Cergizan’s Auto and Truck Repair advises that if you see brown spots underneath your automobile toward the center, your transmission is leaking. In addition, the brown color of the transmission fluid means it needs to be changed. We will talk more about this below. In fact, let’s talk about all of the colors that transmission fluid changes throughout its lifecycle.
Red
When the transmission fluid is new, it is red. It is also translucent. At this stage, the transmission fluid does not need to be changed. It is doing an excellent job of protecting the transmission. It is also capable of helping the transmission shift gears smoothly and seamlessly. You always want to have red and translucent transmission fluid in your transmission.
Orange
This being said, orange transmission fluid is also okay. Whether the color is orange or light brown, the transmission fluid remains translucent because it is not oxidizing yet. At this stage, the transmission fluid still does not need to be changed. You can get more life out of the fluid before it needs to be flushed out of the system. Just make sure to get any transmission leak repaired right away.
Brown
Once you have driven about 30,000 miles, the transmission fluid will have started to oxidize in turn brown. This is the stage at which it needs to be changed. Oxidation means that the fluid now has air bubbles in it. Unfortunately, this makes it difficult for the fluid to protect the transmission. In addition, you will notice that the gear shifts are rougher than they normally are.
Black
If you ignore the need for a transmission fluid change, it will continue to oxidize until it turns black. In addition, the fluid will be opaque. At this stage, you are causing damage to the transmission when you drive your automobile. In addition, the transmission may start to malfunction, refuse to go into gear, or refuse to shift through the gear cycle.
Pink
Finally, the transmission fluid does not have a life stage where the color is pink. Rather, if the transmission fluid in your transmission is pink, coolant is leaking into the transmission through a breach between the two systems. Unfortunately, the pink fluid can damage the transmission seriously, so it’s crucial that you have your vehicle towed to our shop.
We are Cergizan’s Auto and Truck Repair in Chesterton, IN, and we are here to help, so call us today for a service appointment to change the transmission fluid in your automobile.