Technical Gurgling sound when engaging gear at the start of the day

[flashbang]

I noticed a gurgling sound that starts when shifting from P to R/D, after starting the car first thing in the morning. The gears also tend to drag a bit until I've travelled a distance and the car is warmed up. After that gear shifts normally and there's no more gurgling sound.

Is this normal or should I get the gearbox looked at? The transmission fluid is a bit brown but still above the low mark.

 

[Brendan W]

I'm not familiar with Fiat autoboxes. However for me the fluid should be bright and clear. Cloudy fluid will cause all sorts of problems like harsh or difficult shifting. The first thing I would try is a fluid change. Sometimes the first change goes cloudy again fairly quickly because it's flushing out dirt and the benefit only comes on the second change.

 

[Ziggy122]

if the fluid is crappy - it wont flow properly

You may find - dropping the fluid and refilling it - drive it for a week or so

Drop the fluid out again - Change the box filter and refill and it should be okay

Btw are you 100% sure its the gearbox gurgaling, and not coolant flowing around the engine/ heatmatrix as thats the biggest culprit

Ziggy

 

[flashbang]

if the fluid is crappy - it wont flow properly

You may find - dropping the fluid and refilling it - drive it for a week or so

Drop the fluid out again - Change the box filter and refill and it should be okay

Btw are you 100% sure its the gearbox gurgaling, and not coolant flowing around the engine/ heatmatrix as thats the biggest culprit

Ziggy

Hard to tell which, but it comes up only after engaging gear from a cold start. Gurgling sound will disappear after 5 mins of driving.

 

[flashbang]

I'm not familiar with Fiat autoboxes. However for me the fluid should be bright and clear. Cloudy fluid will cause all sorts of problems like harsh or difficult shifting. The first thing I would try is a fluid change. Sometimes the first change goes cloudy again fairly quickly because it's flushing out dirt and the benefit only comes on the second change.

Might be time to bring it in for a fluid change then.

 

[Brendan W]

Might be time to bring it in for a fluid change then.

Flush and change won't do any harm if the fluid is gone brown. You could do a bit of research and take it on yourself. They can be tricky but there are options like doing partial drains and top ups over time to achieve the same end.

Gurgling at motor start up is usually air in the heater matrix and can be a sign of , well just air or something more serious like headgasket problems. generally you hear it immediately the motor fires up behind the heater controls.

I seem to recall you had overheating problems and slow heat up times and a possible slow coolant leak a while back. How is everything behaving at the needle now?

 

[flashbang]

Flush and change won't do any harm if the fluid is gone brown. You could do a bit of research and take it on yourself. They can be tricky but there are options like doing partial drains and top ups over time to achieve the same end.

Gurgling at motor start up is usually air in the heater matrix and can be a sign of , well just air or something more serious like headgasket problems. generally you hear it immediately the motor fires up behind the heater controls.

I seem to recall you had overheating problems and slow heat up times and a possible slow coolant leak a while back. How is everything behaving at the needle now?

Well technically it only gurgles when gear is engaged, if I start it up and leave it in P there is no sound.

I have looked around and unable to locate the slow leak. As there is a limited lifespan for this car (10 months left) based on government regulations, it wouldn't be worth it to undertake any major repair/inspection. Hence I check the coolant level weekly and if necessary top it up to the max mark with water. The temperature gauge hasn't acted up ever since - rises up nicely to the middle mark after some driving and stays there throughout.

 

[Brendan W]

The coolant system and gearbox are connected. There is a heat exchanger and they have been known to leak resulting in coolant appearing in the gearbox fluid or vice versa. It might just be possible that if it is leaking that putting the gearbox in drive is sending ripples through the coolant system - I'm guessing