I took my car in and had them fix the A/C. They put in a new compressor and the evaporator (the canister looking item in the engine compartment). I drove the car home (40 miles). When I pulled into my driveway I noticed the car was smoking!

I turned the car off and looked underneath and saw transmission fluid spraying on the ground and cat (which is where the smoke was coming from). I immediately called the shop that I had the A/C repair done by and told them to get a tow truck out to my house.

The shop is telling me the transmission overheated and was spraying fluid out of some kind of pressure relief hole in the top of the transmission?

Anyone know what they are talking about? Also why would getting the A/C fixed cause my transmission to suddenly start overheating? Nothing like this ever happened before I had the A/c fixed. Also I had working A/C in the car two years ago and it never had this problem then.


Edit* I forgot to mention the engine temp never got high. It stayed where it always does when the fans are running.
Vehicle in question:94 Camaro Z28 (LT1) w/ Auto Trans

 

They may have kinked or bent one of your coolant lines going to the radiator. i would get under there and have a real good look at those lines. Top to bottom. Yes there are vent holes in the tops of some transmissions. Any thing that uses fluid and gets hot needs to be vented.

 

The cylindrical thing in the engine bay is the receiver/dehydrator. The evaporator is what removes the heat. It's located inside the large black box on the passenger side of the engine bay. Maybe clarify specifically what the shop changed just to be on the safe side. I also don't see why they would need to change the receiver/dehydrator since it's essentially an empty tank.

Also do you have an A4 or an M6? Autos use the dipstick tube as the pressure relief. If you have an auto there's a chance the shop may have damaged the transmission cooler lines while removing the compressor. Get under there and take a look.

Now if you have an M6...

T56s have a pressure relief on the top of the case to allow for changing pressure in the case when the fluid heats and cools. If it spews fluid it's almost always because the transmission is overfilled.

Again I would get under the car and figure out exactly where it's leaking from before passing judgement.

 

Sorry I forgot to mention it's an automatic. The fluid was definitely not spraying out of the dipstick tube.

The car is in the shop right now, they are telling me the lines are fine and they can't find a fluid leak in any of the normal places. The shop has been very trustworthy over the years so I don't think they are pulling my leg.

 

You don't think they are pulling your leg yet 4L60Es don't have a pressure relief valve but they are telling you it sprayed fuel out of a pressure relief valve? Hm...

Just sayin'...

 

OK sounds like the shop might be in over their heads if that's common knowledge and they don't know that. Obviously it's not something I know but I'm by no means a transmission expert.

If it wasn't some kind of relief valve what else might cause about a quart of transmission fluid to leak out in just a few minutes then stop? I've been down to look at the car in the shop they put a quart of fluid back in the car and it wasn't leaking while it was cold or during the short road trips they had taken it on.

They claim is hasn't leaked at all since they have had it. I'm reluctant to take it back out of the shop and drive it home since I don't want a repeat to happen and leave me stranded on the side of the road or worse. Plus if they screwed something up while they were working on the A/C then they need to take responsibility and fix it before I take it back.

 

The three most likely places are

1.) Cooler lines. The compressor and some subsequent piping is RIGHT THERE in the vicinity of the A/C piping.

2.) Trans dipstick grommet. Maybe the dipstick tube pulled out.

3.) Trans pan. Don't know how this would leak but you never know.