windguy

When did you start driving your van? How many miles do you have so far? Was it leaking from the left driveshaft seal? I'd probably have service put a new driveshaft seal on to hold you until Ford comes up with a permanent fix.

If you're interested in transmission issues with other vehicles, check out some info/links I posted in the ProMaster City thread http://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/2922-tc-competition-2015-dodge-promaster-city/?p=9062 There is a link to a decent technical discussion about transmissions, which I provided below as well. http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2014/02/zfs-9-speed-9hp-transmission-puts-dog-clutches-on-the-leash/

Just posted a thread with 2015 Compact Van Options with some discussion of the pending ProMaster City. Hard to keep the same subject in one thread so here's the link http://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/3065-2015-compact-van-options/ As discussed in that other thread, the ProMaster City is using a 9-speed transmission that is currently in the 2014 Jeep Cherokee and is plagued with problems. Wanted to provide a few links that discuss this issue http://www.autonews.com/article/20140526/OEM06/305269979/jeep-9-speed-needs-a-reset-again http://blog.caranddriver.com/short-shift-jeep-cherokee-9-speed-automatic-gets-second-update-for-rough-shifting/ User comments with new Jeeps with this transmission Just purchased 2015 jeep Cherokee and within four days transmission needed to be replaced, no customer service with manufacturer or Kelly dealership in Just dropped off my 2015 Jeep Cherokee Latitude with 1500 miles off at the dealership. Blown transmission. What an unforgivable mistake the Jeep purchase was. Everyone warned me, but I got caught up in the hype. Such a shame. Rotten vehicle. Had my jeep less than 4 months and it was towed to the dealer today because it would not shift into drive. It is the worst automatic shifting vehicle I have ever owned. I hope whatever they do with software update fixes this. I love it otherwise but this is not a little issue!!! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A 9-speed transmission sounds like overkill for the US market but I guess Fiat is trying to squeeze as much fuel economy as possible. Some posters below these articles noted that you'd have to be above 75-80mph to engage the 9th gear and it's geared more for Autobahn type driving, not US Highways. If you're interested in this new 9-speed transmission and transmissions in general, then check out the link below for a more technical discussion. This has some relevance to the 6-speed transmission for the TC and some of the hard shifting drivers are experiencing. http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2014/02/zfs-9-speed-9hp-transmission-puts-dog-clutches-on-the-leash/

My 2015 van is on order, produced and in transit, but with the recent reporting of transmission problems with the 2014 models, I decided to check to see what other van options are out there. Still not too many choices in this market sector. Below I summarized some thoughts regarding the available options and figured I'd share with the forum. I like the new ProMaster City because it's very similar to the TC in many respects so it's a viable alternative. The big issue is the unknown of how reliable it will be since it's a new design with some new components and a 9-speed transmission that's already having issues as noted in the Jeep Cherokee. The order window hasn't opened for this yet so realistically it could be 6+ months or longer till you can get one. Some pre-production models are floating around the US but probably you would be ordering it sight unseen but always have the right to change your mind later if needed. 2015 Nissan NV200 / 2015 Chevy City Express - The City Express is a re-badged NV200. To me the van doesn't look as good as a TC though my wife thinks "it's cute" so perhaps I'm missing something. Smaller 2.0L engine with less HP and Torque compared to the TC with better city gas mileage (24 vs 21) but not highway (26 vs 29). No trailer hitch option so you can't tow with it. Better drivetrain warranty at 5yr/100,000 miles. The TC is 5yr/60,000 miles. It's not a bad looking van and I've seen a lot of them on the road for fleet type use. If the NY City Taxis are using then they must be decent for city type driving, unless the drivers and mechanics have another opinion. 2014 RAM C/V Tradesman - Production has ended on this model a few months ago. No 2015's will be made in anticipation of its replacement, the ProMaster City. The C/V is a Dodge Caravan without seats and some amenities but with a beefed up suspension and transmission cooling. It looks very "mini-van" like from the outside if you get the optional windows on the sliders, rear quarter and back hatch. Because the C/V is 203" in length I thought I'd get a little extra cargo area length, but you need to have the seats positioned all the way forward in order to get that spec'd 99" of space, otherwise it's only about 87". The passenger seat does not fold forward so you don't get to use that area for extra long cargo. There is open space between the seats, no center console. The gear shifter is mounted on the dash, very strange location. The rear opening is a lift gate only, so if you have a low garage opening of 80" like I do, the hatch stands up to around 84", so that's a small problem. Lots of plastic around the rear hatch area reduces the height of the cargo area. The roof is sloped side to side and front to back so that reduces the cargo area as well. Seats were only two way on both sides, front/back and the seat back reclining somewhat. I had limited visibility at the visor at 6'-2, unlike the TC that has lots of head room with a nice big window view. The C/V has a V6 with lots of HP and torque but gas mileage is 18/26. Proven engine and transmission, hard to find these days with new vehicles. Made in Ontario Canada and priced competitively. 2015 RAM ProMaster City - The Tradesman is the cargo version. The RAM fleet manager at my local dealer was just told these won't be made until the March timeframe. It's a brand new van based on the Fiat Doblo from Europe. Everything about this vehicle is similar to the TC except there is no SWB version, only LWB. Made in the TOFAS plant in Bursa, Turkey and processed in Maryland like a TC having the cargo versions modified after import, which means probably a similar wait time to get one when ordering (4-6 months). Almost all the specs are the same or in some areas "one upped" so they can claim "best in class" bragging rights. Examples - HP - 178 vs 169 for the TC. Payload is 1,883 vs 1,620 pounds. Cargo Volume is 131.7 vs 128.6 cu-ft. Better drivetrain warranty at 5yr/100,000 miles. Some specs are still a bit vague but most are available. Gas mileage the same at 21/29. So how reliable is the new 9-speed transmission that it will have? If you search on this you'll find that this transmission was first used in the 2014 Jeep Cherokee and has had lots of mechanical problems. The bugs don't appear to be ironed out yet so not sure what the status is. The rear barn doors are a 60/40 split, with the bigger door on the driver's side. My preference is for 50/50 doors so it doesn't stick out any further than it needs to for tight parallel parking spaces. You can order windows for the slider doors and rear doors. The window panel on the ProMaster City appears to be not as wide compared to the TC. Not sure about the slider opening width between the two. Appearance wise it's a toss-up. Some aspects look better than the TC and others don't. I could live with either and be happy. Link to a review http://www.allpar.com/trucks/ram/ProMaster-city.html

When I said "they don't have much choice", I was referring to Ford. They need to fix this problem. Their reputation and product is at stake. The Nissan NV200's specs aren't as good as the TC but I haven't checked its reliability. I've been doing some research on small cargo vans the last week and I will make a post in the 2015 TC van thread regarding what I've found out. Stay tuned!

I had that same question at first. It's the drive shaft seal leaking problem. Chris posted that in another thread, which you've commented on. http://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/3064-left-front-axle-leaking-transmission-fluid/#entry9057

glad you like the van, except for the recent problems, understandable. good to know it's working out for your special requirements. shows the versatility of the design. some others have posted recently about getting snow tires as well and where to source extra wheels. I'd be worried too, but I'm pretty confident that Ford will sort out this transmission problem soon. They don't have much choice since there is a lot at stake here. Luckily it's not a problem that leaves the van unusable, except when it's in the shop getting fixed, multiple times. when you get a chance, consider creating your own Photo Gallery, which is easy to do, and post some pics of your new ride and travels. you can easily attach pics from your Gallery to any posts you make (My Media option in the Toolbar). thanks

Chris, Thanks for sharing your info. Sorry to hear about the transmission leaking fluid. Below is the link to a pretty active thread documenting this very same problem along with hard shifting between gears 1/2 and 5/6. Have you experienced that problem also? http://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/2972-2014-transit-connect-lt-lwb-transmission-shifting-issue-any-one/ Please keep us posted on what happens with your TC How do you like ride of the van? Thanks

Chris, thanks for the update Glad you got that fixed

appreciate your honest answer. thanks I plan to discuss the transmission issues with my sales rep and let him research it with Ford. The one part I don't get is aren't vehicles road tested and lab tested prior to production to put miles on it and find any problems before they start pumping them out? It's not like this problem is happening after 100,000 miles. It's right at the start of use with low miles. I'm totally bummed.

So you have less than 3,000 miles of city driving and you already have transmission fluid leaking. that's pretty messed up. So it's obvious that Ford has a big problem with either the design or on the manufacturing end or both and they know about it. In reading Jimmyboost's post, the driveshaft seals are faulty, the bushings and driveshaft are suspect. It's clear that Ford has already introduced some mods based on Jimmyboost's wording: "Three different LH bushings in the first transmission (including updated part)" and "Updated LH driveshaft with improved surface finish" but he's saying it hasn't fixed the leaking problem nor the hard shifting so Ford hasn't figured this problem out yet. All at the expensive of the owners with these vehicles. I'd love to know the percentage of failure for this. Usually it's only the ones with a problem that you hear from but in Johnyguy's case, he wouldn't have known about the leak if he didn't inspect the vehicle himself so there may be others out there that have no idea their transmissions are leaking fluid. As bad as it is having to get this repaired and Ford is paying the repair costs, what happens when the warranty is over, 5 years or 60,000 miles. Will you be spending thousand of dollars to fix these parts every few years because the transmission is sub-standard? I seriously thought about canceling my order that last few days after reading about these problems, even though my ordered van is already built and in transit. The sole reason for getting a new car was to buy me reliability and avoid the repair headaches I have with my 1995 wagon. heck, the wagon's transmission is a little clunky at times but at least it doesn't leak and it has 173,000 miles on it. Sorry I'm ranting but my overall enthusiasm for the TC is quickly fading. I've got a few weeks before this van hits the dealer's lot so I hope others can post some positive news regarding these transmission problems.

@johnyguy i checked out your pics. that doesn't look very good. is that your transmission or from your last oil change? BTW - any pics that you have in your gallery you can easily attach to your posts. In the toolbar above is an option labeled "My Media". Select that and then select a pic from your gallery. Easy peasy Also noticed that the file size limit for File Attachments is now 4.88MB. used to be something like 500KB. That's cool.

@103west43rd thanks for your input as always

welcome to the forum. thanks for sharing your story. sorry to hear about your transmission problems. sounds like a real nightmare. I read through some of the posts regarding the 6F35 transmission. that's depressing. Strange that a lot of these problems were back in 2010. You would think that by 2014 the issues would be corrected. wonder what the overall failure rate is for all vehicles that have this transmission. the part that worries me is that you have to wait 6 months to get an ordered van so even if you run into problems, getting a replacement isn't a simple solution. I guess you have to accept that when getting into a TC. hope you can get this sorted out. please keep us posted

@daedalus It's good you are exploring your options. 6-8 hours seems like a long time to do that job. That would be the extreme worst case To me, perhaps two hours. An hour to find the right wire and an hour to install the switch. I guess it depends on how much time it takes to remove coverings below the dash. That's an unknown to me. I like your idea of covering the lights as a temporary fix. I had a similar idea using windshield tinting material that's removable. My wife uses this material on car windows to reduce glare and on a bright clock radio. Easy to put on and take off. see the link for an example. There are different grades. Go for the darkest. No taping involved if you can get it to stick okay to a non-flat surface. http://www.amazon.com/Gila-JS246-Static-Control-Automotive/dp/B00062YZXU/ref=pd_sim_auto_5?ie=UTF8&refRID=1AWRZTYRF5T1SF7P9DRR I'd be a bit wary of removing a connector if you're doing it often. That may cause more problems than it's intended for. hopefully in the future you can find a more permanent solution. getting a wiring diagram for the van would be helpful. good luck!

Carl, Bummer your van is so close but in limbo. I wouldn't cancel the order. Even after it's delivered, don't think you're obligated to buy it and can get your deposit back. Since the dealer ordered it then they will be getting the van regardless. Have you ever seen the Seinfeld episode where they are waiting in a Chinese Restaurant to be seated and it's taking forever to get a table. They finally give up and leave and no sooner do they walk out the door that their name is called. It's a fine example of the irony in life not knowing when waiting. You call up to cancel and drive by the dealer a few days later and the van is there and they sold it to someone else. As I recall, another poster, Keywestles, had a similar issue. http://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/2528-waiting-for-my-2014-tc/?hl=keywestles#entry7189 The van was in limbo in Maryland for a long time. After complaining the dealer he was able to get some movement from Ford. Perhaps you can do the same. Take it up the ladder with Ford. Curious, is this a big or small Ford dealership? I wonder if cash flow or vehicle allocation has anything to do with deliveries. Please keep us posted

hard to believe NJ still won't let you pump your own fuel. used to live there until 1984, exit 137. unless you're watching the attendant you have no idea how much extra fuel they are trying to add. I remember reading in the manual with a big warning not to overfill. See below. Do not overfill the fuel tank. The pressure in an overfilled tank may cause leakage and lead to fuel spray and fire. A fuel spillage concern may occur if overfilling the fuel tank. Do not overfill the tank to the point that the fuel is able to bypass the fuel filler nozzle. The overfilled fuel may run down the drain located below and in front of the fuel filler door.

nice looking tires/wheels thanks for sharing info and pics

bummer add a keypad if you can and you'll cover that problem if it happens again.

thanks for the input. that lighting scenario is whacked. I'm missing the benefit of having those lights come on when any door is opened. It would be great to talk to someone on the Ford design team to find out the logic behind this. We need an inside Ford person on this forum to help us with issues like this. You would think one of them would be interested (curious) how end users like their product and use the feedback to enhance their future designs or make mods. I would if I was part of this team. hope you can find a solution to this. keep us posted regarding your van config, glad to hear you're happy with that. a small cargo van has a lot of benefits.

sorry to hear that. what do other people do that show up to these events with their vehicle lights? since I don't have a van yet, which lights come on when you open the doors? which doors control them - driver, passenger, sliders, rear? like your color choice, same as mine

thanks for doing that. yeah, I'll be posting away with lots of pics when I get the van. until then, back to the waiting game

good thing you pulled over. sorry to hear about the hassle. hope you can get it fixed up easily

perhaps you can reach out to Ford Service through the Ford TC Facebook page. There are several Ford employees that monitor that site. Worth a shot. https://www.facebook.com/FordTransitConnectWagon BTW - I was always curious to see a picture of Daedalus, interesting. didn't realize he was a cigar smoker. seemed more of the pipe type to me PS - don't forget to post some pics of your van, perhaps in your own Gallery

why?