some. Otherwise, you're going to drain a considerable amount through the dipstick...onto the exhaust...and all over the back of the Jeep. Ask me how I know this.

Jim www.yuccaman.com/jeep

Click to expand...

Just had this happen to me last week. Creates a nice smokeshow for the people behind you and gives you a free rust-proofing undercoating!

I recommend letting it drain out of the plug until you are at the right level. when you drained it, you did not drain the converter and thats why it is overfull

Just so ya know, 9.6 liters is actually 10.1442068 US quarts....since you messed up the conversion, maybe it's possible you read the manual wrong??? :shrug:

I'd pull the plug for a second or two, put it back in a turn or two, check the level, repeat as necessary... the pan isn't pressurized so it'll just leak out slowly if you don't tighten the plug while checking the level.

ATF is VERY flammable as noted, do not run with that much extra in it!

Also note that the level markings on the dipstick in an auto tranny are generally 1 pint apart rather than the 1 quart difference on a crankcase oil dipstick. Should give you a better idea of how much to drain but remember the dipstick is not vertical the whole way up the tube.