good points don/i have also found that oil overheated from the converters poor attempt at transferring power results in a darker red oil with TRANSPARENCY.transparent oil with particles not dispersed or suspended in it is a good indicator of this condition.metallic or grey dust is another story.i suggest testing by blocking 1/2 accumulator and road testing.this would have to firm up the shift.
ATF will develop a different smell depending on the problem with the trans/converter. Burned friction elements have a different smell than fluid overheated by a torque converter.
Sorry Jim, I've never tried to compare ATF smells to other smells. It's been a long time since I've burned plastic models to make falling fire balls.
When you've seen enough damaged transmissions, the different smells start to stick with you. Luckily, you don't come across severly overheated fluid caused by the T/C very often. It is a very nasty smell.
Well, we seem to have a problem. Torque converter rumbles/vibrates as it engages. Might as well drop everything - open it up and inspect the frictions.
