i checked the fluid today, i didn't have the dipstick so i went to home depot and bough a length to steel cable and it went in perfect. i was surprised to see that the fluid looked clean. it had a yellow brownish color. i couldn't verify if it had any metal shavings int it. it smelled funny but i don't have the new fuid yet to compare it. i ordered everything i need to get an AT oil change.
i was reading through hundreds of posts on this site and others and found out that somone olse had the same problem
his turned out to be the control unit ECU . it tells the transmission when to shift (these cars have an adaptive shift alogarithm). the problem resulted when the oil leached into the board shorting it out. it seems to be a common problems among V8's equiped with the five speed transmisson.
does anyone know where this board is located. and is there any way to fix it without having to replace the board and harness!?