Fifty150 Posted December 1, 2018 Author Share Posted December 1, 2018 Nope. Dealership tech did the work. I doubt if ha or she saved the broken part. I didn't ask for it either. I don't care. Free is free. But not free. Covered under warranty. Built into the purchase price. I'm glad Ford covered the towing also. 5 year warranty is better than 3 year warranty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhotoAl Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 Glad it was fixed and without too much trouble. That wheel damage is pretty amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
windguy Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 @Fifty150 - glad you got your van fixed under warranty and you're back on the road. That must have been one heck of a pot hole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted December 3, 2018 Author Share Posted December 3, 2018 Road hazards in The City are everywhere. Construction, neglected maintenance, storm damage...... I have hit so many potholes that is impossible to even guess which one did it. There are a few miles of freeway by the airport which are full of potholes for you to hit at 70 MPH. Never had a problem with trucks & Jeeps. The little low profile tire is just not as road hazard resistant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herb Posted December 4, 2018 Share Posted December 4, 2018 This transmission issue with Transit Connects scares me a bit , it's the most commented on issue i have seen on these vans , i really hope this can be avoided but it sounds like it's destined to happen once you get up in the mileage department . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beta Don Posted December 5, 2018 Share Posted December 5, 2018 That depends - If you think the Gen 2 trans is a 'lifetime, maintenance-free' thing as Ford advertises, then you may find it's 'lifetime' is less than 100K. But, if you drain and refill all the fluid in it (not easy to do, I'll admit) every 25K or so with a quality synthetic ATF, I'm thinking (hoping, really) it may last several times that long. Nothing lasts forever, but well maintained things tend to last longer than others. It is a shame Ford made it so hard to service - No dipstick and not even a fill port to add fluid, but a determined owner can find work arounds for those omissions Don herb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herb Posted December 5, 2018 Share Posted December 5, 2018 No fill port and no dipstick huh ........... well thats just great really great . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted December 5, 2018 Author Share Posted December 5, 2018 About a decade or so ago, Ford claimed that the 4R75E 4 speed transmission was maintenance free. All that you had to do was check the dipstick. For what? I don't know. You will see the fluid turning dark. But nothing matters if you are not suppose to service it. That transmission was the updated version of the AOD & 4R70 transmissions that they used 1980. It came with a pan that did not have a drain plug, and no way to drain the torque converter. Every dealership did service it. The dealerships would not say no to an extra couple of hundred dollars to flush it with a fluid exchange machine. Amazing how a little maintenance on a maintenance free transmission, will offset catastrophic failure. Ford is not alone in the world of "lifetime" transmissions. Toyota, VW, Mercedes.....have all offered a version of a "lifetime" sealed transmission. No automaker can make a transmission which does not wear, with fluid which does not break down. At the dealership level, they use a machine to flush the 6F35. In the days of yore and yesteryear, flushing a transmission was considered a sin. The belief was that flushing did more harm than good. Some people felt it better to leave the contaminated tranny fluid in, and just wait for the rebuild. Modern transmission service equipment does not use a pump of any sort to damage the transmission with pressure. The typical dealership uses a machine with collects your contaminated fluid from the cooling line, and allows fresh fluid to refill your transmission from the return line. Even Jiffy Lube has that type of machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beta Don Posted December 5, 2018 Share Posted December 5, 2018 10 hours ago, herb said: No fill port and no dipstick huh ........... well thats just great really great . There is a way to fill it and there is also a way to check the fluid level - Ford just wants you to let the dealer do it for a couple hundred bucks, but the owner can do it too. I did mine at 25K and will continue to service it at regular intervals. I would probably let my local Ford dealer do it too, but both of them have proven that they're not to be trusted touching my van Don herb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted December 6, 2018 Author Share Posted December 6, 2018 On the side of the 6F35 transmission case, there is a fill level plug. You can open the plug, and fill your transmission up to that point which it reaches the port and begins to trickle out. When filling from there, it is impossible to overfill. Other members have filled their transmissions from the breather cap on the top. One easy strategy is to use a paint mix bucket with measurement lines to indicate how much you drained out. Then refill with the exact same amount. This is not accurate if you drain hot fluid and add cold fluid. But should be okay if you drain cold fluid, and add cold fluid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted December 6, 2018 Author Share Posted December 6, 2018 I feel that the machines do a better job of exchanging fluid. When you do it by adding fresh fluid, running the vehicle to bring the transmission back up to operating temperature, then draining again, then refilling again.......you are mixing fresh fluid with contaminated fluid. Sure, it makes sense. Do it 3 times, and you will have diluted the contaminated fluid with enough new fluid, so that even if not 100% fresh fluid, it's better than 100% contaminated fluid. I like being able to drain the pan, refill fresh fluid into the pan, then start pumping out old fluid from the cooling line as you add fresh fluid. With that process, I can see the fluid leaving the line, and continue doing it until clean fluid is being pumped out. Then I know that only fresh fluid is in the system. That's a tried and true old school fluid exchange which has worked on a lot of older cars. Does anyone have a service manual which shows the cooling and return lines for Transit Connect, and how to disconnect the line at the radiator? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beta Don Posted December 6, 2018 Share Posted December 6, 2018 7 minutes ago, Fifty150 said: On the side of the 6F35 transmission case, there is a fill level plug. You can open the plug, and fill your transmission up to that point which it reaches the port and begins to trickle out. You need to have the engine and trans (and fluid) warmed up and in Park, the engine running and the van level front to back and side to side and then you remove the plug and begin adding fluid. When it begins to trickle out, replace the plug and the level is correct Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G B L Posted December 6, 2018 Share Posted December 6, 2018 I Won't be near my service manual till the weekend will post a picture then. I Think the Transmission cooler is on a thermostat so some of the fluid will be mixed any way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fifty150 Posted December 6, 2018 Author Share Posted December 6, 2018 Most modern transmissions have some sort of transmission cooler bypass. The fluid has to reach a certain temperature, otherwise it flows right back to the transmission without going to the cooling system. Same way your coolant stays in the engine until it is warm enough to open the thermostat. In a lot of transmissions, this could be a point of failure. Hot fluid stays in the transmission until it overheats. For those who have exchanged their own fluid with Transit Connect: with your vehicle in Park, and idling, how long does it take before the transmission reaches a proper operating temperature? I don't want to sit on the curb for 45 minutes, breathing exhaust fumes, waiting for a car that isn't moving, to warm up the transmission from a cold start. How are you guys checking your transmission fluid temperature? Are you reading from the OBDII port? Any special tool, or app? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G B L Posted December 6, 2018 Share Posted December 6, 2018 I use a scan tool, the trans runs around 175 degrees. It hold this on a reasonably flat highway, even pulling a trailer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.