tadtv

I replaced the transmission fluid and now pan is leaking. I'm not sure if I over torqued or under. The kit I bought had a floppy rubber gasket. The one that I took off was a nice rigid plastic dealer gasket with little rubber channels. Should I or can I reuse that one instead? On the new kit rubber one I put little dabs of RTV and spread it out just to hold the gasket in place but did NOT go all around the pan. Did that cause it? Didn't think this was that hard but I managed to mess it up. I think it's supposed to be 12 foot pounds torque- thought I could just feel that. Any guidance before I get all messy again. Thanks

thatXJguy

You should never re-use a used gasket. Chances are you'll never get it snugged up just right since it already has impressions in it.

Best place to check is the dealer. Or, if you get another floppy rubber one, just torque it correctly in steps, in a star pattern.

zjWaggy

Could have been the rtv if it wasn't all the way around... The new rubber gasket should have worked fine by itself (given it may have been a booger to keep in place while installing pan).
But once you have 2 bolts on there and it seems to fit flush on the surface you'll be golden! Id also recommend going in a star pattern when torquing the bolts down so it sits just right on the transmission. GL!!

dave1123

There's an old boy trick to keeping a floppy gasket in place when installing the bolts. Use sewing thread thru the bolt holes until you start all the bolts, then break the thread and pull it out. Works the nuts on an oil pan gasket. Your best bet is to get a reusable gasket from the dealer. It's a sandwich with a metal stiffener in it. Also, make sure the areas around the bolt holes are flat and not dimpled. They can be flattened with a block of hard wood or metal and a hammer.

The torque spec on the pan bolts is 144 IN/POUNDS. That works out to be just short of 12 ft/lbs.

blueseasons

To hold gaskets in place whilst I am working on them, I use Indian Head Gasket Cement. It's very tacky right out the bottle and almost impossible to get off skin or anything else it gets on. It's a good sealer also. I do like the thread idea though!

dave1123

Yeah, that stuff works well, but wait until you need to do it again. It's difficult to get the old gasket off! It seals cork gaskets best but you have to scrape 'til you're blue to get it clean. I used it on Chevy small block valve covers because the heads weren't machined on the gasket surface.

wingless

It might be that the pan is not flat anymore.

If any of the screws were overtightened, then that could have distorted the gasket surface.

A granite block and feeler gauges is a great way to measure the pan gasket surface.

This is the new deep Derale transmission pan that I installed.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Derale-14210-Dodge-A518-A727-Transmission-Cooling-Pan-/381277561791?hash=item58c5e9e3bf for Derale deep pan and filter extender.

Bustedback

That rigid gasket that you didn't reuse is reusable. The gaskets that come with the kits are worthless. All of the Dodges in my fleet at work have the rigid gasket, we get about five services out of them before we need to replace them.

dave1123

JMHO, but I don't see the need for a high capacity deep pan unless you are doing a lot of heavy towing and need the increased volume for cooling. It just DECREASES your ground clearance and adds the need for a skid plate to protect it. You also loose the cooling effect with the skid plate. If you need to replace the pan, just buy a new OEM pan.

wingless

The deep Derale pan definitely decreases ground clearance.

The front-to-rear turbulator cooling tubes are in the air flow path.

The stock pan should be used instead for off road usage.

This pan is great to keep the transmission cool and to extend the transmission service life.

This pan has a drain plug, so draining and swapping to an OEM pan is easy enough if off roading is planned.

wingless

Here are some images of the Derale pan installed onto my 46RH transmission.

Bustedback

A friend of mine had a pan similar to that on a turbo 400, it started leaking around where the tubes were soldered in.

wingless

Mine has been fine.


The construction quality is outstanding and I highly recommend this part.

bigbadon

^^^^X2^^^^^ I always re-use the OEM original, DO NOT use RTV or sealant. Torque in proper sequence and you will not have any leaks! This applies to valve cover gaskets too.