Tranny leak from side cover of the trans

[QC DSM ESiT]

I've recently developed a tranny leak but it appears to be coming from the side cover thingy closest to the drivers side wheel. I'm not exactly sure what is under there so I don't know if there are gaskets or something under there that are leaking or if it just has a leaky gasket around that cover. Either way I dunno what that cover is even called so I dunno if I can order a gasket for it or not. I need to stop this leak ASAP so I'm hoping you guys might be able to help out as to what this cover is considered and what I might be getting myself into by trying to fix this leak. Any suggestions or tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance guys.

[Vigo]

nothing tricky there at all. the transfer gears are under there, just two big gears.

take off the driver wheel, take off all the bolts (10mm), and pop the cover off. DO NOT pry anywhere near the bottom as gouging there will cause unfixable leaks when you put it back together. once you've got the cover off, check a few things. first, make sure both nuts are sitting tight and flush holding the transfer gears on. if that looks ok, look at the gears where they mesh together.. are they sitting completely flush to each other? they should be flush to each other. if all that checks out, then clean up the mating surfaces on the tranny and the side pan. if you are using a razor to scrape off old silicone or gasket, be careful not to gouge or score the surfaces. i use silicone on those covers exclusively. imo the gaskets arent worth a crap. silicone it, stick it together, bolt it down, check the fluid and done.

[Turbodave]

The above advice is right on the money, I use Mopar ATF RTV to re-seal these and it works great.

If your car is an automatic also look for signs of rust on the cover. I've replaced a bunch of these due to tiny pin-holes rusted through the side cover.

[RoadWarrior222]

Dave must be right, if all his leaked he'd need an airboat to get around the spread.

Anyhoo, yus, RTV on all the tranny covers and the oilpan, eschew the use of gaskets down there.

[QC DSM ESiT]

Yeah I took a look at the cover before and its rusty. I'm figuring I should just order a new one. If its not really reusable then if someone might know the Mopar part number for a new one that would be awesome cause the guys at the dealership can never find the right stuff for me. BTW this a 3 speed Auto and it's in my 89 Caravan turbo. Thanks guys.

[Vigo]

id just grab one from a junkyard if you can get it out of there without getting charged for a whole tranny hehe. ive personally got like 5 of em. Anywho if you get another cover, be aware that there are two that i know of. the later trannies have a sort of retainer for the big nuts holding the transfer gear on and the cover on those is clearanced for this. basically WITH the retainer, the area around the top gear has a raised circle about the size of the gear, WITHOUT the retainer they are perfectly flat. if you dont have the retainer, either cover will fit.

Also, make sure you get the cover from a 3 speed and not accidentally grab one from a 604, very similar looking.

[QC DSM ESiT]

I doubt I will be able to make it out of the junkyard without them charging an arm and a leg for the cover. If anyone know the part # I will just buy a new one and get some Mopar ATF RTV also. Either that or if you have a good condition one you would like to part with Vigo I would buy one from ya.

[RoadWarrior222]

Just used Permatex Black on my diff cover, diff bearing retainer, extension housing and tranny pan. Running a few PSI over stock pressure, (approx 15% I think) had a few highway runs in 35C weather Wednesday, no sign of leaks so far.... touch wood.