Mayday--tranny mayday

[vigman]

The truck has been sitting for a bit till I changer filter in the tranny & 5-6 quarts in the tranny. I have put MAYBE 100 miles since purchase. Today I find this !

Is my " thinking " correct.. that the tranny cooler internal of the radiator has a defect.. cracked and coolant is getting into the tranny?

I do not see the same stuff in the overflow… BUT it has a very viscous feel to it..


We are draining the torque converter now….

Thought's?

 

[vigman]

Spoke with my transmission man.. and he said the Yoo-Hoo syndrome ( and I'm old enough to get that ) … New Radiator , coolant, 20 qts of fluid ( the cheap shit ) for initial flush…. coming up.. Hold the mayo…. Well better now then another 200 miles...

 

[vigman]

Lines cleaned , torque converter drained, pan out , cleaned,Magnet removed , BLACK GOO removed. Oveflow cleaned ,radiator In ,coolant going in, about 16 of 17 quarts of ATF accounted for … new stuff going in ( Crossing fingers ) …...

 

[Mediamonkey11]

Sounds like you're doing it right! Certainly cheaper than a new transmission.

 

[vigman]

ANNNNNNNNNDDDDDDDDDDD VICTORY!
No YOO HOO on the stick..
Shifts are smoother..
and NOW I have a REALLY REALLY FIRM upper hose!
Which proves I was leaking somewhere!!

Radiator couplings were NOT TIGHT from Plastic tank to internal cooler.
But guess what….. it was a new Auto zone radiator that came out ..
And the very same one went in..
Can you say lifetime warranty with a SPARE?

 

[ks10308]

Leave the transmission alone. Ford doesn't have good transmissions. From past experience I learned to leave the transmission alone and just add ATF as needed. I drove lincolns and mercurys for years and I learned that if you mess with the transmission in a ford, it will fail very prematurely. In 1997, I went to the best transmission repair shop in NYC. He cleaned and redid the whole thing, perfect. 10,000 miles later, the transmission failed totally. this wasnt the first time that kind of thing happened

 

[vigman]

Really.. So your opinion is to just drive it with the coolant leak , with contaminated ATF..?

I cannot afford a NEW transmission, and the radiator MUST be replaced... So the drain & refill is the best ( and only option ).As far as Ford having "NOT GOOD" transmissions.. I beg to differ....ANY transmission will fail with improper or NO service. And I would much rather have this one than none at all.

 

[bcmaxx]

Leave the transmission alone. Ford doesn't have good transmissions. From past experience I learned to leave the transmission alone and just add ATF as needed. I drove lincolns and mercurys for years and I learned that if you mess with the transmission in a ford, it will fail very prematurely. In 1997, I went to the best transmission repair shop in NYC. He cleaned and redid the whole thing, perfect. 10,000 miles later, the transmission failed totally. this wasnt the first time that kind of thing happened

This is the usual cause of the transmissions going sour. lack of maintenance and attention. Don't let your bad tranny repair change your views on proper maintenance.

 

[FordandPolaris]

I did a trans flush fluid change at 200k due to the trans issue not shifting into drive and 30,000 miles later it is still running fine. The best shops still make mistakes. Its all about keeping the transmission cool. External trans cooler makes a world of difference.

 

[vigman]

Cooler does equal longer transmission life.. by a pretty big order.....
Day 2 things are still LOOKIN GOOD~

 

[aircargoo]

unless theres a PROBLEM...i agree,leave it alone!! i would like to change my fluid but i just add. i know mech that do these trans everyday..i mean everyday...only ford. they rebuild ect. HERES THE TRUTH......when you open a trans that hasnt been cleaned in oer 100,00 miles or ever. the new fluid goes in...k. the new fluids makes like bubbles,get like soap,suds....not alot. and in time....thats what kills trans oil change like 5000-10,000 miles later. i was told to disconnect line....drain under 2 quarts and mix in new fluid in.....still haent done it...lol. seems like good idea but i feel itll be hard getting line back in SOMETIMES.....been there...after couple misses on threads your screwed!!!

 

[Mediamonkey11]

You are correct in that if a trans has been neglected it is not wise to shock the trans by changing it all at once, especially in older mg transmissions. That is not to say that either are junk, however you may have info that leads to these and others being slightly more susceptible to failure due to prior owner retardation and laziness.

That being said, judging by the current condition of fluid, if not totally burnt and nasty, it has been proven time and time again by members if this forum that it is perfectly safe to do a full change/flush, it's impossible to argue that. Sure there may be some exceptions and outliers but as a general rule, these transmissions are pretty stout if they haven't been abused.

In the op's case, I'd say it was certainly a safe bet to try a change, considering it's a $200 +/- gamble when he could have thrown down $3k for a rebuild not knowing if that small amount of money may have done the trick which it sure seems to be doing. Plus, I'd rather spend a little now and limp along in anticipation of possibly having to spend a lot while being able to plan for the worst rather than having to make a split second decision with little to no research or trial involved.

Op, I think ya dun good.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[vigman]

OK so update….

The YOO HOO in the glass jug ( old fluid sample ) didn't separate…. Still blended to perfection…

So I think coolant in the ATF does qualify as a "PROBLEM".
Along with a leak in the radiator tank….

So here's the long & short..
I understand that all new FRESH ATF in a high milage transmission is not a good thing.
The detergent will remove what is left of the friction material from the driven discs.

That being said, the " work " done on the truck was no paperwork to back it up.. just physical evidence… heads. new radiator, some new hoses ( coolant & vac ).
trans " service ".

BUT there is a lot of AFU under the hood A LA pick your part parking lot repairs & rube gold bergs.
But every day she gets some LOVE and is responding..

The REAL choices here were
a) Leave it alone and completely LUNCH the tranny. ( not really an option ) !
b) TRY the flush and cross my fingers knowing full well it MIGHT not work for long.

WATER and coolant are not good lubricants, nor is water compressible… and would have just F ed the " core " at least this way I MIGHT have a rebuildable core IF the tranny fails.

I bought this truck of a GREASY used car salesman.. and I had looked at at least 10 from Craig's iist , local auto auctions, and a few PRE OWNED "STEALERSHIPS".
This one … ( at the time ) WAS the " pick of the litter ".

I needed a truck that week, It was $2600 OTD and a West coast all it's life car.. zero rust.. no accidents according to physical inspection on the rack.. not Car Faux.
( well except a MINOR front end 5 mph kinda thang ) due to some of the brackets and lenses having tabs & such broken off and re attached with J & B weld.

The "SELLER" also stated he had done a drop the pan " service " and the fluid was clean.. BUT when the pan was removed there was a 150k worth of black death on the pan magnet.

This is not the daily driver, this is the haul stuff round when needed.

Other choices were:
My wrecking yard guy $650.00 installed 4 mo warranty
OR
My Tranny rebuild guy ( has done 4 for me i the past and TOTALLY stands behind his work ~ 2600 IF I had a good core…

So my choice was obvious.. CHEAP CAR, SIMPLE CHEAP FIX FIRST.

And the cooling system needed another flush anyway

THe truck dipstick is still clean ( after 5 miles )..
The truck shifts SMOOTH and grabs hard..

There is still a LONG way to go to hit perfection ( for this vehicle ) .. but I'm retired, got LOT's Of time for SWEAT EQUITY.

Mike

 

[vigman]

Well everyone who warned me can put your I told you so hat on…..
Yesterday I backed into the driveway and left a trail of clean tranny fluid…

It looks like the torque converter seal has started leaking big time…
With my son looking under the car, and the truck slightly nose down ( and the hot day outside, truck up to temp ) If I go into drive ( E brake on ) and give it a bit O gas…. drip drip drip… go into reverse more of a POURING fluid out…
Still shifts beautiful...

So off to get quotes

 

[jlo82585]

bad luck man, I hope its something simple... In my experience I have never had a transmission fail me after servicing it, in fact after I buy a new vehicle one of the first things I do is replace the trans filter because it is often the single most neglected part on services. The worst I have experienced is after changing the filter and fluid in my 2002 expedition I thought I had screwed it up bad as it started shifting differently, after taking it to a shop they confirmed I just fixed it and it was shifting like it was supposed to all along, so time will tell if this post makes a liar out of me..

 

[vigman]

Well It was a logical progression…. so if it's just a reseal $825 full rebuild 22~2600
I will not go backwards and put another used tranny in…
I trust my guy to do the right thing and yesterday off it went..
SHOULD be done Wednesday evening...

 

[vigman]

Front seal GONE hard as a rock...Well the inside was very clean, no HARD parts needed... but all the clutch packs were almost gone.. due to YOO HOO and fresh fluid ( plus these are the original parts ) So going for the rebuild.. doesn't matter that is almost what I paid for it.... just getting it done right....

 

[rhill]

Lucky you...you did good! I got bit by the 2001 "clutch diode/sprag" failure from Ford trying to save some money..Never again will I do a tranny swap...almost did not have enough extensions...... ;-)