first year I put my Trans Am in storage, did all the right things, covered up the exhaust tips, car cover, put fuel stabilizer in it, changed the oil, brake and transmission fluid, inflated the tires to 42psi and put 2 layers of Styrofoam underneath each tire to avoid flatspotting. even put a layer of plastic on the storage floors concrete for a vapor barrier. Was over at storage the other day checking the car out, looked underneath and WTF, I saw 5 or 6 drips of oil on the plastic, really wasn't too concerned about that after all its been sitting for 3 months, but then my attention turned to the 2"x3" puddle of red fluid (transmission), thing is I never had a transmission fluid leak before I put it in storage. Would having a car sit for 3 months in a enclosed storage do something to the seals? Thanks

 

Man, I wouldn't think 3 months would be long enough for a portion of a seal to get totally dry, then crack....then that crack spread enough to leak through the still moist portion of the seal........all the while being under NO PRESSURE. Just gravity.

I still say.....an engine/tranny and its fluids as well as other fluids (brakes) need to be run through it and warmed up a little bit....and the car moves a little bit like a mile or two if possible.......every 30 days or so. FOR BEST RESULTS.

I know there's people that store cars for very long periods with no problems....well good for them......ALL CARS ARE NOT CREATED EQUAL. Some are just tighter than others.

....or....someone might have the keys to your storage and to your car...and are having a blast.........lol

.

 

Definitely not true at all. Moving them only for a mile or two, and/or warming them up only a little bit is always a bad idea. If you're going to start the engine, you need to get it fully warmed up for best results, otherwise you're just leaving unnecessary moisture in the oil. Better to leave the car/engine sit without being run at all than to just drive it for a mile in cold winter temps and then shut it off.

I know your FL climate is different, but up here in the north we have periods where outside temps are stupid cold for sometimes an entire winter. This last February the average temp for the entire month was only 14°F. Under these conditions, you have to drive a car many miles to get even the coolant warmed up fully, and the oil takes even longer.

A lot of this has to do with how the car has been used/maintained its whole life. If it already has a bunch of miles and all original gaskets, and then you let it sit for a long period and then drive it again, sometimes leaks and issues develop.

For 17 years my '98 Z28 has sat every winter, 4-6 months depending on how bad the season has been. I've said this many times before, but my daily driver '02 Z28 developed far more leaks/weeps/drips/etc. from being driven than the garage queen '98 has ever developed from sitting, even though the '02 was several years newer. It's a myth that limited use will cause [properly prepped] cars to fall apart at an accelerated rate during seasonal storage, as driving a car daily will cause just as much, or more, wear and deterioration over the years of heat cycling and general use.

As for the issue at hand:

Above, you mentioned changing the trans fluid right before storage and now you suddenly have a leak. My guess is that something wasn't properly torqued after the fluid change, and over the cold winter temps the gasket allowed excessive leakage. I'm assuming this is an auto trans? Have you checked the pan bolts for proper torque since doing the fluid change? I've always had to go back and re-torque trans pan bolts after one or two heat cycles when changing the pan gasket.

 

yes, it is an auto trans, it was like 2 days between the time that work was done and the time it was in storage, and has not moved a millimeter in 3 months, mainly because...
1) I have the storage key
2) I and I alone know the passcode to get into the storage facility
3) I removed the battery
4) The impressions that the tires left on the Styrofoam were only 1 set, and the impressions were crisp, I would have known if they'd been moved or repositioned.
and I'm happy to say hopefully the temps next week ALL week, highs will be in upper 40s so you all know what that means
car is waking from its winter slumber next week. And then I will be investigating the trans leak.

 

finally got a pic

 

FWIW my car didn't leak anything until it sat for the first winter I had it, and the rear main started leaking after. It was always parked over winter when the previous guy had it, but I guess I got to be the lucky one to watch it start leaking I guess.

Things age I guess. Hopefully it is just something stupid like the pan bolts are a little loose.

 

Its fairly typical for the fluid to drain out of the converter and back into the pan when it's been sitting for a while, then fluid leaks out of the dipstick tube seal since the fluid level is higher than normal. I've seen it a happen many times.

 

Don't feel too bad, I had a minor rear main leak on my '02 as well but it had nothing to do with sitting as I was driving the car daily at the time. It never got worse than a few drops here and there, so I just left it. Even for the last winter when the car sat, the leak never got any worse.

I'm guessing the OP's issue has to do with trans pan bolts, as the fluid had been changed just two days before storage and they often need a re-torque after a heat cycle or two. Or perhaps the bolts were over torqued already and have damaged the gasket, as this is not hard to do by accident.

The leaking dipstick tube issue is more common with TH350s using the older style O-ring seal tube, I've had that problem myself. But it shouldn't do this unless the seal has gone bad, and then a new seal will prevent it from happening again (unless the tube or bore in the trans case is damaged.) Some have converted over to newer tubes with top hat style seals for better results as the O-rings can sometimes be tough to get a proper seal with.

I've never had a leak in this location with a 700-R4/4L60E though. But it's certainly true that as the converter drains back the fluid level will rise and if that tube seal is compromised it can definitely leak.