• NAXJA is having its 18th annual March Membership Drive!!!
    Everyone who joins or renews during March will be entered into a drawing!
    More Information - Join/Renew
  • Welcome to the new NAXJA Forum! If your password does not work, please use "Forgot your password?" link on the log-in page. Please feel free to reach out to [email protected] if we can provide any assistance.

1999 Cherokee Trans Fluid Everywhere

Subzero

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Virginia
I picked up a 1999 Jeep Cherokee two days ago with 166K Miles on it. Has a rattle sometimes at idle from I think the exhaust and the oil pressure gauge doesn't work quite right all the time. I was driving today back home from work and noticed smoke inside the Jeep and looked back and I was throwing smoke all over the interstate behind me. Pulled off in a safe spot a mile down the road and shut it down. Trans fluid is everywhere underneath and on the back hatch. The PO I got it from said the transmission was replaced and taken from a Jeep with 115K miles on it. The tow truck took it away back to my work, which was a bad decision on my part. What should I look for to fix this? Are transmission cooler lines a common thing to rupture on Cherokees? I would think if a seal was leaking it wouldn't leak like this.
 
Here is a great place to read up on the AW4 tranny and get some answers.

http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1053970

If it had too much fluid in it, it could have foamed up and puke out the fluid.

You may want to verify what fluid they used. It should be Dex III only.

I have never had one leak, except when the dip stick tube was not reinstalled properly, or when the tube line that runs to the radiator did not catch like I thought it had. I popped out overnight and drained all the fluid on the driveway. Offroaders here, have had them overheat and puke fluid out under extreme non-OEM operating conditions off road or on towing up hill for a long, long stretch in the mountains.
 
Hi,I think the lines are leaking.Start it up and look for a leak.Some people cut the lines at the radiator and use rubber hose.Might be a loose clamp.
 
It appeared to have a buildup around where the lines enter on the side of the case. But it was hard to tell with just sitting there- the whole underside from the bell housing back was coated. I only noticed the issue until the cat and muffler were buring it off. I had drove it 45 min out to my work site this morning and then was on my way back home for the day having drove 30 min already. I don't think it overheated but I sure lost a lot of fluid, I'm just hoping the bearing aren't cooked inside. I should've also said, this Jeep is a 2WD.
 
Last edited:
Got the Jeep towed home, it's making a loud knocking noise from the transmission but I was able to drive it from the street to the driveway. Reverse and 1st are still working, park still holds. What could be causing the knocking noise? I heard it before the transmission did this too but thought it might of been the cat, now it sounds louder from the transmission
 
First of all, DO NOT drive your Jeep, or even start it with a dry tranny.
Trans fluid lines: 4 quick discos, any of them can pop off, or just fail. This would pump all the fluid out of your transmission. They use a special seal consisting of o-ring, spacer, o-ring on the male end with a plastic clip that seal the line when put into the female end. If you're missing an o-ring or a spacer it will spew fluid under residual pressure.
Front/Torque Converter Seal: If the seal at the front of the tranny goes it can sometimes leak a little or leak ALOT. I found this out when I put in my tranny after replacing the torque converter. The boys at NAPA gave me the wrong seal. It was the right diameter, but about 1/8 inch too narrow. After I put it all back together...I laid down a James Bond smoke screen about 20 miles out on the road. Had it towed home. Got the right seal, dropped the tranny again and replaced the seal with the right seal, not a drip since. If there is tranny fluid dripping out the front of the bell housing after everything is cleaned up this is most liklely. Upside is the seal is only about $10...downside, the transmission has to come out, the torque converter has to come out just to replace the seal.
Too much fluid: Only two reasons that there would be too much fluid in the tranny. Either too much was put in (duh) OR there could be a leak in the heat exchanger in the radiator thus adding coolant to the tranny fluid as it passes by. If this is the case there's tranny fluid in the coolant AND coolant in the fluid.
These are all I could think of. My suggestion would be to add enough fluid to let it leak, and see where the leak is coming from...then make repairs as needed. Good luck.
 
Flex plate or loose starter bolts or the trans bolts to motor.Sounds like someone change this tans out and didn't know what they were doing.Get under it and check all trans bolts before it's to late.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top