Thanks Tom3 for replying.
I took a chance and pulled the transaxle, what have I got to loose, was easier than I expected.
The rubber tube is a vent tube. It has a ball bearing in side that is spring loaded. When the pressure builds the ball bearing is force up to vent the hydro unit, this also gets the air bubles out after filling. The tube is pressure connected to a hard plastic fitting that goes into the gromet. You just wiggle and pull and it will come out of the gromet. I pressed a funenl into the hole in gromet and filled with 20W50 oil ( you have to go slow as the oil will bubble letting the air out). Filled completely to top. Reinserted the rubber tube, installed the transaxle back in mower. When started to move mower, it was like it did not go in reverse but was able to go forward slowly. Finally got it moving and took off up a hill, slowly, but the the more it ran the faster it would go. (this was getting the air out. Ran several times up and down hill and tried reverse. It almost threw me off as it moved really fast backwards, best I ever seen it do. Forward and reverse was faster than when new. Have a new mower now!
This is a 2002, 45 in cut Hydrostatic mower. I bought it Sept 2001 new. Has been a grate machine. It is a 2000-002B model. Thanks for your input. Hope this helps someone else also.