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Trans leak???

96country

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Russellville, AR
About 4 months ago the Cherokee developed a transmission leak. It was leaking at the front seal, so I took it to a trans shop and they said the torque converter was bad and caused the blown seal. They fixed it with a new converter and resealing the trans. This morning I left to go on a trip and it started leaking again. It doesn't seem to lose enough to make the fluid level low, but it trails smoke for about 1/2 mile every so often.

What could be causing the seal failures, and what do I need to do to fix it?

It is a 1996 Cherokee 4.0, auto, 3.55 gears, 31s, 128,000 miles.

Thanks
 
96country said:
Anyone have any ideas? How do you tell that the torque converter needs to be replaced?

Thanks

I believe it would have trouble shifting if the TC was going bad...
 
pancake said:
I believe it would have trouble shifting if the TC was going bad...

Oh yeah...don't they warranty their own work? Only 4 months? Take it back! :wave:
 
If your torque converter is going bad it will feel like it’s slipping. You will have to raise the engine RPMs progressively higher to get it to move, a lot like a car with a bad clutch. If its trailing smoke I’m pretty sure it’s not the tranny. That has to be some sort of engine related problem. Crawl under the tranny and see if the leak is coming from the pan where it seals to the actual transmission. Another place to check is the dipstick. They are a two-piece deal with a rubber o-ring. Some times if both pieces aren’t connected tightly it will drip a little bit when you add tranny fluid. It doesn’t hurt anything, but it is annoying.

Terry
 
The reason it is trailing smoke is because it is leaking down on the exhaust. I checked and it is not from the pan. I don't think it is a problem with the dipstick because I haven't added any fluid. It is coming from where the trans bolts to the engine. It is at the shop now, but I didn't know if this was common or something that there was a simple fix for.

Thanks

Also, it doesn't have any problems shifting, and the only slippage I can see is that the rpms rise when you accelerate a little after the lockup has kicked in.
 
I have a 96 country with the EXACT same problem. I just check the level and drive on, but mine is not a DD so I deal with the smoke.
 
do you happen to have a transfer case drop kit? always wondered if dropping the transfer case would effect the drive line at the engine and tranns.
 
They most likely slammed in a seal and converter and sent it out...if it's leaking this soon....either the seal was damaged during assembly or the (most likely) pump bushing needed replacement too....more remote possibilities are the torque converter nose is undersized causing out of center, but usually the engine will have a noticable vibration if that happens..or the pressure regulator is stuck causing excessive pump pressure (even more remote possibility) if the converter bolts are loose, it will sound like a box of rocks. The TC lowering will not affect the front seal.
 
Thanks for the info MudDawg, it is at the shop now, but they haven't gotten it torn down yet. If the pump bushing needs replacement also would that kill the torque converter?

Also, I do not have a TC drop. Don't have any vibes, so didn't put one in.

Thanks
 
Just got off the phone with the transmission shop, and they say the torque converter is fried again which causes enough heat to blow out the seal and make it leak. What could be causing the TC to be going out so quickly? Do you think adding a tranny cooler would help?

Thanks
 
96country said:
Just got off the phone with the transmission shop, and they say the torque converter is fried again which causes enough heat to blow out the seal and make it leak. What could be causing the TC to be going out so quickly? Do you think adding a tranny cooler would help?

Thanks

Did you verify (after the work was done) that they put in enough tranny fluid? Did you check the level every couple weeks?
 
pancake said:
Did you verify (after the work was done) that they put in enough tranny fluid? Did you check the level every couple weeks?

I checked the fluid about once a week for probably 6 weeks after the job was done the first time. No leaks until now, just happened kind of all of a sudden.

Still wasn't low on fluid when I returned it too them. It doesn't take make trans fluid to make a lot of smoke on the freeway.
 
what are you running on your jeep tire and gear wise
 
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