Leaking PTU Vent

[fixplane1]

I'm in the process of dealing with a leaking PTU vent on a 2012 Limited with 96,000 miles. This unit has the jiggle vent. I've read most all the post here. I decided to remove the PTU so I could either do more work on it or replace it. There appears to be no seals leaking, just leaks from the vent. I will assume the internal fluid is mostly sludge. With the unit out I drained about a cup of really thick fluid. The rest is either missing or too thick to drain. My question is, why is this a non-serviceable unit. Why not split the case, clean out the sludge, inspect for warn parts, and replace the fluid. If there is damage, you can replace what you can or use it as an anchor. It appears the cover is sealed with a grey RTV not sure if there is a gasket. With my issue, an apparent plugged vent, cleaning would unplug the vent and hopefully remedy this issue. Am I missing something here?

 

[fixplane1]

I'm in the process of dealing with a leaking PTU vent on a 2012 Limited with 96,000 miles. This unit has the jiggle vent. I've read most all the post here. I decided to remove the PTU so I could either do more work on it or replace it. There appears to be no seals leaking, just leaks from the vent. I will assume the internal fluid is mostly sludge. With the unit out I drained about a cup of really thick fluid. The rest is either missing or too thick to drain. My question is, why is this a non-serviceable unit. Why not split the case, clean out the sludge, inspect for warn parts, and replace the fluid. If there is damage, you can replace what you can or use it as an anchor. It appears the cover is sealed with a grey RTV not sure if there is a gasket. With my issue, an apparent plugged vent, cleaning would unplug the vent and hopefully remedy this issue. Am I missing something here?

Guess I'll respond to my own quote then move on. I do believe in info sharing. Split the case on the PTU and there is no gasket, only grey RTV. Although there was some gunk buildup, not near as much as I thought there would be for 96,000 miles and all the horror stories I read. Was able to clean the unit, check the bearings, seals and for metal. All look good. No wear that I can see. Cleaned out the jiggle vent from the inside out and made sure there was free flow. Replaced the PTU to transmission crush washer. Another good thing about splitting the case and cleaning everything is I'm able to put the exact amount of gear lube in without worry how much volume is being taken up by gunk buildup. Going back in the car now. Only time will tell. Worst case I'll need to buy a new PTU, that's where I start. You all have a good one.

 

[crrobbins]

fixplane1,

Just read your posts. I am considering doing the same work on wife's 2013 XLT. It is leaking from top of PTU. Getting the Works Service at local Ford dealer and they noticed leak. Said the only way to repair it is replace PTU at cost of $1500+. How difficult was removal and reinstall of PTU. I have access to a car lift and may go this route. Did you put all new seals back in PTU? What brand fluid did you use to refill? Am planning a 400 mile trip in about a month and do not want to start out with leaking PTU. Not sure I would make it there and back. Thanks for your info in your posts. I did find a Ford online website that had new PTU for XLT for less than $700 new. Local Ford dealer quoted more than $1000. May see what inside of this one looks like and order new PTU.

Thanks,
crrobbins

 

[fixplane1]

It's a bit of a chore to get it out but not too bad. Used a Chilton's manual and the step by step went well. Had to remove the rh half-shaft and rh exhaust. Tried to leave the catalytic converter but it's easier with it out of the way. The upper PTU attach bolt is hard to get to but with the catalytic converter out, you can access from the rh wheel well and a long extension. I did not replace all the seals. I did replace the PTU to transmission crush seal and the input seal. These would require the PTU to be removed to replace. I did not remove the output shaft seal because I did not removed the output pinion shaft from the PTU. I did not replace the half-shaft seal. Neither of these seals were leaking and both can be changed easily with the PTU in the car. I did not find any damage, bad bearings or wear once inside. Not bad for 96,000 miles. By far the worse was cleaning the old nasty oil and gunk from the inside. Very dirty job. The vent had a lot of gunk build up. I made sure it was clean. Still wonder, if it was plugged, why it would leak. There is some discussion about this out there.
There was no gasket between the housing halves. The old gasket material was grey RTV, of some sort. I used Grey high torque RTV...simply because it was grey. Was wondering if I should have used a high temperature RTV. I'm told these units can get hot (that what causes the gunky buildup).Since these units are unserviceable, I did not have a torque value when reinstalling the case bolts. I used a cross tightening method and 250 inch pounds. Seemed sufficient. I filled the unit with 75W-140 full synthetic gear oil. I read somewhere that these units hold .55 qt. At 1/2 quart it seemed to fill the unit to the fill hole (on the bench). I also read that full is 3mm below the fill hole. I will recheck once I get the vehicle level. I just have the front half of the car on high jack stands so its sitting at a good angle.
My dealer quoted $900+ for the new PTU (part only). I figure the very worse condition will be my PTU fails or leaks like a sieve. In that case I'll go buy the new PTU. I now know how to remove and replace it. I feel confident that my only issue was the vent was clogged causing the old gunky fluid to vent outward. Guess I'll see. Should have it all back together this weekend. I also exchanging some transmission fluid, replacing front brake pads, oil, filters, and tire rotation. Hope to have many more miles with this car.
I really wonder how many of these units are replaced simply because Ford deems the unit "unserviceable".

 

[omar302]

It's a bit of a chore to get it out but not too bad. Used a Chilton's manual and the step by step went well. Had to remove the rh half-shaft and rh exhaust. Tried to leave the catalytic converter but it's easier with it out of the way. The upper PTU attach bolt is hard to get to but with the catalytic converter out, you can access from the rh wheel well and a long extension. I did not replace all the seals. I did replace the PTU to transmission crush seal and the input seal. These would require the PTU to be removed to replace. I did not remove the output shaft seal because I did not removed the output pinion shaft from the PTU. I did not replace the half-shaft seal. Neither of these seals were leaking and both can be changed easily with the PTU in the car. I did not find any damage, bad bearings or wear once inside. Not bad for 96,000 miles. By far the worse was cleaning the old nasty oil and gunk from the inside. Very dirty job. The vent had a lot of gunk build up. I made sure it was clean. Still wonder, if it was plugged, why it would leak. There is some discussion about this out there.
There was no gasket between the housing halves. The old gasket material was grey RTV, of some sort. I used Grey high torque RTV...simply because it was grey. Was wondering if I should have used a high temperature RTV. I'm told these units can get hot (that what causes the gunky buildup).Since these units are unserviceable, I did not have a torque value when reinstalling the case bolts. I used a cross tightening method and 250 inch pounds. Seemed sufficient. I filled the unit with 75W-140 full synthetic gear oil. I read somewhere that these units hold .55 qt. At 1/2 quart it seemed to fill the unit to the fill hole (on the bench). I also read that full is 3mm below the fill hole. I will recheck once I get the vehicle level. I just have the front half of the car on high jack stands so its sitting at a good angle.
My dealer quoted $900+ for the new PTU (part only). I figure the very worse condition will be my PTU fails or leaks like a sieve. In that case I'll go buy the new PTU. I now know how to remove and replace it. I feel confident that my only issue was the vent was clogged causing the old gunky fluid to vent outward. Guess I'll see. Should have it all back together this weekend. I also exchanging some transmission fluid, replacing front brake pads, oil, filters, and tire rotation. Hope to have many more miles with this car.
I really wonder how many of these units are replaced simply because Ford deems the unit "unserviceable".

If the PTU is still off the vehicle, I'd suggest you add a drain plug to make easier to replace the oil in the future. This post has a how-to, the Edge has a similar PTU.

 

[crrobbins]

It's a bit of a chore to get it out but not too bad. Used a Chilton's manual and the step by step went well. Had to remove the rh half-shaft and rh exhaust. Tried to leave the catalytic converter but it's easier with it out of the way. The upper PTU attach bolt is hard to get to but with the catalytic converter out, you can access from the rh wheel well and a long extension. I did not replace all the seals. I did replace the PTU to transmission crush seal and the input seal. These would require the PTU to be removed to replace. I did not remove the output shaft seal because I did not removed the output pinion shaft from the PTU. I did not replace the half-shaft seal. Neither of these seals were leaking and both can be changed easily with the PTU in the car. I did not find any damage, bad bearings or wear once inside. Not bad for 96,000 miles. By far the worse was cleaning the old nasty oil and gunk from the inside. Very dirty job. The vent had a lot of gunk build up. I made sure it was clean. Still wonder, if it was plugged, why it would leak. There is some discussion about this out there.
There was no gasket between the housing halves. The old gasket material was grey RTV, of some sort. I used Grey high torque RTV...simply because it was grey. Was wondering if I should have used a high temperature RTV. I'm told these units can get hot (that what causes the gunky buildup).Since these units are unserviceable, I did not have a torque value when reinstalling the case bolts. I used a cross tightening method and 250 inch pounds. Seemed sufficient. I filled the unit with 75W-140 full synthetic gear oil. I read somewhere that these units hold .55 qt. At 1/2 quart it seemed to fill the unit to the fill hole (on the bench). I also read that full is 3mm below the fill hole. I will recheck once I get the vehicle level. I just have the front half of the car on high jack stands so its sitting at a good angle.
My dealer quoted $900+ for the new PTU (part only). I figure the very worse condition will be my PTU fails or leaks like a sieve. In that case I'll go buy the new PTU. I now know how to remove and replace it. I feel confident that my only issue was the vent was clogged causing the old gunky fluid to vent outward. Guess I'll see. Should have it all back together this weekend. I also exchanging some transmission fluid, replacing front brake pads, oil, filters, and tire rotation. Hope to have many more miles with this car.
I really wonder how many of these units are replaced simply because Ford deems the unit "unserviceable".

fixplane1,
Sorry it has taken a couple months to update on wife's XLT ptu issues. Just before I was going to remove PTU, wife reminded me that she had purchased an aftermarket extended warranty on car when purchased. So I drove to local dealer and had them inspect PTU again and contact warranty company for coverage on PTU. I was skeptical, but they agreed to cover repairs. Only had to pay $100 deductible. Actually only had 3 months left on coverage, but it saved me about $1,400. They reinforced their claim that unit is non-serviceable. Wife is happy. So am I. Best of luck with yours. The warranty company is called Compass. We got most of our money back with this repair.

crrobbins

 

[mcpcartier]

@fixplane1

so how did your PTU hold up after cleaning out the sludge and putting in fresh gear oil?

My PTU vent is starting to spit now as well. Vehicle drives fine...would like to try and save the PTU rather than simply replace it.

I've done bigger jobs that this so willing to tackle it on jack stands in the driveway. I've seen a couple of video's where they remove the exhaust manifold...not sure why...but suspect a different power train. Took a quick look for a chilton manual and none to be found. Picking up a haynes to see if that has adequate instructions to do this.

Want to minimize down time and only rip this apart once but really don't want to replace the PTU if cleaning and fresh fluid will do the trick. What a waste. But at the same time I don't want to loose a second weekend replacing it if that is really the only true fix. Hence the curiosity about the effectiveness of your fix.

 

[peterk9]

@fixplane1

so how did your PTU hold up after cleaning out the sludge and putting in fresh gear oil?

My PTU vent is starting to spit now as well. Vehicle drives fine...would like to try and save the PTU rather than simply replace it.

I've done bigger jobs that this so willing to tackle it on jack stands in the driveway. I've seen a couple of video's where they remove the exhaust manifold...not sure why...but suspect a different power train. Took a quick look for a chilton manual and none to be found. Picking up a haynes to see if that has adequate instructions to do this.

Want to minimize down time and only rip this apart once but really don't want to replace the PTU if cleaning and fresh fluid will do the trick. What a waste. But at the same time I don't want to loose a second weekend replacing it if that is really the only true fix. Hence the curiosity about the effectiveness of your fix.

FYI, the post you quoted was his last one on the site. Not sure if the member is still active here.

Peter