well, a few days ago i was finally able to push my car into an area where i could get my big *** underneath it. was a stretch and a bit of a mess but i finally got some more ATF fluid in there and, lo and behold, SHE MOVES. there's still an awful moaning sound coming from the pump and a bit of smoke but i got it about 10 blocks away to my new apartment, running through 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, but not 5th.

is my only option to rip the tranny out and go from there? i was hoping the new fluid would shut it up but no dice.

 

The moan could still be low fluid, or air entrained in the fluid as it passes thru the pump. If it is just low fluid, where did it go all of a sudden? Wheres the smoke coming from? Tranny fluid in the exhaust?

 

since i didn't have an exactly level area i did my best and filled it until i saw it coming out along with some of the old fluid which, in combination with the new red fluid, looked quite brown. fired her up and ran through the gears for a bit before i was done filling. i didn't want to overfill it so i let it drip out of the fill plug until it stopped.

the moan is definitely less harsh than it was before i put for ATF in but it remains even though the pump is obviously working as the car can now move and change gears. prior to this i've heard my power steering pump groaning but as soon as i put pentosin in and worked the air out it was gone.

if there is air somewhere in my tranny... how do i get it out?

as far as where the fluid went, besides hitting the exhaust and coating my back bumper a month ago, i've got no clue.

 

Hope it was running all the time you were adding fluid and letting it drip, otherwise its still going to be about 2 quarts low.

 

Yeah, when you fill the tranny fluid there should be some fluid leaking out of the fill hole before you screw the plug back in.

Is there a way you can put it up on 4 jack stands and refill it up? The fluid is supposed to be at 40 degrees C when you measure the final amount and put the plug in. Do you have VAG-COM, or maybe can borrow it from someone?

 

Have you been replacing the fluid periodically? Irrespective of what ZF says, it is NOT lifetime. Some folks do a quick plug-drain (no pan drop) periodically, which changes about 30% of the fluid at a time. Just make sure the new stuff you put in is compatible w/ what is already in there.