Transmission Fluid Change

[Marty]

Nah there isn't much left in there and my oil wasn't that bad - still pink in color/no burnt smell/particles in it etc...

I think it was Marc that said it's not really THAT big of a deal to get those last few drops out - the important thing is to get the new stuff IN!

[720Deere]

You should be able to pull the return line and thoroughly flush the lines and cooler. I've done it on several trucks with the 4R100. We even drained one completely using this method. It was being replaced with a reman, but anyway it takes a while to run all the fluid out through the return line.

[ipz2222]

not really necessary to flush cooler for fluid change, less than 1 qt in the whole system. preston

[Jmaccal]

I'm doing the Amsoil to my trans next week and there is a shop in So Cal that uses compressed air to blow all oil out of TQ and cooler. I remember back in auto shop doing this, if you want I will send you the guys number and he might be able to give you some info over phone. I got his name from my Amsoil guy

[johns4dor]

Ford used different suppliers to build the TC. Some have plugs, some don't, even in the same year. Mine is 02 built Jan, no plug, a friends 02 built Oct had a plug. My '85 6.9 C-6 didn't have a drain plug either. If you don't have a plug, you need to push the fluid out with low air pressure through the valve body at the filter/fluid inlet. It will come back through the return line. You will still have about 1 to 1 1/2 quarts left in the system when you finish but that lets you get 15 - 16 quarts of new fluid in. Actually, if you don't know how to do it, it might be best to have a good trans shop do it for you. I discovered that not a lot of them in my area even wanted to take it on. With 17 quarts in the system though, you definetely want to get more than just the 7 quarts in the pan changed.

[ipz2222]

""you need to push the fluid out with low air pressure through the valve body at the filter/fluid inlet. It will come back through the return line. ""

That is impossible. That is a dead end street unless the eng is running.
You might get half of the fluid out of the converter if you blow into the other side, pressure side, but you'll get no more than half of what's in the converter.
What a mess it will make.

[johns4dor]

Yes, it will make a mess. If I were doing it under the truck on the ground myself, I would disconnect the return lilne and put a hos on it to control the flow, but the trans shop that did the changeover on my truck had it on the rack with the BIG drain pan under it and wasn't concerned about the way it blew out be cause it would all be caught anyway. As to how much would come out of the torque converter; the system capacity is 17 quarts and it took 15 3/4 quarts to refill it. That tells me that there was only 1 1/4 quarts left in it. If you have another way to empty a torque converter that doesn't have a drain plug, while it is still in the car, please make us aware. THAT IS WHY I RECOMMENDED THAT HE TAKE IT TO A GOOD TRANS SHOP IF HIS TRUCK DIDN'T HAVE A DRAIN PLUG.

[johns4dor]

Oh Yes, there is another way to get a complete change but it usually requires some extra fluid. Many of the dealerships and some tranny shops have pumps that they connect at the return line to the trans. They pump new fluid in which displaces the old fluid, pushes it into the pan thru the valve body, TQ, and cooler, back to another chamber in the pump. They don't even have to drop the pan. There have been technical bulletins out because of unscrupulous service people who don't bother to change the filters. In fact, some manufacturers, such as Toyota, have eliminated trans filters completely while others are going to the external spin-on filters so they don't need to drop the pan to service the fluid. Saves them time and labor, and the customer gets a more complete change of fluid at service time. They also get to charge more for the service because they are using new high tech equipment, and selling more quarts of fluid. Of course, if you use AMSOIL ATF you put one over on them because it will last for 100,000 miles or even longer. One Amsoil dealer just changed his in his Ford E350 van with 165,000 miles on the fluid and tranny. The Ford Dealer was so impressed by the fluid that they signed up to sell AMSOIL products.

[redwoody]

Originally Posted by johns4dor

Oh Yes, there is another way to get a complete change but it usually requires some extra fluid. Many of the dealerships and some tranny shops have pumps that they connect at the return line to the trans. They pump new fluid in which displaces the old fluid, pushes it into the pan thru the valve body, TQ, and cooler, back to another chamber in the pump. They don't even have to drop the pan. There have been technical bulletins out because of unscrupulous service people who don't bother to change the filters. In fact, some manufacturers, such as Toyota, have eliminated trans filters completely while others are going to the external spin-on filters so they don't need to drop the pan to service the fluid. Saves them time and labor, and the customer gets a more complete change of fluid at service time. They also get to charge more for the service because they are using new high tech equipment, and selling more quarts of fluid. Of course, if you use AMSOIL ATF you put one over on them because it will last for 100,000 miles or even longer. One Amsoil dealer just changed his in his Ford E350 van with 165,000 miles on the fluid and tranny. The Ford Dealer was so impressed by the fluid that they signed up to sell AMSOIL products.

a final question. if my tranny temps reach 210 occasionally while towing 8000lbs, should I go to a larger trans cooler? most of the time out on the open road, the temps are around 180 on a 90f day. it's at the slow speeds (1st gear) on tight, steep mountain roads, temps have hit 210. also, is the cooler that silly little radiator behind the license plate? mounted in front of the condensor? seems kind of small for such a hard working trans. thanks again.

[johns4dor]

I tried to answer this sooner today, but my computer wouldn't let me on the site. I see from your post that you have obviously already done a lot to your truck. I notice you have the 203 stat. Is it from Dieselsite? Do you also use the Evans Waterless Coolant? On to the the trans now. NO, the little cooler behind the license plate isn't the trans cooler, it is for the Power Steering. The trans cooler is in front of the radiator, but I think on the diesel it is between the inter-cooler and radiator. A friend of mine who tows a 15,000lb 5th wheel toy hauler recently told me that he had a trans cooler from a 6.0which is supposed to be larger installed in his truck in place of the stock cooler. He also has the mag-hytec pan which gave him 24 qts before he added the 6.0 cooler. He says it runs 150-170 now. Huge drop according to him. I installed EVANS Coolant, and AMSOIL with a by-pass filter in the engine, and AMSOIL in the diffs for him but he hasn't changed the ATF yet. The dealer fixed his trans 3 times under warranty because of the big trailer and now he is just doing whatever until it blows. Guess he just wants to keep changing the ATF every 30,000 miles. It appears you are doing most everything to eliminate the heat. It mostly comes from the slip in the trans. You should stop some of it with the shift kit, that will raise the pressures and stop some of the trans slip and you already have the TQ lock-up. Do you have an aftermarket TQ? They will stop some heat too. A big pan helps by increasing the fluid capacity. And the biggest thing you are doing now is the AMSOIL. On average it will drop the temp by 10-30 degrees and I have heard claims of more. It also won't be affected by small spikes in temp like other fluids. Hope everything comes together for you.