I bought a 96 blazer, and noticed a rusty tube and dip stick. I bought a new tube and dip stick and a factory service manual.

It's useless on the tube replacement.

I saw the problem many times while searching the forum, but only 1 post to fix the problem by replacement (plus 1 post on cleaning the tube).

The post says basically to lower the trans. So I asked somebody I know who said he's replaced the transmission oil filler tube on a few blazers by raising the body about 3 inches (to get at the trans tube bolt).

I found the section about body mount replacement in 2b-21 (to see how to raise the body).

Anybody ever do this? Do I just remove the front 6 bolts, loosen the rear 2, and jack the front of the body up a few inches? Nothing else to be careful of? Any guidance or suggestions on this?

Thanks.

 

you can get at that bolt just by lowering the transmission. i just did a trans the other day. if you take the cross member out and support the trans with a jack and lower it down a bit you can get it at with along extension and a swivel at the end but i did not remove the actual tube. i just kinda let it hang there so i dont know if its impossible to come back in.

if you do have to remove the entire trans or lift the body, forget all that. just bend, break whatever you have to do to get the old one out there and buy a flexable tubed trans dipstick tube. when i put a v8 into a s10 thats what i did, i couldnt get a stock tube in there for anything

 

You shouldn't need to lift the body but it would make it a lot easier. The real problem is getting it lined up so it goes in easily. It is actually so hard to get in/out that I don't even bother with the bolt that holds it to the bellhousing. The only times I've done it has been when the transmission is at an angle. I think it would be easier if you tip it to remove the bolt, then lift it to pull and install the tube. Then you can tip it again to install the bolt.

 

Thanks for the help.

I've done a lot of things for first time in the past 2 months with a factory service manual, but I've never yet lifted a body or tilted the engine/trans by lowering the trans.

Before I do either I thought that it would be smart to ask y'all who have done this and replaced the trans tube. It's always best to read "be careful of ...." instead of me messing something up and hearing "well, you shouldn't have done...".

I'll report back later this week on how it went.

 

I just lifted my body on a 2000 blazer during a engine swap it is not easy at all. If you lift to much plan on breaking stuff. Mine was just 6 bolt. But everything that chevy attaches to the frame is what you have to be careful of. I would just by a flex tube and put it in.

 

also i forgot to add body bolts dont always come out especially if you live in a area where they salt. i bought a k5 with around 30,000 miles on it and 3 of them broke off in the floor.

 

I've put off on doing this, but now I have to get it done.

I found another post about with the same suggestion about lowering the trans

https://blazerforum.com/forum/engine.../?ref=esp-link

but I don't understand. I can see that I'll only be able to lower only a little over an inch at the rear before it hits the rear frame cross member (see center of pic). That will only pivot it a fraction of an inch up front where the tube is.

 

I'm just posting a follow up. Hopefully it will help someone else out...

I could not figure out how to remove the bolt from under the vehicle. So, I removed the distributor (following the FSM instructions), and removed the dip stick tube bolt from over the top. Also temp removed the heater hoses to give me more space. It was tough but just so the next person knows that it is possible to do the job from the top (under the hood vs under the vehicle). If I remember correct, the bolt is a 5/8. I had to hold the combo wrench in my palm with a finger holding it on the bolt head, and with my other hand use the pipe from my bottle jack hooked onto the open end part of the combo wrench to break it free.

 

i had no luck installing the tube after a trans swap, i forgot to put it in as the tranny was being installed, so that i did was cut the tube 4" from the bottom and used that piece. cut another 4" from the bottom of the now upper portion, so in effect i removed a 4" section of tube, then installed the upper half on the bell housing and connected the to halves together with a piece of heater hose with two clamps.. works like a champ,

 

Just make sure you got the tube to end up at the correct overall length. That will affect the placement of the dipstick and you could end up running a fluid level that is higher or lower than required. I've had the converter go in and out of lockup with a low fluid level and I believe foaming happens under high flid levels. What side effects that causes I'm not exactly sure.