Stuck on the side of the road with transmission leak, any suggestions?

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Artie

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We’re on a road trip and are kinda at a loss. Debating on what to do. It looks like adding fluid isn’t an option but if there’s a way to do this then I can limp home. Other than a tow, who’s got any ideas?
 

Deep8174

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You need to tow your vehicle unless you’re able to add tx fluid and seal the leak while on the side of the road
 
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Artie

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You need to tow your vehicle unless you’re able to add tx fluid and seal the leak while on the side of the road
Yeah there’s no adding it. I spoke with a service guy and he said as much… you need a lift.

We have arranged a ride and a tow. Sucky part is we’re hours from home so not sure how to arrange pick up of the vehicle once it’s fixed and we’re back home…
 

Going_Going_Gone

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Sadly, based on what I've been hearing about the availability of parts and entire replacement transmissions plus scheduling service appointments, I think that you'll have more than enough time to arrange for pickup etc. Like weeks, not days.
 

Deep8174

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I’d check with your insurance as you might have some sort of coverage involving towing it back to your home… as well as covering for your recent road side service.
 

The Swagonmaster

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Guys, I have an '07 3rd gen Expy but in all likelyhood the fill procedure is the same as mine. The fill and check port is at the front right of the trans right where the old long dipsticks used to be. You unscrew the top with a 3/4" wrench and pull out the little dipstick so you can check to see what you have and fill if necessary. I have a cheap fluid pump with a hose that I bought to fill the lower end of my outboard engine (boat stores have them, possibly Walmart also) that can be put in the bottle of atf and pump it in the tranny. Since the fill spec is for fluid that has been fully warmed and the engine running you might go a little low at cold fill so it has some room to expand. And yes I have done it lying on my back under the truck, recommend a piece of cardboard or a blanket on the ground though.
 

Polo08816

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We’re on a road trip and are kinda at a loss. Debating on what to do. It looks like adding fluid isn’t an option but if there’s a way to do this then I can limp home. Other than a tow, who’s got any ideas?

If your vehicle is covered by factory warranty, I would continue to drive that until the transmission turns into a pile of smoldering kibbles and bits. If you don't drive it to failure, Ford/dealership may decide to just top it off with ATF and send you on your way. The damage that was already done by the lack of ATF may not manifest itself until after the warranty period has expired. Better to have it completely fail under warranty.

This is what almost happened with my transmission in my BMW. The initial fix was just to top it off with ZF Lifeguard 8. No later than 10,000 miles later, the transmission missed a shift and threw codes. I'm glad that was under the extended warranty mileage limit.

In hind sight, I should have taken my friend's advice which was to have the following three:
- 1 ton SRW HD pickup
- car trailer
- my car

Step 1: Hook up car trailer to my car.
Step 2: Load 1 ton SRW HD pickup onto car trailer.
Step 3: Drag race my car with that trailer until the transmission turns into kibbles and bits.
Step 4: Unload 1 ton SRW HD pickup off trailer.
Step 5: Hook trailer up to 1 ton SRW HD pickup.
Step 6: Winch my car onto the trailer.
Step 7: Drop off my car at a BMW dealership for a transmission replacement under warranty.
 

rd618

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In hind sight, I should have taken my friend's advice which was to have the following three:
- 1 ton SRW HD pickup
- car trailer
- my car

Step 1: Hook up car trailer to my car.
Step 2: Load 1 ton SRW HD pickup onto car trailer.
Step 3: Drag race my car with that trailer until the transmission turns into kibbles and bits.
Step 4: Unload 1 ton SRW HD pickup off trailer.
Step 5: Hook trailer up to 1 ton SRW HD pickup.
Step 6: Winch my car onto the trailer.
Step 7: Drop off my car at a BMW dealership for a transmission replacement under warranty.

terrible advice. I knew someone who tried doing burn outs by doing neutral drops into drive with their foot on the gas, blew the transmission.
Honda pulled the computer's last 5-10 minutes of "drive time" and voided his warranty. They also backed up the denial by pointing out which components broke, how they should operate normally, and how they failed.
 
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Artie

Artie

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If your vehicle is covered by factory warranty, I would continue to drive that until the transmission turns into a pile of smoldering kibbles and bits. If you don't drive it to failure, Ford/dealership may decide to just top it off with ATF and send you on your way. The damage that was already done by the lack of ATF may not manifest itself until after the warranty period has expired. Better to have it completely fail under warranty.

This is what almost happened with my transmission in my BMW. The initial fix was just to top it off with ZF Lifeguard 8. No later than 10,000 miles later, the transmission missed a shift and threw codes. I'm glad that was under the extended warranty mileage limit.

In hind sight, I should have taken my friend's advice which was to have the following three:
- 1 ton SRW HD pickup
- car trailer
- my car

Step 1: Hook up car trailer to my car.
Step 2: Load 1 ton SRW HD pickup onto car trailer.
Step 3: Drag race my car with that trailer until the transmission turns into kibbles and bits.
Step 4: Unload 1 ton SRW HD pickup off trailer.
Step 5: Hook trailer up to 1 ton SRW HD pickup.
Step 6: Winch my car onto the trailer.
Step 7: Drop off my car at a BMW dealership for a transmission replacement under warranty.
I may have tried to drive back to the nearest city if it were just me but I had my wife and kids with me and a breakdown in a more remote area would just present more issues. As it was I was in the middle of nowhere and lucky to find a spot to pull off with service and a relatively safe spot to stop.
 
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Artie

Artie

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Update on this post:

Finally got the dealer on the phone to let them know the vehicle was on its way. The schedule person was in such a hurry to get off the phone I was lucky to catch her before she hung up to tell her the entire story… the part about us being on vacation and hours from the vehicle and her dealership. It was at this point the told me that they don’t typically look at towed in vehicles for 4-6 WEEKS! She said that she would do me a favor since we are on the road and try to expedite a diagnosis. I’m still speechless at this point in the convo but also holding up my kids to trip to the sledding hill so I thank her for her time and hang up.

10 minutes later I get a call from the service manager l, who I was also sent straight to voicemail earlier when I called and requested a person. He was much more helpful but reiterated the 4-6 week thing but said he would get a diagnosis asap before Thursday when we are driving back through the city where he is located.

I had just gotten this vehicle back for hose replacements that were both warranty. I’m not sure if this work would have involved anything around the transmission or not. They should have checked the fluid level during this visit as I had oil change done. It’s possible they didn’t tighten the trans dipstick.

So far I’m utterly disappointed with Lincoln service. My main dealership is no longer Lincoln and the new on I’m going to is a total hassle and too far for them to come get my car. Getting a loaner is also a pain and the fact that I paid to extend the Lincoln concierge throughout the length of extended warranty and service plans means absolutely zero to any of these places.
 

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