Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Transaxle broken tranny??

ok. last night on the way home, i started to hear a loud "wirring" noise. the noise got louder as rpm's increased. i thought maybe it was a flat tire so i pulled over. my tires were fine and there was smoke pouring out from under the hood and under the car. i looked under the car and saw that fluid was leaking out from around the tranny pretty bad. i couldn't tell what type of fluid it was. so i popped it in reverse real quick so i could get a better look and as it went into reverse, the tranny made a loud "clunk" noise. well the fluid that was dripping out was thin and red. so i assume it's tranny or power steering fluid. however, i didn't have issues steering and that "wirring" noise combind with the clunk as i put in it reverse made me believe it's the tranny fluid. but what the hell could be the problem. i didn't have problems shifting or anything like that. needless to say i had it towed to my mechanic's and he'll be able to look at it tomorrow. any idea's tho?

the whirring noise was the gears spining with no oil in the case, But the ? is what caused the oil to leave. If something broke in side and cracked the case, I would asume you would hear a bang. Maybe the drain bolt backed it self out. Thats the only thing i can think. Good luck

well i don't remember hearing a bang but there could have been. at this point i'm clueless. i'll find out tomorrow definately. if the tranny need's replaced, does anyone want an SVT cause i sure as hell can't afford to fix it right now .

I have seen a few MTX-75's with leaks around the case gasket. Although slow there is still fluid leaving the case and over time, without keeping a check on the fluid level, it will eventually run low enough that the gears are not able to get the bath they need of fluid.

I guess it could be also possible that one of the axle seals went bad, allowing the fluid to quickly come out of the tranny. That would explain the smoking that you mentioned, since the fluid exiting the tranny would come out on the axle which would throw it all over the place under the hood. At the sametime, once you came to a stop it would just pour out since the shaft would settle at the base of the seal and not float in it.

thanks for the ideas. i'll ask him about that (axles).

i'll give your car a good home for ya

well my tranny is shot. at least the housing is. there is a major crack in the housing. my mechanic is out looking for a used one for me. we're not sure yet exactly how it cracked that bad. unfortuneatly i don't have enough money to do any tranny upgrades (LSD, flywheel...). i really don't even have enough for just a used tranny. my question now is there any major differences between the mtx-75 used in the svt and the regular mtx contours?

to my knowledge, any mtx-75 should do the trick.
i wish you the best of luck.

i broke mine real bad. the spider gear desentigrated and busted the housing in about 8 places. a used tranny was $600. i went to a friends, we put it on the lift and in about 4 hours i had it replaced. i am more carefull with this one.