after 20K miles I decided to flush my transmission (ATF is cheap enough, why not?) and the used fluid was the color of chocolate syrup. There was what I viewed to be a significant amount of filings on the magnetic plug bolt.. is it normal for there to be filings on the bolt the first time the bolt is removed?

Also, I've noticed that the "oil control seal" on my Hurst shifter is compromised, apparently damaged by heat. Its been allowing a small amount of fluid to get up into the shifter body and out through the spacer and leak down onto the trans housing. Also the foam insulation around the shift tower appears to have been somewhat eaten away by hot trans fluid.

I'll be contacting Hurst re: the compromised gasket, since it was broken in a manner inconsistant with improper installation.

I have some pics of the gasket and the magnetic drain plug, but no time to upload them right now, gotta shower and take Kara out on the town!

 

alot of metal shavings is normal for the first service..
I didn't service mine untill 75K...and im a mechanic and know better than that..
But yeah its normal....don't be scared!

 

Yeah, the main reason that I serviced it was because I noticed the leak around the shifter a few weeks ago.. I started thinking that the shifter was feeling notchier, but was well aware that it was likely me being paranoid. I wanted to top off the fluids in case I'd lost more fluid than it appeared, but I figured if I was going to pop the shifter out and top off the fluids, I may as well spend the extra $10 for a few more quarts of ATF and flush it.

On the bright side, while I had it all apart I re-adjusted the stop-bolts on my Hurst, and eliminated alot of rattles. I did this when it was first installed, but over the course of a year I guess they backed out slightly, and the rattles appeared so gradually over time I hadn't realized how bad they'd become. Even Kara noticed how much quieter the shifter is now!

 

yeah..you should service it every 30K just like an auto..
but thats good you fixed the noise....

 

Did you drip some lock-tite on them this time?

 

No, only because when you adjust it theres a fine line between tight enough to stop the rattle and so tight that you can't get it into gear. I wouldn't want to lok-tite them and then have them improperly adjusted. I'll just make it a habit to yank the bezel and adjust them with each oil change.