Draining tranny fluid ...no easy way?

Ambush

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So gents, after repairing my leaking speed-o cable, replacing the gasket on the parking cable housing, and dropping the transmission pan and changing the filter, etc... I at last was ready to add back the tranny fluid and start the next phase. My manual says that my tranny fluid capacity for my 65' Imperial is 19, 1/2 pints, which is nearly 10 quarts. I started off just putting in 8 quarts or 16 pints, and from there I would fine tune it w/ the normal fluid check procedure. Well apparently 8 quarts was too much ...as I got the motor up to temp and ran the test ( while in neutral ) ...the dipstick indicated about a quart over the FULL mark. Surprised to say the least as i was still a bit away from the capacity of 19, 1/2 pints. Obviously I made an error somewhere, as it seemed 15 pints would've been right ...a far cry from the capacity amount. There must have been some fluid still in the car that doesn't drain when you drop the pan. Dang.

Is there any easy way to drain the excess fluid other than loosening the pan bolts and going through all that? Can it be sucked up through the dipstick inlet? Any tool for that?
 
So gents, after repairing my leaking speed-o cable, replacing the gasket on the parking cable housing, and dropping the transmission pan and changing the filter, etc... I at last was ready to add back the tranny fluid and start the next phase. My manual says that my tranny fluid capacity for my 65' Imperial is 19, 1/2 pints, which is nearly 10 quarts. I started off just putting in 8 quarts or 16 pints, and from there I would fine tune it w/ the normal fluid check procedure. Well apparently 8 quarts was too much ...as I got the motor up to temp and ran the test ( while in neutral ) ...the dipstick indicated about a quart over the FULL mark. Surprised to say the least as i was still a bit away from the capacity of 19, 1/2 pints. Obviously I made an error somewhere, as it seemed 15 pints would've been right ...a far cry from the capacity amount. There must have been some fluid still in the car that doesn't drain when you drop the pan. Dang.

Is there any easy way to drain the excess fluid other than loosening the pan bolts and going through all that? Can it be sucked up through the dipstick inlet? Any tool for that?
There is a suction device that you can suck it out of the dipstick tube. Look up "Automotive fluid vacuum pump" on Google an look at what's available.
 
There are many hand, compressed air and electric motor oil extraction pumps out there, from cheap to expensive. Easy to use down the big tranny fill tube, so you don't need to pull the pan.


The 19 1/2 pints is for a fill that includes the torque converter, which itself holds several quarts. The FSM instructs that for a standard refill (from say a filter change) you dump in 6 quarts and then sneak up on the fill line once warmed up and shifted through gears like this:

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Great to here about the suction/siphon method via the dipstick tube...thanks for the tip on that. Yes I forgot about the torque converter and did not factor that ...bonehead move, but a lesson too. Thanks all!
 
Great to here about the suction/siphon method via the dipstick tube...thanks for the tip on that. Yes I forgot about the torque converter and did not factor that ...bonehead move, but a lesson too. Thanks all!
Another shop trick is to drain the convertor. Then start the car and let the convertor refill and drain it again. This will remove most of the oil from the transmission pan so that you don't make a big mess when the pan is removed.

Dave
 
Great to here about the suction/siphon method via the dipstick tube...thanks for the tip on that. Yes I forgot about the torque converter and did not factor that ...bonehead move, but a lesson too. Thanks all!
I use mine to change the oil in my push mower. Easy!
 
When I was getting ready to change the oil in my zero turn, I looked at electric suction pumps. Bought one off Amazon for abt $30.00 USD back then. THEN I discovered I could have bought one at the local Home Depot for the same function! Works great! Can be used on engines and transmissions, too.

I like it as it has a long, clear, continuous hose on each end, rather than the multi-diameter hose that some hand pumps have on the suction side.

CBODY67
 
When I was getting ready to change the oil in my zero turn, I looked at electric suction pumps. Bought one off Amazon for abt $30.00 USD back then. THEN I discovered I could have bought one at the local Home Depot for the same function! Works great! Can be used on engines and transmissions, too.

I like it as it has a long, clear, continuous hose on each end, rather than the multi-diameter hose that some hand pumps have on the suction side.

CBODY67
Yup Im going that route ...and save some pain. Thanks All
 
Suction in the tube is good.

Another easy way is to remove the speedo gear and housing. Fluid comes out there, enough to make a mess. You can park it uphill so more will come out there.
 
I use an electric in-line fuel pump, clear tubing and and long enough wires with alligator clips to reach any battery in any vehicle.
Takes me longer to hook up than to pump out as much fluid as it can.
 
I bought an all-purpose hand pump from the parts store when I discovered my gas tank needed replacing. It's a workout, but I felt better using a manual pump when dealing with flammables. That pump has earned its keep several times since, in the house and the garage. It's good to have one around.

Thanks @Trace 300 Hurst for the time on the torque converter, I'm going to remember that!
 
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