I'm new here

I just bought a 66 mustang from a friend who's had it a long long time. Before I go into all the specs and stuff on it, I've got to get it from her house and get it inspected/registered. She told me that it leaks quite a bit of transmission fluid (C-4 auto). I've been a chevy guy all my life, so I don't know a lot about these trannys. She said it was "leaking from a couple of spots." I'm hoping it's a bellhousing gasket and a pan gasket. Are there any recurring problems in these transmissions you guys know about that I might need to check?

 

In all the years I've owned my cars, the pan has either seeped or leaked. Sometimes worse than others. And once upon a time, the hole where the speedometer gear fits leaked, too.

Right now, due to a gasket change and a whole lot of cussing, the fastback doesn't leak. My convertible...well...first I need to replace the scraped and bent pan...

Just get under there and look. That's my rule of thumb when something's leaking. Whatever you do, don't let it go for too long or you'll need a serious steam cleaning to get rid of the mess.

 

Yea, it's defenitely been there a while - they've had pans under it the whole time, and they said it's been there about 2 years. I'll probably get a new pan and gasket kit. So you're saying that will help it, but not stop it?

 

It's leaking tranny fluid because the gasket is not sealed. Take the pan off and put on a new gasket. That will stop the leak from the pan.

 

That should totally stop it. It's just a messy job, that's all. I just did my fastback last weekend. Painless, but messy.

While you're under there, just look for other potential problems. It's just a good habit.

 

Cool, thanks

 

Be careful not to overtorque an automatic tranny gasket, it is very easy to do with the cork or rubber ones. I don't have an automatic Ford, but for my Jeep they sell a gasket that is foolproof. You torque it down until it bottoms out on positive stops so you can't accidentally overcompress the gasket.