So I took off the trans cooler hoses and the fluid was dark, what would that mean? Some kind of trans seal is what I was thinking. Is this going to be expensive?

 

Transmission fluid should be red, but dark red is ok. If it looks brown, you may get by with a drain and fill. If it looks black, replacing the fluid will probably do more harm than good. Is there any coolant in the transmission fluid, or vice versa? Either way, thats bad. A pic will help, so we can see exactly what you see.

 

I figured only coolant should be in the radiator. I'll have to drain the trans fluid to see if there is any coolant. I just bought a ton of refresher parts and don't want to bolt them up if there's a bigger issue that might make my new water pump fail. I'll post up a picture once I have it. drained. What fluids do you guys use for the trans, ATF+4?

 

Trans fluid goes dark by nature... its called getting dirty. Its normal... if its super dark and dirty then your slacking on your filter/oil changes.

Trans fluid runs through its own "compartment" in the end tank of the radiator.

 

I've had it for about a year, year and a half and put on about 1000 miles maybe. Yeah it's not super dark, but I'll change it anyway. I'm going to replace the lines while I'm at it.

Thanks guys

 

This is an urban legend. Not true at all.

If you get a high-pressure transmission flush that some shops sell, then yes, that can damage your transmission.

Replacing the fluid will not.

See my sig.

 

I agree with you on that. I've never seen problems with just a fluid change. I only lost a transmission power shifting my car and taking it to a dealer to do a flush. I don't ever cheap out on my fluids either or I try to stick with what came in the vehicle from the factory.

 

Dex/Merc is cheap.