98 Town & Country tranny issues

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I purchased a 98 T&C a couple of weeks ago. It has 220K miles on it. It has a 3.8L with a 41TE transmission. While coming home we stopped and filled up with gas. As my wife was pulling away from the pump I noticed a puddle of AFT about the size of a saucer. When we got home I popped the hood to have a look and found that there was ATF puddling on top of the transmission in the honeycomb part. A lot of the "honeycomb chambers" were full of ATF. I wondered how this fluid got there. I researched 41TE's on the internet and found no explainations as to how the fluid got there.

I then cleaned the engine bay and undercarriage with a degreaser in order to see if leakage could be detected. I also purchased a solenoid and replaced that. Then I tried my best to fill the transmission to the correct level. First thing in the morning I would pull the transmission dipstick and there would be nothing on it. The I would drive the van for fifteen minutes to warm the fluid up. Placed the van in my carport-nice level surface- and I could not read the stick. Sometimes I would pull it out and there would not be anything on it. Other times the fluid registered well above the hot full mark. I tried to level the fluid as correctly as I could and let it set for a couple of days to see if there was a slow transmission fluid leak. It never leaked.

I took a 50 mile trip in it and when I got home I popped the hood and found again the "honeycomb chambers" on top of the transmission were filled with fluid.

This morning I took pictures of the transmission and went to my local Chrysler dealership. I talked with a service rep. who took my pictures to his mechanic and they talked about my situation. The mechanic stated the leak must be coming from
1. the dipstick--due to overflowing from too much fluid in the transmission
2. the shift cable might have a leak in it.--no way, there is no fluid in that cable--
3. the speed sensor--could be, but it sits lower than the "honeycomb chambers"

I was not impressed with their reasoning except for #3. It might be plausible.

I think the problem lies within the bell housing. I think the front oil pump seal has gone bad, is leaking fluid, and the torque converter is throwing the oil into the top of the inner part of the bell housing and a threaded hole is letting the fluid escape.

Also after I pulled the transmission I felt the shafts coming out of the transmission. I noticed there was about a 1/4" side to side play with the smaller of the two shafts. Is this normal? If not, is the transmission due for a rebuild? Can anyone answer the question of where the oil in the "honeycomb chambers" is coming from? I inspected the bell housing and there were no cracks in it. I inspected the torque converter and there were no cracks or wear marks on it.


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Help with this problem would be very appreciated.

thanks
terry

That sure looks familiar. 4-5 years ago I had the same fluid puddles on the top of the tranny and as you have already suspected, the fluid is/was leaking past the pump seal then past a sensor (I want to say it was the crank sensor). Mine was leaking like that for several years until it got to the point I was adding half a quart every other week. $700 got the tranny out and back in with a new forward pump seal and bushing. No leaks for a couple years then the tranny to engine case seal started leaking a bit. I am again living with a tranny leak but still no fluid up top.