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Automotive Fluids--Checking Fluids Show host Trisha Hessinger demonstrates how to check automotive fluids. From "Car Care Workshop" episode DCC-105

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Figure G

Checking Transmission Fluid

Automatic-transmission fluid must be checked with the engine running and warmed up.

1. The vehicle should be parked on level ground. Let the engine idle with the parking brake engaged and your foot on the brake. Move the gear selector through each gear. This ensures that the fluid is circulating through the pumps, providing an accurate reading.

2. Put the vehicle in park, but leave the brake engaged and the engine running.

3. The transmission dipstick is located near the rear of the engine. Pull the dipstick from its tube, and wipe it clean with a rag. Insert the dipstick fully, and remove it again to take a reading.

4. When the transmission is warm, the level should be in the safe zone between the hash marks (figure G). The hash marks usually designate pints. For more details, check your owner's manual.

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RESOURCES :

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Trouble-Free Car Care
Author: Dan Ramsey
ISBN: 0028635833
Alpha Books

How Cars Work
Author: Tom Newton
ISBN: 0966862309
Publisher: Black Apple Press

Auto Repair for Dummies
Author: Deanna Sclar
ISBN: 0764550896

Saturday Mechanic
Model: 0688178081
Author: Popular Mechanics Staff (Editor)
(2001)

To order this title from Amazon.com, click here.

William Morrow Books / Hearst Books
Website: www.harpercollins.com