A4LD Tranny Flush questions? Different types of flushing machines?

[protomind]

I was reading that there are two basic types of tranny flushes available. One of them supposedly actually uses the transmission itself to move the fluid and is not harmful IF the filter is changed along with the fluid, this type supposedly also changes ALL of the fluid with new fluid. The other type uses pressure from a machine to do the flushing and cycles back some of the old fluid and gunk into the the tranny and they usually DO NOT change the filter with this type.

Also it is my understanding that there is some 'old school' way of flushing which you can do through the lines manually without taking it to a shop. Does anyone know the best way to fluch a tranny? I realize that ALOT of people say it will cause problems and not to bother with it, while others swear by it.

 

[scott.475]

I have not done this with an Explorer tranny, but I did it on our minivan, but only because I suspected the previous owners had used the wrong fluid, causing bad shifting. After the flush, I was vindicated!

If you look here and read the second post down, it explains how to do it: http://www.allpar.com/eek/atf.html
It truly, honestly is not difficult at all, especially if you have a second person to help you out. You will want to have about 2.5X the normal fluid requirements on hand just to be safe, and I also used a graduated plastic paint bucket from Home Depot so I could keep track of the fluid coming out. In my case, what ever fluid was in there before was quite black, so it was very easy to see when the good stuff finally started coming through. I absolutely would not pay someone to do this, machine flush techniques are the ones everybody gets worried about, afraid it might dislodge harmless deposits, sending them somewhere they won't be harmless, like a blood clot.

FWIW, most independent, objective mechanics I have read say a tranny flush is not necessary unless you feel there is something additional wrong or think the fluid is bad. I guess what I am saying is, they do not think it needs to be part of routine maintenance, but that it was an idea marketed by shops in order to generate a new revenue stream, whether your car needs it or not...kinda like going to Les Schwab!

 

[protomind]

scott, thanks for the link, it is a great thing to know, yet so simple. I was wondering if you put new fluid in after the procedure was completed? Like the article says, after the brown fluid turns pinkish? Is that when I put the new fluid in?

This is the thing I noticed however whe i went to check the fluid level of the tranny, the fluid does not look dirty at all. Looks like brand new. I was able to get several drops onto a white napkin and there seems to be no sign of dirtyness...... so should I not even bother trying to flush it out then? I was thinking that perhaps i will drop the pan anyways and put in one of those newer filters in it just in case it has a metal screen on in there. What do you think?

 

[scott.475]

As I read the that link a little more closely, I realize that may not have been the one I used initially, though for the most part the info is still good.

What I did was, I would pump out 2 quarts, then pour in 2 new quarts, over and over until it started running nice and clean red. It took a little time, but I really did not want to pump out so much that the tranny might get damaged. So, if you don't top of with the new, during the process, tranny will simply run dry.

Do you know the history of your tranny? Are you confident about what fluid is in there? Really, I don't think you will damage it by flushing completely with this method with OEM fluid in order to make sure the correct fluid is in there. If the wrong fluid is in there it could still look new, but still not work right.

 

[BrooklynBay]

This chart is # 34 in my list of useful threads:

# 43 in my list of useful threads has an article from an independent shop owner if you want to read about unnecessary fluid flushes: http://autos.aol.com/article/general/v2/_a/fluid-flush-fallacy/20060505115609990001

 

[protomind]

Do you know the history of your tranny? Are you confident about what fluid is in there? Really, I don't think you will damage it by flushing completely with this method with OEM fluid in order to make sure the correct fluid is in there. If the wrong fluid is in there it could still look new, but still not work right.

While I don't really know the history of the tranny, I can say for certain that the vehicle has been maintained religiously, the leather is in near perfect shape and it pretty much looks brand new inside and out, every option works 100% (knock on wood) and it drives and handles just great. It is possible that someone recently flushed the tranny with the wrong fluid. I am guessing it has been kept flushed or it is recently flushed as I have said the fluid looks the color of white zinfendal or merlot that has been watered down and there are absolutely no signs of discoloration or any specs whatsoever on a white napkin after rubbing it on one.
Should I really be concerned that the fluid was not changed properly? Is there any way to confirm if it is actually Mercon? The tranny seems to shift fine, although I have not owned another automatic ford to compare it with.
If needs be I suppose that I could drain out all of the fluid and replace it with Mobil1 Mercon V, I was hoping however that it was not needed.

@brooklynbay- the tranny fluid color in my explorer is closest to the far left on your chart.

 

[scott.475]

If you are not having some issue with your transmission, I certainly would not worry about flushing the tranny. I thought you werre maybe experiencing some performance problem with it, but if everything is good, I sure wouldn't worry about doing anything other than normal, scheduled changes.

The article Brooklynbay posted is the one that really exposed the sham for me, I think I first read it about a year ago.

 

[protomind]

scott.475
I never thought that I needed to always flush and change things too much, I just had the idea that since the truck is 14 years old, there may be some fluids that could use a good flush/drain and change such as the diffs and transfer case. The ps and brake fluids look bit dingy so I figure they could use a synthetic replacement. My GF and I are to be towing our belongings halfway across the country and after the move we will be doing a 10k+ mile cross country road trip so I figure better safe then sorry right? The tranny was a big concern until I actually was able to take a gander at the fluid. Now I feel alot better about it. I appreciate your help and input. You guys are great here. I am a newly made explorer nut =) When the GF and I end up getting another car I plan on doing some more serious off road mods to this thing.