My transmission is leaking either around the top of the servo cover, or above it. Can anyone advise what I should do to resolve it? The leak is coming from somewhere in the circled area in the pic below. The transmission is in my 31 Ford Model A, Glassic Replica and is attached to a 302 engine. Can I resolve this with the tranny in the car? The pic below is just for illustration, to show where the leak is coming from. Any help will be much appreciated. Trikepapa-RonC
More info, the servo bolts are all tight, and the leak doesn't appear to come from the line where it attaches to the coupling that goes to the red circled area, but since I can't see where that coupling attaches to the transmission, I must say it could be coming from there.
You sure its not the converter draining out, over filling the pan and up the fill tube and leaking out through the oring seal?
Did you replace the O ring on the servo cover? It's possible the case is cracked where the cooler fitting screws in, too.
Excuse my ignoramousness, where is the converter, is it shown in my pic? I haven't removed/replaced anything yet. Can the servo cover be removed with the transmission in the car. If "yes", what is the process? BTW, thanks for the quick responses. Trikepapa-RonC
This may sound crass and for that I am sorry but there are two things to look at the gasket/O-ring and the cooling line.
The torque converter is the big donut between the engine and transmission, it is full of oil and might drain back into the pan when the car has been sitting a while. If so, it raises the oil level in the pan, and can cause things to leak. If you are sure the oil is not coming from the dipstick tube, then I doubt that's what's happening. I haven't worked on a C4 for a long time, I forget how long the servo cover is, and I don't know how much room you have in the transmission tunnel. Google for images of the cover, you can see how big it is, it goes in a little ways inside the transmission. this page has some pics of it disassembled http://diyford.com/assemble-ford-c4-transmissions-cruise-o-matic-select-shift/
First I'd use a mirror to try to see exactly where the leak is. If it is the fitting for the cooler line going into the transmission, You could loosen the line connection and try to tighten the fitting but not too tight so the case cracks. Otherwise you would have to remove the fitting and use teflon tape to seal it. If it is the cover and you have room, you can remove it. I'm trying to recall if there are links connecting the servo to the band and adjuster that could fall out when the cover comes loose. I seem to recall changing a servo cover o-ring when I could only get the cover out far enough to see the O-ring by stretching the ring over the cover.
Check the dipstick tube o-ring. I have had that leak many times, and when I change the fluid, I always put a new one in. Another thing to check is if the servo cover leaks in neutral. This applies the 2nd gear band, so the only time it should really leak is when you are driving in second gear.
The reference to "converter", without being preceded by "torque" threw me. I thought it might be a different animal. I've only owned the car about a month, so I don't know any of the history behind the leaking. I don't have easy access to a lift, but, plan to visit my brother-in-law in the next few days (he has one), so maybe I will be able to see the source of the leak more clearly. Meantime, I'll try the mirror as suggested by Engine Man. The leak does happen when the engine is running and leaves a drip trail in and out of the garage. I am confident that it is coming from above the yellow line in the picture below. Does that rule out the issue being with the torque converter and fill tube o-ring? If it does, is it most likely the gasket/O-ring and/or the cooling line as porknbeaner suggests?
I would look at the cooler line first. The dipstick tube will leak after it sits, not when it's running.
C-4 cooler line fittings have an o-ring on them and have a tendency to come loose. If the servo cover is leaking there is a gasket between the cover and the case. Not an o-ring. If you take the cover off, most likely the intermediate servo piston will come out of the trans too far and the band anchor will come out of the band. Then you have to take the valve body off to reinstall. If you are real carful you might get lucky. Bill
Better late than never I guess, the cooler line ended up being the offender. With the car up on the lift, I was able to get a mirror in position and could see that the line was loose. Thanks all for the great advice!!
The fitting you have circled in red is the pressure out line and comes from the front pump. As said before there is an o ring between the case and the fitting. They do tend to get hard and crack as they age. Remove the line from the fitting using a flare nut wrench. Then remove the fitting from the case replace the o ring and remember to lube the o ring with ATF. That line always runs hot as opposed to the return line after the cooler. Try this repair before removing the servo cover. If you remove the cover and the band anchors fall onto the valve body, you have your work cut out for the day.
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