I did a drain and fill today and apparently misread the volume of fluid that came out. I added 4 qts where I only removed 3 qts. Will this cause any issues? I noticed when I looked at my waste jug and saw it contained barely over 3 qts. Thanks.

 

Yes, you need to get the level down to the safe zone on the dip stick.

 

To check the level, I have to get up to operating temperature, park on level ground, stop engine, and check level 60 - 90 seconds later, correct?

 

It varies by car and transmission; what does your Owner's Manual say?

 

... and if you want to get the excess fluid out without pulling the drain plug again, just siphon it out of the dipstick tube using clear flexible tubing that you can get from the local hardware store.

 

In my experience (1998 4-cyl automatic) there wasn't a lot of difference in ATF level if you simply checked it cold. I would drain some out while checking that way, & get closer to the correct level before really driving around to warm it up.

 

Too bad trannies don't have fill level holes that you can open up to spill out the excess fluid above the fill level, then after the engine is all warmed up, screw the plug back in. Diffs do this ... why not trannies?

 

The 2013-14 Accord CVTs is kind of like that. But, Honda's instructions are to loosely install the level check bolt back on first while shifting through the gears.

 

That sounds like they're onto it though ... just needs a baffle to calm the sloshing fluid.

Fyi, another example in the didn't-quite-get-the-design-right dept ... the Mercedes 722.9 (7-speed) transmission also has a fill/spill tube underneath built into the pan ... however they require you to cap the hole at mid-temp, not fully warmed up -- so you have to watch the fluid temp like a hawk until just the right moment to close the plug! As if that isn't error prone