UOA: DEX-CVT ~35,000 miles 2004 Saturn VUE

[MinamiKotaro]

Quote:
DIAGNOSIS
All wear rates normal. Light concentration of water
present. Other contaminant levels acceptable. Unable
to perform viscosity testing due to excessive water
contamination.
Action: Advise check sampling procedure for possible
source of contamination. Change oil and filter(s) if not
already done. Resample next service interval to
monitor and establish wear trend.


The water, Na, and K could be from antifreeze contamination. I'm not sure how that would have happened as antifreeze has never been anywhere near my drain pan. The Si could be from sealers or assembly lubes as this was the factory fill on a brand-new trans. Of course, the Na, K, and Si could be additives. No VOA, so I don't know for sure. I wish they had been able to run a viscosity test. Nice amount of calcium and boron. TBN looks low but I'm not sure how important that is for CVT fluid, or how high it was in the first place.

The Valvoline CVT fluid will come out in another 30,000 so I'll have that for comparison. I should send in some for a VOA so I'll know how to interpret the results better.

 

[gregk24]

Take care of her, a friend of mine just had his CVT in his Vue blow.

 

[JHZR2]

Looks like you should start shopping for a radiator. There is usually a coolant to ATF heat exchanger...

 

[MolaKule]

Have them retest for glycol to determine if you have coolant leaking into the CVT fluid.

 

[Donald]

The figure (1.02) they gave you is AN which is the new term for TAN but its not TBN.

AN or TAN is usually measured for ATF and gear oils.

Oxidation and nitration are also good things to have measured.

 

[Donald]

I agree, antifreeze is mixing with the CVT fluid.

 

[MolaKule]

Originally Posted By: Donald
The figure (1.02) they gave you is AN which is the new term for TAN but its not TBN.

AN or TAN is usually measured for ATF and gear oils.

Oxidation and nitration are also good things to have measured.


Nitration tests is not needed for ATF.

 

[MinamiKotaro]

Originally Posted By: Donald
The figure (1.02) they gave you is AN which is the new term for TAN but its not TBN.

AN or TAN is usually measured for ATF and gear oils.


Thanks for pointing that out. I honestly hadn't noticed it was the acid number and not base.

 

[MinamiKotaro]

Little update:

The coolant couldn't have come from the transmission cooler, as it isn't part of the radiator. The trans cooler is a small, self-contained unit pinned to the front of the radiator. There couldn't possibly have been any fluid transfer between the two.

So, a few possibilities. 1) My oil sample was contaminated during testing or the test equipment was contaminated/not cleaned properly. 2) My drain pain was contaminated with antifreeze. 3) When we got the new CVT at 100,000 miles, the dealer filled it with used, contaminated fluid.

#3 strikes me as something that dealer might do as they had a lousy reputation for maintenance when they were Saturn and they still do now that they're Cadillac. However, #1 or #2 is probably the case.

 

[MolaKule]

I suspect number 2) is more likely.

 

[surfstar]

That trans is a #2 !

How's your warranty on it? It will just fail again (from all the stories on Saturn Fans - there's no fixing it).

 

[MinamiKotaro]

Originally Posted By: MolaKule
I suspect number 2) is more likely.


Yeah. I want to know who used it to drain antifreeze when I wasn't around.

 

[MolaKule]

Originally Posted By: MinamiKotaro
Originally Posted By: MolaKule
I suspect number 2) is more likely.


Yeah. I want to know who used it to drain antifreeze when I wasn't around.


Why would you sample oil from a drain pan anyway?

There are all kind of leftover contaminants in a drain pan.