Proper tranny repair questions

[ragtopjr]

Here is the background on my scenario.

I bought a 2002 Limited V8 which had the tranny replaced @ 72000 kms, I purchased the truck @ 87000 kms.

The tranny overheats @ 88000 kms and goes into limp mode leaving a code.

I take truck into the Ford dealer to have the tranny checked and get the tranny flushed.

They tell me the Cooler is plugged and I tell them to replace it and continue with the flush.

While looking through the bill I was not charged for a filter, and was only charged for 4 liters of Tranny fluid.

I have a few questions for you now that you have some background info.

Question # 1
When I worked for Ford a few years ago we highly advised against changing a tranny without changing the cooler. Is this still industry standard protocol or is this just common sense that is overlooked by lazy dealers?

Question # 2
Is there any logical reason why they would not have completed the tranny flush as I had asked for?

Question # 3
What is the book time to R & R tranny cooler?

A friend in the industry told me that the "All Data" time allowed was .7 hrs for R & R and .6 hrs to flush lines which in my mind should be taken care of during the "Tranny Flush" which I had wanted completed in the first place!

What are your thoughts on this?

Thanks

P.S. I was a Service Advisor for this very dealership 3 years ago!

Lets just say my laundry list is growing rapidly on my way to the owner of the dealership!

 

[BrooklynBay]

It's possible to flush out a cooler. I guess it could get clogged, but the vehicle isn't that old, so it's hard to say. I think it just needed to be flushed out. The shop could use a blast of compressed air with a cleaning chemical to unclog it. Most of the time they don't change the filter when they flush out the fluid. It technically should be done, but then there is more labor, and parts involved. They want to get it out as soon as possible without making a big job out of it. If there was so much debris in the system to clog the cooler, they should have replaced the filter, then performed the flush. They might have pushed out dirt from the old filter into the rest of the transmission. Other than overheating, did you experience any other problems with the transmission? Did they use Mercon V, and not regular fluid with a Lubegard additive?

 

[Bent Bolt]

#1
Depends on the year and model ofthe vehicle. Yours does not need to be replaced unless plugged. A flush works very well.
99+ SuperDuty have a oil-to-air trans cooler which by design cannot be flushed properly.It has to be replaced. The in-radiator cooler can be flushed.
04+ F-150 is the same, replace the external cooler,flush the in-rad cooler.
Both need a aux filter kit installed on the return line
#2
Someone at the dealer*ucked up. They should do as you asked if you are paying for it. If it was under warrenty, it's up to them and what the service manual requires.
#3
Again, it depends on the vehicle. In-rad coolers, pull the rad and send it to a rad shop. air-to-oil coolers- about an hour for a S-duty, 1/2 hour for F-150.
Yours?? About 2 hours--- a real PITA.

 

[ragtopjr]

#1
Depends on the year and model ofthe vehicle. Yours does not need to be replaced unless plugged. A flush works very well.
99+ SuperDuty have a oil-to-air trans cooler which by design cannot be flushed properly.It has to be replaced. The in-radiator cooler can be flushed.
04+ F-150 is the same, replace the external cooler,flush the in-rad cooler.
Both need a aux filter kit installed on the return line
#2
Someone at the dealer*ucked up. They should do as you asked if you are paying for it. If it was under warrenty, it's up to them and what the service manual requires.
#3
Again, it depends on the vehicle. In-rad coolers, pull the rad and send it to a rad shop. air-to-oil coolers- about an hour for a S-duty, 1/2 hour for F-150.
Yours?? About 2 hours--- a real PITA.

I have a 2002 Explorer limited with the tow package (external cooler), and my case here just shows that it makes sense when a tranny piles up, that the external cooler should be replaced.

Sure the flush when the tranny was replaced may have allowed the truck to go another 15000 kms before seriously overheating, but at what cost?

How hot has it gotten to trip a code, send the Transmission overheating message, and cause it to go into limp mode?

How much damage has this caused, and reduced the life of this tranny?