About a week ago, I noticed clutch was felling very soft. I checked reservoir and no fluid existing in transmission fluid fill reservoir. I immediately refilled reservoir to max. line with DOT3 brake fluid. After a day or so of driving clutch feels normal again. I checked reservoir again this week, there has been no detected loss of transmission fluid for the past 7 days.
I park vehicle in a garage. No evidence of leaks on floor. Vehicle has about 190K miles. Any thoughts.
That's not a transmission fluid fill reservoir. That's a hydraulic clutch fluid fill reservoir. If you filled it and it hasn't leaked again and your clutch works well then all is right with world and forget about it. If it starts to leak again, it could be coming out of one of two places. It could be coming out of the clutch master cylinder right under the fill reservoir or it could be coming out of the clutch slave cylinder down by the transmission. If either of the cylinders are leaking then the leaking unit should be replaced. As I recall the repair at the dealership wasn't that bad as I had it done years ago. It isn't something that should be left to just be run bad though because if you are forcing the shifts it will put a strain on your transmission and you could damage a synchro, gear or lay shaft which would be far more expensive to repair. If you want to check the tranny fluid, then you have to get under the car, remove the fill plug and stick your finger in the hole to see if the fluid is up to the level of the fill hole, but if you aren't seeing any drips on the garage floor, I doubt that it is leaking at all so don't feel that you need to do that. That's all I've got and best of luck.
... No evidence of leaks on floor. ... The fluid does not evaporate. It leaks as u say, an for that there is a reason; some seal has worn out which is normal with age/mileage. Worn seals may held back some time, but will never heal.
No other leaking place than under the car floormat(? ...if no leaks in engine bay).
To keep car running, plan the already suggested master cyl repair. DIY or ask quotations from reputable shops, 1-2hrs, seal kit plus fluid.
Just a follow up to what I said before. It isn't necessarily leaking. The fluid can be burned off if you overheated the clutch plate on a shift or two which is a very bad thing to do, but it isn't necessarily a leak in the clutch system. The fluid can also become low if your clutch plate is wearing down because the hydraulic clutch has to adjust for the thinner plate. You might be working up to a clutch if it isn't leaking. Anyway, if the fluid level doesn't go down again, just forget about it until the clutch starts slipping or you are having trouble getting into gear. Best of luck.
Fluid is always enlosed, no 'burn' possible or explosion will follow. All fluid non enclosed has already leaked out...
Work cylinder capacity has minor effect on reservoir level. Push your pedal down &keep, piston goes out, verify uself how much effect it has on the level. With worn clutch [compared to new] this effect on fluid level may be 50% more.
Dont forget - keep on eye as everythin else.
As far as i understand, the fluid will not be burnt unless the engine is on flames. This is not like the brake system where the cylinder is directly in contact with the parts that get overheated (pads).
When the clutch plate, press, etc wear out, the level would go up, the reason being, the fingers in the pressure plate will push the release bearing back as the clutch wears out.
You should see the leak, if any on:
- The flex hose from the body to the slave cylinder
- The slave cylinder.
- The master cyl> About a week ago, I noticed clutch was felling very soft. I checked
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