blown VCD or just a tcase seal?

[DR1665]

Now that the Galant on a flatbed on a tow truck saga is over and I'm back home, I'm ripping out the trans. Need some input, please.

Symptoms: Groaning noise, similar to being low on power steering fluid, when the car is moving. It's tied to vehicle speed, not engine speed. Sounds like a dry gearbox, but the noise gets louder when the car is going around a corner. (As in when turning the car around to line it up for the flatbed on the side of the highway.) Smells like Synchroshift.

Here's the leak when I pulled off the road.



I did not fill the driveline with fluids. Previous owner did and, since he was a decade plus Mitsubishi rally car driver, I trusted his work.

Just got the tcase down. This is all the fluid that came out.



The output shaft on the trans is bone dry with that typical patina of oxidation on the splines. The SEAL on the tcase, however...



Is that seal supposed to have the shiny, been spinning free against the engine block, look to it? Picture's not that great, but it's got arough texture to the shiny area indicative of rubbing on something. It's not smooth, like I would expect if it were supposed to be bare metal there. Also, it was coming out and it took minimal finger pressure to slip it back into place. I'm thinking NOT GOOD.

Beyond this, the transmission appears to be dry. I pulled the fill bolt on the side of the road while waiting for the flatbed to arrive and the bolt was dry. Finger check barely brought any fluid back.

Transmission appears dry externally, suggesting that it's just low on fluid. Obviously, I'll refill it, but only after draining whatever's in there and replacing it. I will also double check all the seals on the trans. (Particularly axle seals.) Any other place the trans might be leaking that I should check? If it's not leaking anywhere, I see no point in pulling it today. Especially if I can get away with a tcase swap.

Thanks, gents.

EDIT: Tcase is junk.

 

[Hertz]

See if you can talk a dealership into replacing it on recall. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[DR1665]

lulz

My concern right now is that the tcase took the VCD with it. I don't wanna pull two transmissions today, but it looks like it's the smart thing to do. Back under the beast I go...

 

[DR1665]

Drained the transmission and easily got 2qts of fluid out of it. Flowed like orange honey, didn't smell burnt and there's no floaters or sparkle motion in it. Trans output shaft splines are still intact, as are the splines on the tcase receiver, so I don't think the VCD locked up on me (which might shear the splines). Off to the dealership to get some fluid and then I'll be swapping the tcase from the black car over. Here's to dodging bullets!

 

[boostedinaz]

Nice job Brian. Looks like this may be an easy fix.

 

[fivestardsm]

Quoting DR1665:





I wish I could have taken a picture when I blew the pistons out the side of my old flat bed on the ohio turnpike with a $50K vette on the back, I would have looked something like that!

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/devil.gif

 

[DR1665]

$75 later, I've got 3qts of Hyundai GL-4 (Mitsu equivalent, I guess) and a bottle of Royal Purple 75W-90 for the other tcase.

Mitsu service advisor said the VIN came up totalled with no recalls open. No free tcase for me!

I was sure to mention, "That's odd. I've got a clean Arizona title on it right now and have been daily driving the car for over a year now without an issue other than this roached tcase." This made him curious, since he couldn't think of any Mitsubishis with a transfer case. I suggested that the car was the predecessor to the Evos and likely older than his dealership, thanked him for his time and bailed.

Now I'm going to jack up the black car, snag the tcase, refill it, and swp it over.

 

[DR1665]

Success. Trans shifts like BUTTER now and no more weird noises.

I am effing beat. The hood still needs to go on and I need to remove the prop shaft from 195 before I can move it back into the garage, but that will wait until tomorrow imo.

Thanks for the support.

 

[boostedinaz]

You're a beast Brian. Nothing stands in the way of you driving a GVR4.

 

Quoting DR1665:
I suggested that the car was the predecessor to the Evos and likely older than his dealership, thanked him for his time and bailed.



LOL legendary.

I can tell you really care about these cars. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/worthy.gif

 

[DailyDSM]

I posted this up a few months back. Unfortunately, one of the previous owners sent this (along with the rest of the vehicle's history) to me more than a year after my transfer case failed.

Official Recall Letter