Cannot Get The Transmission Pan Off!

[Gumart1]

Well, I've tried everything I can think of. Rubber mallet, scraper, utility knife, hammer with block of wood, sharp kitchen knife at various angles. Bolts are all removed. Pan will not budge. Since I've been trying for a couple of days when I have a few minutes, I've managed to drain over 4 quarts!

I know many people have reported problems getting it off. Some have nearly damaged their pans and given up. Is there any trick or tips for removal? The angle is really tough to get to with the car on ramps. I hate working under jack stands so that is not an option for me. Thanks!

[ko90ls]

did you double check for all the screws? i used a flat head screw driver on ramps. i hit the four corners then removed the upper piping. ahhhh! it may be the upper pipe tube. try pulling on the bottom tube. that's prob what's stuck.

Good Luck!

[Sweet95LS400]

Mine was like that too, I just took it to my mechanic and let them deal with it. They got it off no problem and replaced the filter. No leaks or problems.

[blake918]

I'd try something heavier than a rubber mallet. We used a hammer and a chisel (and maybe an assortment of flat screwdrivers as well, it's been a while.) to remove the pan on my car. We had to hammer pretty hard to break the pan loose. ;)

[Gumart1]

It's off! Thanks for the suggestions. Blake, I was afraid to use the big guns, but the 3 solid hits to the chisel and it came right off. It also came off easier by hitting at the corners as Ko90ls suggested too. Pan looks pretty good by the way. Very few minute silver particles but 1 larger piece (maybe 1/4"). Fluid was still mostly cherry red and smelled fine. Screen looks slightly dirty and since I have a replacement kit I will be changing it vs. cleaning it. I hope that this plus cleaning the solenoids will help with a slightly hard downshift from 3 to 2 or 2 to 1 when the engine is cold (not sure exactly on the gear). Thanks Blake for the photo of the solenoids. My location is slightly different and I'll attach a photo later. :)

[lenore]

The 1/4 inch debris is not what I would consider normal. But hopefully you got the bad debris out. Maybe another fluid change in 3k would give you some insurance to see if more big stuff is there. Good luck. Oh by the way was there magnets in the bottom of the pan. If not they could be a good addition.

[chubyball]

Gumart1, can you pass along the photo? I was going to remove my pan too, I plan to replace with ATF Mobil 1 synthetic after remove the pan off. My car is 1996 LS400 with 160K, does the trany locate the same as yours? Let me know thanks.