[realityguy]

Okay..Great Astro/Safari Knowledge Guys!!..(Hmm ..where is the at little bowing imoje guy...?)
In the past when I had to work 50-60 hours a week I had to take my van(1990 AWD) to the Greased-Up-Jiffy-Lube-Monkeys..
and it appears one of them boogered up my top fill plug head..can't get it out.The bottom one is usable and free(now).
I'm wondering if I can fill through what appears to be a vent plug?(top white circle,,top hose appears to go up into the van rib and stops there) or whatever the black electrical plug one is(by the white circle again below the other..(Vehicle speed sensor?..I haven't removed it or unscrewed yet to see what is behind it)..either one I promise to only add the 2 quarts or capacity!
I know it hasn't been changed out for over 15 years.
My other option might be to pump through the bottom hole under pressure(and a quick plug screwed back in..maybe adding a few ounces and catching/checking how much spilled at the same time..make sure it isn't over the amount needed.
I know it needs to be changed!
The original fill plug..it doesn't hang out beyond the case so I can't grab it with something.The square indent in the head is way out of square..I tried using pb blaster..and heat about 5-6 times..3/8" short extension and 16" torque wrench,won't catch with enough pressure against it ..I'm reluctant to drill it out and get shavings in the case,etc..etc..
I have a small liquid pump that I can get pretty much the correct amount in through a small tube if one of the two spots marked is an option.

 

[realityguy]

Thanks..what I'll probably do..catch what falls out and pump back in the equal amount..until it's right. I'll probably die before I have to do it again..
In the meantime,I've been browsing through my Chilton book and came across this near the beginning:

Certainly the guy has never owned an Astro..and never laid prone down the middle under a half-jacked up vehicle..looking up,dirt and crap falling in your eyes..lying on a gravel driveway on a plastic tarp (tarp being too short that your hair is stuck in pinecones and pitch) and trying to reef on and get some kind of pressure on a torque wrench at both ends at the same time on a plug head someone else stripped out..and it's 37 degrees outside..AND YER 72! Oh yeah..that's ENJOYABLE!🙃🙄 ..Someone told me this is "retirement"!
I think it's time to switch from coffee to BEER! LOL!

 

[realityguy]

I had to make a quick run to P-n-P for some speakers but some of the set were of course riveted in and I didn't bring a drill..but I got a replacement BW plug for that and a set of round foglamps someone had set up on a safari as backups..easy mount to the bottom of a bumper.I'm going to take a dremel down under mine..weaken the plug sides some and set it up to come out with a large flat screwdriver or something..I'm not drilling all the way through the plug or dinging the threads in the case..keep the metal shavings out of it.
The plug I did get..looks like a newer one,good shape,has some kind of Chrome plate...and whoever put it in there didn't torque the hell out of it..So..I'll fill the TC the normal way ..
I had planned to look at the specs/capacity;why I was looking in the Chilton book to see how accurate they were in that one.The Chilton seems to be more accurate than the other Haynes on,.but maybe not as much as the GM books of course.No need to know now.. I have plenty Dex3.. Thanks..

 

[realityguy]

I tried getting the plug out with different things,finally cutting a slot across the little bit hanging out.Trying to unscrew the plug bent my Makita grinder blade changer into a pretzel and a harder file shattered.I checkd that top vent spot you mentioned(was going to gravity flow from above in a pan near the driver's seat.)..doesn't seem to be much room for even getting a tube in there through that vent hole.I think it might have taken a long time.

I fiddled with that fill plug for several hours yesterday..using Dremels to keep the plug hole square,adding shims alongside the extension end,cutting a slot across for using a steel flat bar(my Makita grinder wrench and a file) and Crescent wrench for more leverage. and other things..just not worth messing with in the long run.It's really stuck in there! I did drill some tiny holes in the plug by the threads with the dremel to get some PB in there also,besides heating it with the propane torch several times,,still wouldn't budge.

Today..I drained the TC fluid out through the bottom drain plug.I kept track of how much came out and replaced it with an equal amount of fluid from the O'Reilly quart bottles,using just a top cap of a 16 oz Titebond glue bottle(the cap screwed on the O'Reilly bottle also),nozzle cut off to fit my 10" or so of 3/8" ID of rubber house that fits inside the drain hole(wrapped with a little rag to make it snug)..and screwed the plug in quick when changing the O'Reilly bottle after squeezing the fluid in..over a pan to keep track of how much I had lost between changes.

It didn't take long holding the bottle up by the floor upside down and squeezing the heck out of it and I capped the TC drain off with a new plug with fresh pipe dope on it(other than the one I used in and out) after the final fluid that was needed. I lost about 4 oz with the changes..but ended up with pretty close to the same amount I took out.I had planned a bit extra in the second bottle for losing some,figuring if I needed to take out a little,that would be easier.just loosen the TC plug to allow some to drip out. It worked out fine but a little messy.

For now,I set up a slightly larger bolt with the head cut off about 3" long,shaved on the 4 sides to fit snug to weld into the old plug in the case and I keep it in the cup holder above the glove box,along with another correct fill cap.When I run into my neighbor with a full shop and welders,I'll have him weld that into the old cap in the case,remove the bad one, and replace it with the correct plug. In the meantime, it can't leak!

The important thing..it CAN be done that way,pumped from the bottom..It's do-able as long as you keep track of what came out and match that amount.(about 1-3/4 qts). AND the best part is..I'm done under that $^%^%$% van for now!..The last few days I installed my new Gas-Adjust-Shocks also..when Mother Nature let me work on that project.

 

[realityguy]

Yeah..you really don't wanna void your warranty at 33 years old!