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Transmission fluid level?

J

JamesV1

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I apologize for the double post If you're in the Facebook group as well.

My 1-2 as well as sometimes 2-3 shifts are pretty slow in comparison to the higher gears and noticed some jerkiness. I know there's been a lot underfilled from the factory and decided to have a look. Granted this is not fully up to temp, I had done a few short drives in the day and let the exhaust cool off a bit. 1000000119.jpg
 

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WaferTech

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JamesV1 said:
I apologize for the double post If you're in the Facebook group as well.

My 1-2 as well as sometimes 2-3 shifts are pretty slow in comparison to the higher gears and noticed some jerkiness. I know there's been a lot underfilled from the factory and decided to have a look. Granted this is not fully up to temp, I had done a few short drives in the day and let the exhaust cool off a bit. View attachment 21483
Click to expand...
https://www.foexplorer.com/ford_explorer_general_procedures_transmission_fluid_level_check-779.html

https://www.foexplorer.com/ford_exp..._transmission_fluid_drain_and_refill-777.html
 

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Cdubya

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Yup, make sure the service manual is followed, otherwise any level is meaningless.
 

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JamesV1

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Cdubya said:
Yup, make sure the service manual is followed, otherwise any level is meaningless.
Click to expand...
To add a bit of detail I had brought this in earlier and they said the trans was fine in their drive around the lot. In all honesty the fluid level SHOULD have been checked by the dealer at that time just to verify and cover their bases. This is more of a step further on my end to show that "Hey maybe you should have a closer look" I did a roughly 15-20min drive let it cool off, pulled into the garage and checked while running, I don't have an exact temp for the gauge but it looked pretty close to the center but the exhaust cool enough to do a little quick work. So this will hopefully get them to do an actual eval of it.

Still working on getting them to find the coolant leak but thats another issue
 

UNBROKEN

UNBROKEN

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There’s a half ass trans temp gauge in the tow screen or you can put the car into engineering test mode. You need to be at full operating temp or you’re wasting your time. Checking it cold is pointless.
 

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Cdubya

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JamesV1 said:
To add a bit of detail I had brought this in earlier and they said the trans was fine in their drive around the lot. In all honesty the fluid level SHOULD have been checked by the dealer at that time just to verify and cover their bases. This is more of a step further on my end to show that "Hey maybe you should have a closer look" I did a roughly 15-20min drive let it cool off, pulled into the garage and checked while running, I don't have an exact temp for the gauge but it looked pretty close to the center but the exhaust cool enough to do a little quick work. So this will hopefully get them to do an actual eval of it.

Still working on getting them to find the coolant leak but thats another issue
Click to expand...
Maybe because your car is 4 years old, they don't want to do much with it. That said, I brought mine to my dealer in 2020 and they checked the trans fluid level (may have even topped it off because it was high now). They also did a PCM firmware update. Much better partial throttle shifting IMHO. I would also urge you to remove the rectangular undercarriage cover and look for an oil leak. If you have a bad front axle disconnect actuator leak, you may have no oil left in your front differential. Not sure what warranty you have left.
 

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JamesV1

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Cdubya said:
Maybe because your car is 4 years old, they don't want to do much with it. That said, I brought mine to my dealer in 2020 and they checked the trans fluid level (may have even topped it off because it was high now). They also did a PCM firmware update. Much better partial throttle shifting IMHO. I would also urge you to remove the rectangular undercarriage cover and look for an oil leak. If you have a bad front axle disconnect actuator leak, you may have no oil left in your front differential. Not sure what warranty you have left.
Click to expand...

I've got an extended warranty, made sure to cover details of what is and is not before purchasing
 

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WaferTech

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JamesV1 said:
I've got an extended warranty, made sure to cover details of what is and is not before purchasing
Click to expand...
Just out of curiosity, how did you access the transmission fluid level dipstick. Did you use a lift?
 

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Did an oil change yesterday and had my mechanic check the transmission oil level since I was getting a hesitation from a 1-2 shift during a hard launch on zfg 93 tune. Mechanic said they had to add almost a whole quart more of transmission oil! Only have 22,000 miles on it, can't believe ford filled these up so low. Shifts are nice and crispy now!
 

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Saleen90

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Btw my mechanic said it was pain to check.....drove it around 15-20 minutes, put it on the lift, check the tranny dipstick, fill it up, drive it around again for another 15-20 minutes, put it on the lift, check tranny dipstick again to confirm it was good
 

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