Common 68RFE leak...?

[Brian Lidgard]

So I found a coat of oil around the transmission which looks to be leaking at the seal in a few spots (front and the side). Don't see a drip line anywhere., but it's definitely wet around it some, as you can see. So is this normal for the 68rfe or no??
Truck is 2017 3500 6.7 srw long bed cc. With 64k miles. Stock.

 

[Cummins12V98]

De grease it. See if it re appears.

 

[JR]

Has it been serviced?

You can check the pan bolts for tightness. 105 INCH POUNDS.

 

[Jim W]

My 2008 which uses a 68RFE has a 135K on the OD and the Mag-Hytec pan is dry on the outside! I do have my transmission serviced about every 60,000 miles so, this may help!

 

[Brian Lidgard]

Thanks guys. I guess we'll just service it all since it's over 60k miles now, then see if it leaks after servicing.
Haven't done it before but it looks like I need to:
-Replace transmission fluid (how much?)
-replace internal transmission filter
-replace external/auxiliary transmission filter (68rfe have an extra filter?)
I'll look the specs up, but just wondering you've all done this before and see what you already know what works...
Thx!

 

[JR]

Yep, two filters and I believe 8-9 qts. I'd have to double check my service records to be sure on the amount.

I'd highly recommend adding a drain plug into the pan for future drains.

 

[BarryG]

Not hard to do, drain fluid , remove pan, change filters there is two of them a sump and a spin on. Replace pan fill it with fluid. The pan just uses rtv sealant no gasket. IIRC the manual says to measure the amount of fluid you removed and replace that same amount. Which is kind of lame but whatever, nonetheless the key is when checking the fluid to do it at operating temp (160-170 deg) so it reads properly on the dipstick, not to overfill due to foaming of the fluid. I know I took my time on doing mine and fluid dripped constantly from it though once I put the filters back in it pretty much stopped. While the pan was off I did add a drain plug to it just one of those generic ones from the auto parts store to make future changes easier. I guesstimated the amount of fluid that came out and put that in, got it up to temp and then added another quart or so to get it up to the full line. Sorry I don't remember now how much I put in but someone else will surely chime in with an idea of how much

 

[BarryG]

double post

 

[kthaxton]

I would make a note on this fluid change of how long it drained, and how much you put back in. That way next time you'll have a ballpark starting point and know how much fluid to have on hand.

Measuring what comes out is helpful of course, but difficult to get accurate numbers on since it is hard to collect all of the fluid that comes out when you remove the filters and what continuously drips as you are doing the filters and prepping the pan.

 

[Cummins12V98]

Add back what you removed, either you will be right on or need to add a bit.

Do a fluid exchange, it's easy with the 68. That way you get all the fluid removed.

 

[LandShark]

Just did this service two weeks ago, for the first time. Used a suction line to remove most of the fluid thru the dip stick tube. This really helps to keep the mess down when you remove the pan. A couple more quarts will drain after you pull the filters and let drain a few hours or overnight. I measured 10.5 quarts and replaced that much. 99% of the old silicone sealant stuck to the pan side, so it was easy to use a wire wheel to clean it up. DO NOT use the wire wheel on the transmission side because of possible wire fragments being flung into the works.

I was surprised at how little gunk was in the pan for a first change at 66,000 miles with about 45,000 miles of towing a 10,500# 5th wheel. 1/4 the amount I would usually see in the '95 at 25K changes.

Getting back to the OP's original question: No, I don't think the leak is normal. My pan bottom was 100% dry prior to service, and after a couple hundred miles since servicing, it's still dry.

 

[Jim W]

Both filters are inside the transmission so, the pan needs to be dropped.

Now is the time to change to a MAG-HYTEC pan! Several reasons to do this. One is there is a magnetic drain plug to capture small metallic debris in the MAG-HYTEC pan for easier servicing. Another is the Mag-HYTEC uses a gasket instead of sealant that needs to be applied. My third reason is the extra capacity of the pan which is three quarts of trans fluid. The fourth is the AL fin pan for heat dissipation of the transmission fluid. I have had one on my truck since 2009.

 

[Strtvan76]

Use Mopar filters , I tried Amazon Baldwin 2000 filter kit and the torque converter wouldn't engage normally , the antidrain back valve failed.
There's a few threads on here about it.

 

[gsbrockman]

Do a fluid exchange, it's easy with the 68. That way you get all the fluid removed.

Wowwwwwwwwwwww.....I never saw that coming!

 

[Cummins12V98]

So if it's good enough to simply change the fluid WHY did you add the extra deep pan??????????

I know it "LOOKS COOL".