Fluid Leakage: Notes
The 42LE is a dual sump transaxle. The transaxle uses both automatic transaxle fluid (ATF) for the main sump and hypoid gear lube for the differential sump. When diagnosing a leak, it is important to distinguish which type of fluid is leaking. Factory fill ATF is dyed red, while differential hypoid oil is brown in color and has a distinctive odor.
There are two seals at the boundary of the two sumps. There is a weep hole in the right side of the transaxle case which vents the area between the two seals. See Fig 1. If oil is leaking from the weep hole, there is at least one seal leaking. Never plug the weep hole to correct a leaking condition. Plugging the weep hole could result in contaminating one or both transaxle sumps, low oil level, poor transaxle performance or transaxle failure. In order to correctly repair this type of leak the transaxle must be removed from the vehicle and both transfer shaft seals replaced.