Boy was I happy when I dropped the pan from the Rialta transmission this morning and found no metal shavings or particles attached to the magnet in the bottom. Oh, there was a generous amount of goop. But no evidence of any serious issues. I guess the153,000 miles it traveled have been gentle.
I installed the new dipstick (VW sealed the transmission – no dipstick), cleaned things up a bit, replaced the filter and reinstalled the pan. After filling it and bringing everything up to temperature, everything was dry.
I drove over to Tennessee (around 60 miles round trip). We climbed enough hills to thoroughly heat up the transmission, monitoring the fluid temperature the entire way. For having no after market transmission cooler, it did alright.
So, with that behind us, we’re heading for Standing Indian campground for a couple days, the first of the week.
Let the games begin!
Cheers