Well we (husband mainly) put new engine into son's 78 Aspen over the weekend; while doing this he put new front seal in trans & inspected torque convertor, etc. on tranny. They started the car yesterday took it for drive came back home & tranny is still leaking... my son thinks that it is leaking from some kind of hose that is hooked to tranny but I am not aware of any hose/tubing there... Please we need advice... Husband is tired of working on this car (I don't blame him - if you knew of what all he has done); not to mention he is doing all this on gravel... I can use any advice/help on this subject that anyone is willing to give me. At this point I am ready to try this on my own just to get it over with

Thank you
Reba

It very well could be a trans cooler line. Along the line someone may have reoplaced them with rubber hose. The steel ones are a real pain to change, even when not on gravel.

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Official Cookie and Mater Tormentor.

what is a "cooler line"??? My son says he sees 3 hoses there & he believes one of them has a hole in it... Can we jack up car, get under the car & change this??? Also, could this be a cause for the leak??? I am really trying to do this on my own so my hubby doesn't have to worry about it; he really needs a break, lol... Thanks

Reba

Also check where the dipstick tube enters the transmission case - I just stopped a very annoying leak with a new O-ring there. Easy fix.

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"When you find a big kettle of crazy, it's best not to stir it." - Pointy-haired Boss

1964 Valiant V200, 225/Pushbutton 904
BBD, CAI, HEI, LBP, AC, AM/FM/USB, EIEIO

In my experience, it isn't unusual for old cooling lines (two metal lines running from the side of the trans to the bottom of the radiator) to begin to leak, especially after they've been stressed (say by removing the trans).

Those metal cooler lines can fairly easily made from 5 foot 5/16" steel brake line using inexpensive bending, tube cutting, and double flaring tools. I use the old ones as a template for the new ones; it takes patience and a few hours, but the new ones will serve for many years.

That said, there are lots of other places that can develop a leak too. I would check that the gasket for the neutral start/backup switch is good and in place.

If you are just wanting to stop the leak today, you can use a piece of rubber line.

Go to the parts store and get a foot of transmission cooler hose (not fuel line) and a package of fuel injected hose clamps (shouldn't cost $5 for everything) Use a tubing cutter or hack saw to cut out the bad section of metal line. If using a hack saw, be sure to clean the metal dust out of the line with a cue tip or something.

Now splice the line back together with the rubber piece.

This isn't a perfect fix, but it will get you going.

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1980 Aspen 225 super six

Thanks to each of you who responded... my son took the Aspen to Meinike (spelling not right) today, they told him that the front seal wasn't right - not relying on their diagnosis since they didn't take it apart or anything & my hubby knows quite a bit about engines, etc... (just wanting to help him out with this one since he really has a lot of things going on at the moment)...

Hubby is thinking that it is the torque convertor: so my question is this: how do we change out the torque convertor without dropping tranny or pulling engine??? Again any advice/help is greatly appreciated...
Thank You

Reba

One or the other has to come out... imo its easier to drop the tranny.

Does the converter have a drain plug? make sure its not leaking there. Otherwise, the only way it can leak is if the snout busted (unlikely) or the shaft cracked (probably more unlikely).

Few other places trannies can lean - gear selector shaft or speedo cable.

Are you sure its tranny fluid? Maybe oil from rear main seal?

Get the car off of all 4's on jack stands, wipe everything clean and start the car. Give it a few good revs, and watch carefully. Wait, you said gravel... maybe use drive up ramps to get the front end in the air ? Or use jackstands with large flat bricks/stones/blocks of some sort so the stands don't sink in the gravel.

When the new trans. front seal was installed, was it lubricated with either ATF or a little grease? Installing it dry can lead to fast failure.

You mean there are other places to work on a car other than gravel? Cardboard is a Good Thing.

Sure! There's dirt, sand, mud, cactus ...

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"When you find a big kettle of crazy, it's best not to stir it." - Pointy-haired Boss

1964 Valiant V200, 225/Pushbutton 904
BBD, CAI, HEI, LBP, AC, AM/FM/USB, EIEIO