Fluid Shot Through Dipstick – Stuck in Neutral Mode

Here are some thoughts on your problem. There are likely two or three causes to your problem. Off the top of my head, I think it might be transmission fluid overfilling or a clogged vent breather tube or, possibly, a pinched cooler line, if your vehicle is equipped with a transmission cooler (I have to make the assumption that it might be because you didn’t indicate the make, model or year). It may also be a plugged transmission fluid filter.

Let’s look briefly at each problem.

It is easy to overfill your car’s automatic transmission, if you aren’t careful. The correct way to refill the transmission fluid is to turn your car on and let it run for 20 to 30 minutes to bring it up to operating temperature. Next, after setting the parking brake, run the car through each gear to make sure the transmission and each gear is fully filled with fluid. Then, after putting your car back into Park, remove the transmission dipstick and replace it and then pull it out again. Since your car’s engine and transmission are at operating temperature, be sure to look at the HOT setting. If it reads on the low side, add new transmission fluid in little steps until it is back to the normal setting.

The reason that you have to bring things up to operating temperature is simple. When a transmission is cold there is no fluid in the upper part of the device. As it was cooling down, the fluid drips down into the transmission sump and out of such things as clutch packs and gearing. As much as two quarts of fluid can collect in the sump. This has to recirculate in the transmission in order to fill up the upper part of the transmission. Only when this has totally recirculated can you get a good reading. If you read the transmission dipstick when the transmission is cold, you can see how easy it is to obtain an incorrect reading. Since there are two quarts of fluid left in the sump when it is cold, a cold reading is unreliable. If you were to use the reading obtained, and the reading showed the transmission was down on fluid, you can see that you are just adding extra fluid to the transmission, throwing it into an overfilled condition. The result can be fluid shooting through the dipstick and/or the breather tube.

The other two possible causes of your vehicle’s problem — a clogged vent breather tube or a plugged transmission filter — are not likely to be the real culprits here, though, they might be and they still have to be checked. The best idea for these other checks is to have a technician look at them as they each involve some degree of transmission or engine bay tear-down to access the device and check it.

If you do take it in to have the problems checked, you are looking at anywhere from a $90 to $200 payment. It really depends on the amount of labor involved.