The Chrysler Minivan Fan Club Forums banner

Removing and replacing the transmission Solenoid Pack w/ pictures

249K views 126 replies 59 participants last post by  themus 
#1 ·
I?d had a slow leak from the transmission for several months. Not big enough to worry about, but enough to cause a grimace every time I saw the spots.
I finally decided to go ahead and change the tranny fluid and use the nifty Chrysler ?reusable? metal and rubber pan gasket I had bought to stop the leak. I hate the RTV pan-to- tranny solution because of the extra work and uncertainty of using goo instead of a real gasket.
Unfortunately, the leak persisted, so I dropped the pan a second time the following weekend and sealed it with the RTV.
Again, the leak persisted so I went after the Solenoid Pack area. I placed a bit of paper towel under the transmission fluid hoses and saw no pink on the towel after a week? but the spots continued to show up under the van, with wet fluid dripping off the back side of the pan onto the floor.
I replaced the gasket under the Solenoid Pack, but the leak continued dripping.
Then, a few days ago when the weather turned cold, the spots turned to little puddles.
I broke down and bought a Solenoid Pack from the Dealer, replaced it and the new gasket that came with it, and the leak stopped.
What I discovered was that removing the Solenoid Pack the second time was a breeze because I knew what to do. I took pix for the forum so that it might be easier for your first time.

1. Clean the area with degreaser from a spray can and rinse well?. three times. DO NOT jack up the van. Tranny fluid is level with the top of the mounting face of the Solenoid Pack. If you don?t imbalance the level of the van by jacking it up you will lose almost no fluid.
2. Work on a cool tranny. A hot engine bay will get you burned.
3. Open Solenoid Pack box and make sure you have the correct gasket. READ the instructions! Four times. (See pix 1 for bolt descriptions)
4. Put heavy tape along the heat shield seam. The edge will cut you if you don?t. (pix 2)
5. From top of engine bay, look down and identify the bolt #1 and the 8mm bolt on top of the connector locations. (pix 3)
6. Locate bolt #3 It?s hidden below the heat shield, under the transmission dip stick tube. (see pix 4)
7. REMOVE the speed sensor. Unclip the sensor connector, then use a 1? socket to remove the sensor. ( pix 5) Now you san see bolt #2)
8. Loosen the 8mm bolt on the Solenoid Pack connector (pix 3), lift off the connector and place it out of the way.
9. REMOVE the bolts. #1 and #2 are easy. #3 is removed with a short extension and short ratchet. ?Short? because you will be working under the dipstick tube. (pix 7)
10. With the bolts removed, lift up the Solenoid Pack assembly, slide it towards the front of the van, turn upright and remove it through the space between the tranny and the bumper lip. (pix 8)
11. CLEAN the area where the new Solenoid Pack will go. CAREFULLY.
12. Place gasket on Solenoid Pack bottom. Three dowels will hold the gasket in place while you are replacing the Solenoid Pack. (pix 9) Your old Solenoid Pack may have only had 2 dowels, but the third dowel fits in place just fine.
13. Replace in reverse order. You will notice a ?rocking? of the new Solenoid Pack on the edge of the tranny. It feels like you aren?t in the dowel holes, but that?s normal and will settle in place once you properly locate and snug down the bolts.
14. Torque 10mm bolts to 106 inch pounds ( 8.5 ft. pounds) on bolts #1 and #2. The #3 bolt was done after calibrating the Mark One Multi-digital Grip Extension (my hand) to how much resistance 8.5 ft pounds felt like on the first two bolts.
15. The 8mm connector cover bolt is just ?tightened?.
16. NO computer ?training? is necessary. Just drive the van normally and it will learn on it?s own so fast you won?t know it happened.
17. Celebrate with appropriate beverage and over-salted, high fat content, comfort food product. :beerchug:
 

Attachments

See less See more
5
#3 ·
It's hard to tell, really. I didn't have any hard data from before I changed it so I can't definitely tell there was any change afterward. (Unless you count the few miles I drove before realizing the tranny was in limp mode...... seems I forgot to connect the electrical connector on top of the Solenoid Pack.:jpshakehe )
With all connections made, I was able to drive, using all 4 gears, as normally as the day before.
It's really a piece of cake to do.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeepman
#6 ·
Thanks for this information. I have a winter time leak on mine and I believe it to be the gasket. No leak above freezing basically. This has been going on for about 4 winters now and I have had the replacement gasket for about as long.
Mine looks like a real hard to get at area. I was actually thinking of removing the heat shield. Your documentation and pictures will help me tremendously. I will be bookmarking this Thread.
 
#7 ·
First of all, thank you Sheldon! This is a great write up, and right on time. I just discovered the same leak on my 01 T&C this weekend.

My question is, does anyone ever seem to have success just changing the gasket? My van seems to shift just fine right now, so I hate to throw away good money on the pack if it is just the gasket. That being said, I also don't want to go in and do the job twice if I don't have to.

Thanks for any help,
 
#29 ·
My Dodge Stratus had just a leaking gasket. Changing it solved all the issues I was having at the time. I had called about 100 parts stores, and 15 different dealerships, and finally found just the gasket out in the midwest somewhere. Nothing within 500mi of me! And that dealer said it was the last one they had and cannot order anymore (i asked for 2 just incase I messed up).
 
#8 ·
If the gasket is leaking, not the body of the solenoid, I would just change the gasket. Its only $5 at a dealer so much better than $100 for a pack from ebay or $250 from a dealer.
 
#10 ·
Check your cooler line connections first (if you haven't already). They can develop leaks during cold weather.
 
#12 ·
The solenoid pack is connected by 3 vertical bolts to a shelf that protrudes out from the transmission. Hoses and sensor are not connected to the solenoid pack but are in the way of removing the pack. I believe sheldon only removed the sensor and worked around the cooler lines per his Post and pictures.
 
#13 ·
That's right, I did not want to do any more than was necessary so I only removed the sensor to get to the middle bolt. There was plenty of room under the hoses to get in the socket. (I know it's a bit hard to see in the photo, but you can see the silver of the socket just coming to the flats of the sensor)
Incidentally, it is a pain to know I have a known good sol pack that was replaced only because of a leak. However, if you remove the side of the sol pack where the leak apparently comes from you could damage the insides. In other words, darned if you do and darned if you don't.:jpshakehe
 
#16 ·
Guys, I just wanted to say thank you. Replaced the gasket and all is well. Until I saw this post, I was ready to take the car to the transmission shop (which is strictly forbidden in my religion). $5 fix and it is going great.
BTW, on my 01, 3.8L, it was much easier removing the cooler lines (which took all of about 10 senconds).
Thanks so much for your help!!!!
 
#17 ·
Sheldon,
You gave me a clue to a similar problem. My son has a '96 Stratus that drips ATF. I changed the pan gasket with no luck so I was suspecting the solenoid pack (similar setup to the vans). A few weeks ago I had the car in my garage and jacked up the front to replace the timing belt and water pump (2.4L). I carefully wiped off the bottom of the transmission so I could locate that pesky leak as I knew the car would be in the garage for a few days. After three days - nothing! BUT, you say that jacking the vehicle up would move the ATF rearward away from the solenoid pack. That could explain why I found no leakage. It's probably the solenoid pack after all.

Bill
 
#18 ·
BUT, you say that jacking the vehicle up would move the ATF rearward away from the solenoid pack. That could explain why I found no leakage. It's probably the solenoid pack after all. Bill
Bill,

When I removed the Solenoid Pack I could see the level of fluid was about 1/8 inch (or so) below the surface of where the Solenoid Pack had been attached. I felt that if the van had been jacked up from one point, front or side, it would have tilted the level of the transmission, perhaps enough to spill the fluid out.
That said, it is also possible my observation and conclusion could be wrong. But, it does seem to make sense.

Finding a fluid leak is rarely a fun proposition, desperation led me to find mine. You might consider cleaning the area around the suspected leak, then going for a drive followed by an immediate under-vehicle inspection. Good Luck!:cool:
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jeepman
#19 ·
I'm a little confused, can one just replaced the gasket instead of forking out the money for the solenoid pack? and do you recommend to do the change with the van sitting on all four tires or jacked?

My understanding is that yes the solenoid pack gasket can be changed without buying the whole solenoid pack. And the job needs to be done without lifting the van up to prevent major loss of tranny fluid. Please let me know if I'm right or wrong.

Thanks a lot for the useful post,

Carlos
 
#20 ·
Looking at Post #1, I would say you are correct.
Work is done from the top. Gaskets can be purchased separately. For my vehicle the Part # is 04659982 for the gasket by itself and 05140429AA for the solenoid pack which includes a gasket.
 
#21 ·
You can try replacing just the gasket. Its less than $5 so no big deal.

Don't jack the van up, as Jeepman said, its all done from the top so its harder to work on if you raised it.
 
#22 ·
Great write up and pictures Sheldon, and thanks for the good info everybody. My 97 T&C has a trans leak which is mostly from the axle seals. Its also long over due for a fluid and filter change. I was going to get them at the same time, but I did notice some fluid from around the pack. I'm going to replace the gasket there as well. It'll have to wait for better WX since the van is down for other reasons. I hope that will help the shudder problem it has too. I've worked on this van since my daughter bought it with 75K miles, and she never gave it to me long enough to do the trans. Now it mine and I'm slowly refurbishing it and giving it the TLC it deserves. Its now got 192K mile. Other than the leak and occasional shudder, the trans seems to be good. Time will tell.
Dave :wall:

97 T&C 192K miles origional trans
5 mazda 626s
 
#23 ·
Awesome write up, and really helpful pics! Thank you!

My stelership wanted $235 for the part and $565 for labor to replace this part on my 3rd Gen van (2004). Using your guide, I was able to buy the part online for $153 plus shipping, and replaced it myself with absolutely no problems. I took my time, and had to deal with my fat hands in small quarters, but once I figured out what I was doing it only took me about 45 mins to do the actual replacement.

Thanks for taking the time to write this guide up!

BickUW89
 
#24 · (Edited)
Good to see the appreciation expressed in actual savings even. Sheldon did an awesome job of writing it up, as you say.
I purchased a solenoid pack from the Dealer here at wholesale price, around $240.00 tax in. I returned it as I got another price of $200.00, tax in, for "supply and installation". A local transmission Mechanic installed it in about an hour. That was a win-win for me. Saved $ and didn't even get my hands banged up.
 
  • Like
Reactions: dun4now
#25 ·
Ya' know, its amazing to me how many people have read, and some have saved money, because I took a few minutes during the installation to record the work. One guy's digital camera pictures can make someone else's day go so right he smiles. That's what I like about this place, we all help and we all learn....and maybe save a few dollars, too.

BTW, BickUW89 reported a $565 labor charge he was quoted. That's something that would have embarrassed Bernie Madoff! Good job, guy! :headbange
 
  • Like
Reactions: Caraman99
#28 ·
I'm changing my solenoid pack today. I got the old one out, but the gasket was in pieces. I carefully removed it, but some gasket material is stuck on the back edges. I covered all the openings with tape and tried to scrape the gasket material off with a razor blade, but I can't get some of it off. I'm afraid to use gasket remover, because even though I have things taped up, it might get into the transmission.

Any suggestions?
 
#31 ·
I'm changing my solenoid pack today. I got the old one out, but the gasket was in pieces. I carefully removed it, but some gasket material is stuck on the back edges. I covered all the openings with tape and tried to scrape the gasket material off with a razor blade, but I can't get some of it off. I'm afraid to use gasket remover, because even though I have things taped up, it might get into the transmission.
Any suggestions?


You want to be very careful with any scraping tool you might use on the old gasket as gouges in the mating surfaces could lead to their own leaks.
Given that you are using great care with the tape to cover the openings you could try the gasket remover in small quantities, using a small brush, just running a "line" of the stuff along the top edge of the remaining gasket material, and let it soak in for a bit. Patience is your best virtue in this situation... so don't rush it.
You also could push a wad of clean, lint free rag tightly into the top 1 inch of the open holes to block and "seal" them. They will absorb some of the Transmission fluid and ,when saturated, will not absorb any spilled gasket remover thereby keeping the stuff from contaminating the fluid. This method should also block any other nastiness from entering the openings, too.
 
#33 ·
I ended up using gasket remover and a long handled scraper with a razor blade on the end. That combination worked, although it did take a long time. I figured the razor blade scrapper was a lot safer than a regular one. I'm pretty sure that no gasket removing fluid got into the transmission. I'm going to change the fluid and filter anyway, just to be on the safe side.

Thanks for the advice.
 
#32 ·
I'm a knuckle buster and do a lot of my own wrench work, but it doesn't look as simple as you make it sound. It looks like I might need adult supervision to take this one on....
Cruisin-family


That's just what the big Vehicle-Industrial Complex wants you to beleive. It really is as easy as stated.:thumb:
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top