Plastic ties around the transmission

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You might want to take a quick look at the pics at this post:

Trans seeping around pan gasket plus? - iRV2 Forums

I found two plastic ties wrapped around the transmission and pan that apparently were left over from either the Ford assembly line or from Forest river.

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[Dodge Guy]

I would leave them. they may be keeping something from rubbing through on the body.

[redneck 92]

Have the same around mine too. Not sure what they are for. I have a 2013 Coachmen Encounter 34 TA.

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Update

Dried off the pan and checked all the pan bolts. All were snug; none needed tightening. Reached up to the top of the transmission case and sure enough the plastic ties were threaded through a piece of material like not quite cloth, not quite metal but more like a mesh. It is about 5 inches long and maybe 4 inches wide. It is being held in place by the plastic ties but it is not secure and I could move it around a bit and get my hand under it. It is sitting on top of a valve of some type that has a cap that is spring loaded. My guess is that this is a pressure release valve. The mesh and ties seem to be holding the cap down; the spring is weak and so merely the weight of the mesh and plastic ties would hold it down.

I’m going to pull the dog house tomorrow since I can see the inside of the dog house from under the coach I should be able to see this valve and the temp cover by looking down and back with the dog house off.

I already know Ford does not install such an affair or so they say. Tomorrow I will call Coachmen to see if maybe they put this on the transmission during the assembly process.

At this point I’m guessing that if the valve has been held shut pressure in the transmission case is probably forcing some fluid out of other orifices when it gets hot.

I’ll let the board know what coachmen says and I do plan to remove the contraption to see if that stops my seepage.

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[Roll]

Haven't been able to talk to Coachmen, (Jon V in service). Coachmen probably needs 4 people taking calls as I am sure one man can't handle all the inquiries or issues.

I did talk to Ford again, this time with a clearer explanation of the problem. The Ford tech agrees the mat on top of the transmission is to protect the valve, (that is mounted on top of the transmission case) while the stripped chassis is transported. He insists that Ford does not put the bands and mat on the transmission but said that it is likely the transport company does to prevent water from entering the transmission while they are piggy backed to the Forest River production plant. (The chassis would be completely open to the elements while being transported).

Also I looked more closely at the pictures I have taken and sure enough now that I know what to look for I can see the matt clearly at the top of the transmission. I can also see that the passenger side of the transmission up near the top where the valve is located is covered in a coat of transmission oil. The leak is definitely coming from the top of the transmission, not the pan, which I suspected at first.

I suggest anyone with a Coachmen on a Ford chassis take a look underneath and see if you have the bands going around the pan and if so, cut them off and pull the small piece of matt off, so that the valve can operate properly and so you don't lose transmission oil.

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First pic: Drivers side, follow the band on the left side up and you will see the white piece of matting the band holds in place at the top of the transmission case.

Second Pic: Passengers side, follow the band on the right up and you can also see a bit of the matting but you should see how wet the side of the case is even including the plastic wire conduit running along the top of the case.