PTU fluid at 60k

[padjoe]

I know there are lots of posts everywhere about this. i hope this helps any buyers of used cars or anyone that was just putting it off for a while.
I thought i would keep some pics to show people at 60k (double the maintenance interval time as decided buy owners.) what the ptu fluid will look like saying as people will be buying used with a good chunk of miles on them. i thought some pics might help
this car 2016 xlt bought used at 53k i have to assume ptu has never been done.
never driven in 4wd unless the intellegent 4wd kicks on in the snow.

heres the drain plug accessed at the side of the ptu.
its doing its job thats alot of metal build up.

this is the vacuum bleeder i used to pull out the fluid.
i was only able to pull 7oz of fluid. it takes around 16 so that means i probably have a thick grease at the bottom from the heat of the exhaust. plan is to add 7oz back in and redo procedure after a bunch of miles. hopefully it thins out the current thick grease

oil is dark to be expected, but no metal flakes and didnt smell burnt.

so at 60k i have to assume that half of the fluid has turned to a thick grease.Lesson here 60k is too long if buying any fords with the ptu they should have fluid changed asap.

 

[Mbrooks420]

I would have expected the color to be worse.

 

[94Eddie]

Good post. The PTUs in Ford AWD vehicles get cooked from many sides. Then add in there is very little fluid in them and it is a recipe for failure. This is another situation where Ford's recommended service intervals are basically criminal negligence. PTU fluid should be religiously replaced every 30k miles if you want them to last well over 100k miles. A lot of people don't know any better. Or don't care because they are dumping their vehicle before the failure typically occurs. This is just another way Ford keeps their service departments busy.

 

[Crates]

That fluid looks pretty good for the mileage, and given how thoroughly it circulates through the case during operation I doubt you will find any sludge in the bottom, the oil itself would have been much darker.

If your vehicle is primarily driven at low speeds in stop and go traffic the lack of airflow around the catalyst can really heat the ptu case up. Ive had to replace a ptu on a city driven Flex with less miles than my mainly highway driven Explorer, which the fluid still looked fine in when I changed it at 100,000 km.

 

[bigdude2468]

My 14 XLT has almost 90,000 miles, I have changed the fluid 4 times and it has always been much darker than the photo shows. I do zero stop and go miles, do not two except a fishing boat but those trips are only a few miles each time as we live in an area with several lakes close by. I suspect the fluid was changed or maybe the PTU had failed and you have a new one. If that is the case you are a lucky guy.

 

[joney]

My 14 XLT has almost 90,000 miles, I have changed the fluid 4 times and it has always been much darker than the photo shows. I do zero stop and go miles, do not two except a fishing boat but those trips are only a few miles each time as we live in an area with several lakes close by. I suspect the fluid was changed or maybe the PTU had failed and you have a new one. If that is the case you are a lucky guy.

PTU = transfer case? Another thing to look at. Asked the shop to top off all fluids, but have no idea when it may have been changed by previous owners. Lots of stop and go for my Ex.

 

[padjoe]

So the concensus is that the fluid looks real good for 60k, maybe ive got lucky and have no sludge.
but then that brings up the question why did i only get 7oz out and when pumped back in it took 7oz and started to drip back out the hole.

 

[94Eddie]

So the concensus is that the fluid looks real good for 60k, maybe ive got lucky and have no sludge.
but then that brings up the question why did i only get 7oz out and when pumped back in it took 7oz and started to drip back out the hole.

Maybe your extraction hose didn't get placed at the bottom of the fluid reservoir.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Could be a factory under fill. As spotty as the build quality was it wouldn’t surprise me.

 

[Odrapnew]

Mine looked similar (maybe a bit darker) in my Sport @ 60k.
We just rolled over 100k (vehicle miles), so I plan to do another change shortly.

 

[bigdude2468]

Maybe your extraction hose didn't get placed at the bottom of the fluid reservoir.

This, I have never been able to get more than about 8 ounces out. In another thread about the PTU a member has a photo on a hose with a small diameter piece of copper tubing attached that he was able to work around and get down to the bottom and extracted all of the fluid.

 

[peterk9]

This, I have never been able to get more than about 8 ounces out. In another thread about the PTU a member has a photo on a hose with a small diameter piece of copper tubing attached that he was able to work around and get down to the bottom and extracted all of the fluid.

According to the Manual, capacity is 18 oz (AWD). So you were getting less than half of the fluid out.

Peter

 

[bigdude2468]

According to the Manual, capacity is 18 oz (AWD). So you were getting less than half of the fluid out.

Peter

Correct, when I refill it I am only able to put the same amount of fluid back in before it overflows. I have tried using flexible hoses / stiff hoses to try to thread it down to the bottom of the gear case but I have not been able to succeed. I change mine once a year which is about every 10,000 miles.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Probably doesn’t matter at that interval, since it’s getting regular fluid. How long does the process take?

 

[mguy13sport]

Its a long process to refill. The oil is extremely thick and if you're filling by hand from the vent tube it will be really be slow. Expect to take many hours but can be sped up using some kind of machine or vacuum pump. I let mine sit over night in a big funnel with a heat lamp on it rigged up using a coat hanger.

 

[bigdude2468]

Its a long process to refill. The oil is extremely thick and if you're filling by hand from the vent tube it will be really be slow. Expect to take many hours but can be sped up using some kind of machine or vacuum pump. I let mine sit over night in a big funnel with a heat lamp on it rigged up using a coat hanger.

I have the fill plug on the side of the PTU which I remove I have a vacuum that I use to suck out the old fluid. I then use a small pump that fits in the quart bottle of gear oil for the refill, total time maybe 30 minute.

 

[jons901]

I have the fill plug on the side of the PTU which I remove I have a vacuum that I use to suck out the old fluid. I then use a small pump that fits in the quart bottle of gear oil for the refill, total time maybe 30 minute.

Question: are you guys using lift, jack stands, or drive on ramps? I'll spend 20 min just getting my vehicle on jack stands so it is level when doing this swap out. Would love to go with ramps to decrease the time, but I suspect the angle would cause issues with ensuring I have enough fluid during the fill.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Question: are you guys using lift, jack stands, or drive on ramps? I'll spend 20 min just getting my vehicle on jack stands so it is level when doing this swap out. Would love to go with ramps to decrease the time, but I suspect the angle would cause issues with ensuring I have enough fluid during the fill.

Get two more ramps.

 

[Blackhawkxx]

Question: are you guys using lift, jack stands, or drive on ramps? I'll spend 20 min just getting my vehicle on jack stands so it is level when doing this swap out. Would love to go with ramps to decrease the time, but I suspect the angle would cause issues with ensuring I have enough fluid during the fill.

I have four wood blocks (6x6) and two floor jacks. I put the blocks under the tires. Not fast but I don't have to worry about it being level.

 

[jons901]

Get two more ramps.

I put step bars on my EX as my son could not get in the back seat with the tiny parking spots here in Indy which made it impossible to open the door all the way. Because of that he has to step up on the highest back part of the door ledge and could not make it when I bought the truck. Now because of the step bars there is not enough clearance to get the additional ramps under the back tires.

Good thought though...