First post and it’s a doozy!

I have a 2015 Taco 4x4 with 30k on it. Two days ago I did a tranny pan drain and fill in my garage. I literally walked away for 5 minutes while it was draining to check some emails. In that time it started to rain and my wife moved the truck out of the garage to put the Jeep in the garage as the top was off. She had no idea that I was working on the truck.

So from her description she moved the truck out of the garage and was backing it up our driveway on a slight incline when she smelt something burning, she then put the truck in park and came and found me. The entire move of the truck had to be less than a minute and maybe 30 feet.

I went ahead and added fluid and got it to the proper level. Took it for a drive and she drove good for about 20 miles and then I started to get some erratic shifting, mostly hard down shifting and delayed shifting, I also lost OD.

I’m mechanically inclined to a certain degree and would like to figure this out without having to take it to the dealer. The “burning” smell my wife described to me was a burnt oil smell she said. Could a solenoid have burnt out or possibly stuck?

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this and any info would be greatly appreciated!

@gearcruncher

 

Subbed for responses.

 

What procedure did you do to get it to the proper level. And how much did you put back in.

 

There is another trans thread where gearcruncher recommended adding this stuff Lubegard 63010 Platinum Universal...

$16 Lubegard 63010 Platinum Automatic Transmission Fluid Protectant, 10 oz.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002MB57UI?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share. Maybe get a bottle, drain off some fluid and add the lubegard.

 

We're missing a critical piece of information...Was the vehicle dead cold when you did this? Or had you been driving it before you did the drain?

Reason being, if it was cold and she really did start it and move it 30 feet I'd say no damage and you probably just need to adjust the fill level.

If it was up to operating temps and she moved it without fluid, there may be internal damage that would need professional diagnosis.

 

Did you scan for pending CEL's?

Years ago, my buddy's dad was doing the first oil change on his brand new Silverado 3500 454 big block. It was his first new truck in 30 odd years. He ran to town to get oil and filter with the family car and when his wife came out and saw the car gone, she decided to just take the brand new truck.

Long story short. 500 miles on a 454 and it was toast. Good luck, OP!

 

Is it Friday?

The wife didn't see the drain pan and the trail of AT fluid as she was backing out of the garage?

 

most women arent going to look/pay attention to that...mine sure wouldnt. Then she'd get mad because it wasnt shifting/moving right...lol

 

She seems to be more into trucks than most would be.

 

still not something most people are going to look at when jumping in the truck...If I jump into my wifes car, Im not going to look under it to see if theres some maintenance being done on it...lol

 

I really don't think there's damage from moving it 30 feet. It was never under load, line pressures were never raised. It sounds like you need to recheck fluid level.

 

Was the pan still off when she did this?

Many people on this forum, as well as the FJ forum, have made the mistake of double filling the engine oil, draining the transmission fluid and then driving at highway speeds to get to the dealer for the to fix it with no damage done to the car.

I was drunk once and did that myself, the next morning the truck seemed off, I had driven 6mi, went home, parked it and corrected it. Truck was at 30,000mi, now it’s at 64,000mi with no problems.

If you were still concerned about it after another 30-60k mi go take it to the dealer and have them fluid swap it.

I’d be surprised if it broke anything. It’s not like she was redlining it for an hour.

 

I doubt you did any damage. These trannys can do weird things when the fluid level isn’t just perfect. Set the truck level, get the tranny up to the right temp and in temp mode, then check the level by the overflow drain. You can find the exact procedure and steps on here.

 

Women don't notice those things. Hell, my ex couldn't tell the difference between my truck and a stock truck. Changed the wheels, and it took her a month to notice.

 

yeah but if you came home with one strand of hair from a woman on your shirt she'd notice that! LOL...but yes I agree they dont pay attention to that stuff, they just want it to start and go when they want it to.

 

Why would you be draining tranny fluid at 30k? Way too early...hope it works out for you.

 

If the op drained the pan and the plug was still out, that’s 3 qts, if the truck is started up and moving it’s pumping more fluid into the the pan and onto the ground. So the refilling procedure is pretty important.

 

Subbed for this one.

 

The procedure on here made by Fortec. I put back in 4 quarts and drained out 4 ounces. I got 2.9 quarts out on the initial drain.