Tranny Fluid advice

[Ford_Racing_Guy]

my brothers 93 Ex has almost 130,000 miles on it,

i checked the tranny fluid awhile back and its looking pretty dark and brown,


i don't know if its ever been changed,

now....would it be a good idea to dump all of the tranny fluid and then just fill it back up again with fresh stuff?


i've heard horror stories about flushing the tranny when the fluid is that far gone,

i just wanna know if it will be ok to just swap it out for new stuff

 

[aldive]

If it were me, I'd to a complete flush and refill with synthetic ATF ( such as Amsoil ).

 

[Opera House]

If you flush, change the filter first. DO NOT PUT BACK IN THE OLDER STYLE METAL SCREEN FILTER. There is an improved Microfelt filter that is used in the 97 and newer that also fits the older A4LD. This will pick up the trash that gets in the valves and cause problems. WARNING, this filter requires a shorter screw, metal spacer, or large fender washer to install. Some filter kits include this hardware. Whatever sediment you find in the pan, this is only 1/3 of what is still in the transmision. Plan on dropping the pan again in another month. No need to start off with expensive fluid till you get the tranny clean. Add some extra magnets. No use clogging a filter when you can stick it on a magnet.

 

[Ford_Racing_Guy]

what if i dropped all the fluid and changed the filter and threw in some extra magnets and then drop the pan and change the filter after 30 days?


i guess i don't really wanna go through everything you said, right now i don't have a lot of time on my hands and my brother is definitely not gonna be able to do it himself

 

[Ford_Racing_Guy]

oh and when i go in to get a filter kit i can just ask for the 97 automatic tranny filter kit and it will fit in with a different screw or washer?

 

[old mechanic]

what if i dropped all the fluid and changed the filter and threw in some extra magnets and then drop the pan and change the filter after 30 days?


i guess i don't really wanna go through everything you said, right now i don't have a lot of time on my hands and my brother is definitely not gonna be able to do it himself

I wouldn't recommend changing "ALL" the fluid at once if it has never been changed or if it hasn't been changed for 50-60,000 miles or so. All the crap that you will disturb will find its way around and clog elsewhere possibly causing a trannie teardown. All the crap will not come out even with the power flush system. If your going to do it I recommend taking the pan down and draining just the fluid in the pan, replace the filter and repeat the process a few times until the fluid gets clear or don't do it.
You can do it once for your brother and if you can't do it for him again have him get the pan dropped and filter changed again.

 

[viking37]

Dumb question but my 2002 explorer XLT does not have a dip stick. Where do I check for fluid level and to see if it needs changing. Sealed transmissions s#*k.

 

[Opera House]

I hve no cure for lack of enthusiasm. Most car problems are very cheap to work on, just take time. The transmission holds aproximately 10 quarts. Most of the rest is stuck in the torque converter Dropping the pan removes about 3.5 quarts. 35% new fluid first time, 60% second time, 73% third time, 83% fourth time. This is the reason it takes 20 quarts to do a flush. Either way you are always mixing new with old. The only difference in the filters is the 2WD have a short pickup tube and the 4WD have a long tube. The SPX MicroFelt filter is available from www.bulkpart.com for half the price of the auto parts store. This is Ford's OEM filter and it works for all the A4LD family through 5R55E.

23921 Microfelt filter 4WD long pickup tube $10.35
23922 Microfelt filter 2WD short pickup tube $9.99

These must be ordered separately, you are buying bulk!
23270 filter O ring large $.29
23271 filter O ring small $.48
23141 pan gasket cork $.69

TMA4LD manual is $16 if you want to learn more about your transmission.

No dip stick. This transmission has to be overfilled by pumping fluid in. Then it is brought up to temperature and the plug removed. The excess then pours out. Vehicle must be very level and the amout of fluid is determied by the fill tube.

 

[viking37]

Tranny Advice

Thanks for the information. Have to go under vehicle to see where plug is. i will try to pick up manual with location. Wonder why they got so fancy. Sometimes the old way is better. Only reason for my concern is my friend just lost his tranny at 6000 miles with his 2004 XLT. He is covered under service plan. They are replacing tranny. Ken

 

[JayTye4k]

What about Jiffy Lube

Anyone here think that it would be safe to allow Jiffy Lube to flush my Transmission and fill with Synthetic? They're doing a special right now for 50$. I think this is worth the 50 if they can do it right. Any feedback is appreciated.

 

[j602]

Anyone here think that it would be safe to allow Jiffy Lube to flush my Transmission and fill with Synthetic? They're doing a special right now for 50$. I think this is worth the 50 if they can do it right. Any feedback is appreciated.

I wouldn't trust my truck to be worked on by a Jiffy Lube if somebody had a gun to my head, ESPECIALLY not for transmission work. It's really not that hard to do a pan drop and filter change, and once you do it the first time you'll be able to get it done quicker the next.

 

[Rhett]

It pays off to do it yourself. If you just can't stand getting dirty, then let Jiffy Lube destroy your seals with their machine.

Even if you have a transmission pan drain plug, it's STILL a dirty job doing a flush and fill, but, you only need to do it every 30,000 miles or so.

 

[JayTye4k]

Destroy my seals?? Holy disturbing! Is Jiffy Lube known to "destroy" seals and transimissions? What exactly is a "pan drop" ?

 

[spta97]

Destroy my seals?? Holy disturbing! Is Jiffy Lube known to "destroy" seals and transimissions? What exactly is a "pan drop" ?

Jiffy Lube is a bunch of high school kids who could give a crap about you or your car. I took my old beater car there (cause I didn't care) and in one incident one of the "mechanics" (I use the term lightly) banged into my car with a bag of used oil filters. The other one was topping off tires with an air hose and dragged it along the cars in the way. Another one didn't have enough room to move between cars so he put his hand on my hood and used it for support.

Yea...stay away from them as if they were car jackers. I've got a thread going asking about the flush service at AAMCO which I hope is better.

A pan drop is when you remove the pan and most of the time change the filter and gasket. A transmission flush is getting the all the old fluid out and replacing with new. When you drop the pan you only get like 3 quarts. Jiffy charges them as two separate services.

 

[Ford_Racing_Guy]

thanks to all you guys especially Operahouse, you very helpful and thanks for the link for the filter