Transmission Fluid change

[Dustin Gebhardt]

I'm going to hi-jack this while we are on the subject. I've had my 2008 for right around a year and I'm leaking fluid from the gasket at the rear of the pan. I know these gaskets are reusable and I'm assuming the used car dealer I bought this from or previous owner screwed up tightening the pan bolts. Do you guys think I can just drop the pan and retighten the bolts in the correct pattern or do you think that I need to replace the gasket? I'm really not looking forward to buying 11 quarts of fluid to replace whats in the pan so I would prefer to not have to drop it all the way but I figured I'd ask those of you that have done this in the past.

I thought I had a gasket/pan leak at the rear of my trans for the longest time. I ended up stripping the bolts on the back of the pan due to over-tightening them. I've tried multiple gaskets, too. Nothing worked. It turned out that the bulkhead connector (where the wiring harness passes through the trans to the valve body) was the problem. It was a $15 part, but required me to drop the trans pan to replace the bulkhead connector. I also took that opportunity to drop the exhaust lines and repair the stripped out bolt holes with some helicoil inserts.

 

[Trainmaster]

Your "rear pan leak" is probably a bad o-ring on your bulkhead connector. The oil weeps out around the pan and runs to the back. It's a common problem and was a recall in many Fords.

In changing fluid, I found a $6 plastic concrete mixing box from Home Depot makes a perfect huge drain pan...

Don't cheap out. Use the right Motorcraft fluid.

 

[reklaw]

I thought I had a gasket/pan leak at the rear of my trans for the longest time. I ended up stripping the bolts on the back of the pan due to over-tightening them. I've tried multiple gaskets, too. Nothing worked. It turned out that the bulkhead connector (where the wiring harness passes through the trans to the valve body) was the problem. It was a $15 part, but required me to drop the trans pan to replace the bulkhead connector. I also took that opportunity to drop the exhaust lines and repair the stripped out bolt holes with some helicoil inserts.

Yes, I just saw about this bulkhead connector in another thread so I have to get it up in the air and inspect it closer before I take action. And of course, now since I can't find that other thread let me ask. Is this just the O-ring on the connector or is it the whole connector that needs replaced?

 

[mr_dave]

You replace the whole connector sleeve. Check out this video.

Ford F150 6R60 & 6R80 Transmission Fluid Leak Bulkhead Sleeve Repair

This is the Cheapest & Best alternative to fill the transmission-http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BQW5LK/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&c...

www.youtube.com

 

[ediddily]

I have an 07 XLT, 285K miles. Had the electrical plug sleeve gasket leaking awhile back. I put the car on jacks as high as they went and had enough room to use a creeper easily. Changed the filter while in there. The fluid was still like new, bright red, so no concerns on wear and tear. The new electrical plug collar was extremely hard to get in so I ended up using the old plastic collar with the rubber seal off the new one. Fit so much easier and now doesn't leak. I filled it with enough fluid to slightly overfill it and let the excess drain out. I used the Harbor Freight battery powered fluid transfer pump to fill it. Worked great for low viscous fluids. Doesn't work for gear oil. When I put the pan back on, the rear bolts weren't tight enough due to the exhaust pipe crossing under that portion of the pan's bolts. So it ended up leaking slightly. I was able to use a wrench and tightening them until they stopped leaking.

I would suggest to replace the pan bolts while doing the job.

Additional question... is the dipstick supposed to be a traditional style range indicator like skinny8021 posted? Because mine has just threads that go into the oil.