Ok guys, i need to call on the brain trust here badly.

Situation: We grenanded the planetaries/sun shell- everything at first race this year, but did not break through the case.
We are over 700 hp at the crank, 3450 lbs, ladder bar, 4.30 or 4.56 , 12 inch slick , 727.
While trannyt was being built we got a new aluminum race driveshaft, all 1350 yokes, new slicks, new dual adjustable front shocks.

We go to test last week- not good.
No leaks to start, burnout look and sounds good - no shift lag.
Stage, no leaks.
Car leaves ok, we have some tire slippage thats significant but, expected that with new tires and new dual adjustable front shocks.
Driver reports he feels a little lag on 2/3 shift, i look at data- sure enough, a little narrow rpm spike at shift point.
we adjust tire pressures, shocks, cool car, make another hit- burnout looks and sounds fine, no fluid leaks, car leaves better, 60ft drops, i see a little puff of smoke down track- crap.

Check car, can see where a tiny bit of fluid has hit header just before collector, but no fluid drips, nothing puddled anywhere.
Look at data, rpm spike at 2/3 shift is higher, still very narrow/quick, think i "might" be seeing one start on 1/2 shift.
Coo car, adjust ties, front shocks.

go to make a pass, burn out sounds good and i'm really listening to the 2/3 shift- its instant.
Pulls up to stage- dumps fluid, i pull him back, look under car- nothing dripping, pull him up, dumps fluid, i wave him off and clean up our mess ( always try to clean up any mess we make when allowed)
Go back to car- cannot find leak, cant find anything pooling, can see where its been "slung" on headers and can feel some inside bell housing.
I look at data- 2/3 shift on burnout was perfect ( no load of course) >
I check fluid again- its freaking a quart high!!!!!
Load car against converter and then check again at idle in neutral, its still high but i'm not getting the same levels two checks in a row- puzzled.
I drain almost a quart, cheak levels, right on the money, check it again, pint low, check it again, pint high- did this 6 freaking time without touching anything else, its varying +/- a pint- we idle at 12-1300.

All cleaned up underneath, i'm thinking car was somehow overfull at its splashing up the vent under negative g of stopping after burn-out- though fluid was check many times before going to track.
We go back up, burnout looks/sounds good, we stage the car, car puks fluid just as tree starts coming down, i run to hand slap the quarter panel to stop car- its gone, best 60 ft of the day, puff of smoke on other end, lost et, i check ground, its tranny fluid, clean it up, head to pits, pull data- over ran the motor at 2/3 shift to 7450, it was poppint on the rev limit at 7. its no longer a slip/spike, but a wide area overrun, driver had to lift to get shift engauged, 1/2 shift now has a definite slip in it, right at 500 rpm spike.
Load car, come home- care a danger to us, others.

Pull tranny, its definitely coming from bell housing area- pump seal good, converter to pump seal good, vent clean and dry, pressure tested converter at 100 lbs- no leaks.

So, we have a shift issue, we have a leaking issue and we have a fluid level issue .

I did notice that the seal to converter snout wear pattern does not show the converter moving in and out linearly but as if converter may be wobbling just a bit.

Other than that, we are freaking stumped!!
We loaded it up with fluid and let it sit almost upright with converter held for 24 hours- no leak.

Im not sure the leak/shift/fluid levels are all related, but not sure they aren't either.

So, long post in order to hopefully answer all the questions the brain trust would ask.

I have considered a crack in pump that high fluid level helped cover.
I have considered bad pump
I have checked everything i could think of till last night.

This evening in going to check flexplate, bolt converter to it and check runout .
We have a points race next week and, i'm honestly just freaking stumped.

so, its time to call on the think tank braintrust- thanks guys for any help, suggestions, things to check i have missed.
This is a 6.41 car.


rusty