[cmalibu73]

I found another eurovan for sale but im skeptical of buying it. The van looks very good inside and outside and the engine works perfectly, so does the rest of the van, but the transmission....
Im having trouble deciding whether or not I should buy this van. Its a '93 eurovan MV with 73K miles and has an automatic. The tranny shifts smoothly and seems to work very well, but after looking at the dipstick, I noticed the fluid was black

.... is this fatal?? If I were to change the fluid after I bought it, would it still be a problem? Should I keep looking for another eurovan?
Thanks
Nate

 

[J_Westy]

Re: need some help (cmalibu73)

Maybe not fatal... If it doesn't smell burnt (really stinky), it could just be time for a fluid change. If you check the forums out there, you find there have been issues with this trans, so you may want to have extra attention paid to the trans when you have it inspected.

 

[splitmeister]

Re: need some help (cmalibu73)

The fluid being black just means it hasnt been changed in ages.
If you stick your nose 3" from the dipstick and it smells burnt, then you should be OK.
If you pull the dipstick out and you smell the burnt fluid from 2' away, then there is probably some not-good stuff going on in there.
I posted in a previous thread about how the EV automtics can be filled with the later VW Gold fluid (made for the sealed transmissions). USe this fluid and change it yearly, and you should have some luck with the trans.