OK, in the realm of "learning something new every day".... try this one on for size.

My 86 244 (AW70, 210K miles)has just started making a very unpleasant squeal from the transmission. It never does it when in neutral. It sometimes does it as soon as you drop it into Reverse or any forward gear; sometimes not. Sometimes it's quiet for a while, then starts squealing as the car idles in gear. Sometimes it will sit for 15 minutes without any noise.

It's louder than any motor noise, loud enough you can hear it sitting in traffic, in the car. It appears to be coming from the torque converter, though I can't pin it down 100% to say I'm *CERTAIN* that it isn't either from the engine itself (seems very unlikely) or the transmission gearbox section.

Fluid level is fine though it is dirty and I haven't changed it in a while (did find out the drain plug is hopelessly stuck, so it seems the only way is going to be the trans cooler line flush).

Oh yeah, the noise. At first, I thought I was hearing a power steering pump dying. It sounds like a whine or squeal like you might hear when you get to the end of travel in your steering and then hold it there. It's clearly related to engine speed and again it only does it in gear, not neutral. It's continuous once it starts, though it does abate sometimes when it's driven.

I'm starting to think it's the front pump in the transmission. I should note that other than a fairly hard 1-2 shift, this trans is happy and healthy in function. I drive it hard and it always shifts properly at the right time.

I know they're not bulletproof but this isn't a failure I've ever seen before.
Any ideas welcomed.... and I probably do have another '87 244 heading my way... maybe one is going to be a parts car.
--
Rob Bareiss, New London CT ::: "Roterande Fläkt Och Drivremmar!"

Quote: "Fluid level is fine though it is dirty and I haven't changed it in a while (did find out the drain plug is hopelessly stuck, so it seems the only way is going to be the trans cooler line flush)."

I would strongly recommend against this. Depriving the moving parts of the transmission from fluid by disconnecting the cooling hose could potentialy cause some damage, and with the tranny already at a questionable stage, this could be bad.

Secondly, it's a good idea to remove the transmission pan when changing the fluid as you will also have the chance to clean the metal shavings and old clutch-band material from the pan. Trust me, it's an ugly sight, especially if it hasn't been cleaned in more than 100,000 miles. Wipe your finger on the inside of the pan, you'll see what I mean. Also be sure to clean the magnet that's in the pan too, this is intended to 'catch' the metal shavings of the clutch-bands as they wear, but it gets loaded very quickly and is too small of a magnet for the application. (my Pontiac's magnet is about 4 times the size and significantly stronger)

If I were in your position, I'd try removing and cleaning the pan, then filling the tranny fluid with the regular Valvoline Dexron 3, run the car 5 miles, drain again, and then fill with Valvoline Durablend Dexron 3. -and repeat again with Durablend after another 1,000 miles. This should help purge much of the old fluid out of the system. (the Durablend will help your seals, improve cold weather performance, and provide better chemical stability when overheated)

Note to all those wondering how to change the transmission fluid all at once: You can't. This is not possible, even with the 'cooler line disconect method.' The reason is that your Torque Converter holds about 5+ quarts and it doesn't drain when you drain the pan or simply stop the flow of fresh fluid. It's like a giant donout standing on end. To completely drain a torque converter, you need to drill a 1/8" hole in a very precise spot on the outer edge. You would only want to do this if you got antifreeze mixed with your transmission fluid and wanted to re-use your torque converter. (since engine coolant will destory the seals and clutch band adhesives in no-time flat, we're also assuming a tranny rebuild here)

If you take it to a transmission shop to have the fluid 'flushed,' here's what they do. They put the vehicle up on a hoist, remove the transmission pan, then they put an adapter up to the filter inlet and pump fresh tranny fluid into the pumpbody while running the car. Some/most of the torque converter fluid will get purged in this manner, but not all of it. With the engine running and fresh fluid flowing, the dirty fluid from the transmission and torque converter will drain back and will fall into a collection pan (in place of your tranny pan) and they'll just wait until the fluid color improves enough to be considered 'flushed.' They just wait until it look's clean an then stop, bolt the pan back on with a new gasket, and top off the fluid. They usually use about 12 to 16 quarts to do this, but you still can't get "all" the fluid fushed, just most of it.

Lastly, if you do end up having to replace the transmission, I'd check if it's possible to install a AW-70L in place of your AW-70. The 'L' version means that it uses a lockup torque converter which engages when you are up to cruising speeds. This will give you the same gas mileage as a stickshift/manual transmission when at cruising speeds. The AW-70L and AW-71L were used in all 240s starting sometime in '88 or '89 and all cars after that. (this should improve your gas mileage by 5% or more depending on your driving habits)

Good luck with your 'operation.' God bless,
Fitz Fitzgerald.

'87 Blue 245 with a AW-70 that I'm considering swapping to a AW-70L.

Could the pump be sucking air?? I had a turbo 400 that would make a noise you describe, seemed as it came from torque converter. Since mine did it only on start-up I didn't worry about it. I would think though that the front pump is starving for fluid. I don't know if there is any seal that could fail and prevent fluid from reaching the pump.

Any other possibilities for the noise?? A/C clutch, tailshaft bearing??

let us know

danny hall

When the trans failed in my 83 Turbo, I had that noise followed by a big bang, then no forward movement, coasted into a parking lot, had it towed home, the next morning I drove it into the driveway. I changed the fluid when it was starting to slip, I think that's what did it in, was told later I should have left the old fluid in there.
I destroyed my replacement by not flushing the coolers (dumb).
Live and learn.
Not what you wanted to hear, but that was my experience.
Chuck Jaxel....