transaxle fluid level question '97 1.6

[railroad]

Hi Everyone-I'm brand new here and I need some advice.I just changed tranny fluid on my 97 corolla,4AFE engine.Chilton book says fill until level on dipstick is at the "hot"notch when the engine is warmed up.My problem is that I've already put about 2.9 qts in the transaxle and it's barely touching the bottom of the dipstick.However,when the engine is cold,such as in the morning,the level is equal to the "hot" notch instead of the cold notch.I can only put 2.6 qts or 3.3 qts depending on which transmission I have-I'm still searching the housing for that answer.Even if I put 3.3 qts it still will only maybe show the level at "cold" with the engine warmed up.Any suggestions about this would be very helpful.Does anyone else have this problem?

Thanks
Randy (railroad)