Does this sound like PTU issue?

[Joe 16 Sport]

For the past month or so I've had an "egg/sulfur" smell, which I thought was maybe a catalytic converter issue or bad fuel. I ran some fuel cleaner and a tank of premium and it seemed to get better. Never had performance issue or CEL at all, and no hidden codes.

Now about a week ago I was backing down my driveway, which is on an incline (so I was reversing down the incline), and there was an audible clunk / squeaking / screeching noise from the drivetrain. I thought maybe the hill start assist was doing something weird, never did it unless I was in reverse. My wife said she feels some weird clunking here & there in normal driving, but I havent been able to replicate it. No fault lights at all.

I did some seacrhing and sounds like people have had a propane smell from the fluid boiling out from the PTU and it definitely is something in the drivetrain making bad noises.

Am I right I am looking at a replacement, or could a fluid change possibly fix it?

2016 Sport
82k miles

 

[Toddman41]

Have you Ever drained the original PTU fluid? If not, it maybe to late... With all the issues with the Explorers PTU, I would start drain and fill on the PTU at 25k mile intervals.

 

[mguy13sport]

Gear oil smells all kinds of nasty when its burnt. I have the exact smell from my car only when its really hot and also parked on an incline however I don't hear any noises. The seals on my unit are leaking which causes the fluid to run down the exhaust.

You should try to inspect around the breather vent to see if its puking fluid. If you see any dark fluid around the vent its probably toasted. If it's clean then its worth trying new fluid.

 

[Joe 16 Sport]

Have you Ever drained the original PTU fluid? If not, it maybe to late... With all the issues with the Explorers PTU, I would start drain and fill on the PTU at 25k mile intervals.

Never drained, bought at 36k miles. :/

Gear oil smells all kinds of nasty when its burnt. I have the exact smell from my car only when its really hot and also parked on an incline however I don't hear any noises. The seals on my unit are leaking which causes the fluid to run down the exhaust.

You should try to inspect around the breather vent to see if its puking fluid. If you see any dark fluid around the vent its probably toasted. If it's clean then its worth trying new fluid.

I'll take a look, but I'm fearful its already toast.