Hello everyone, I just wanted to share my recent experience with getting the transmission fluid changed on my '13 Taurus SEL. I bought my car at the end of January with 71k on the clock. 7 months later I'm just shy of 86k, I average about 2000 miles/month. That's quite a bit for a 2-3 year old car. Ford recommends to change the ATF at 150k miles but that seems way, way too high to me. I wanted to change it on my own but I couldn't find a drain plug anywhere, so I started calling around to some local shops. After contacting 2 or 3 reputable, local shops, I found out none of them could do the change, as it requires a special machine to pump the ATF in and out. They all recommended that I just have a Ford dealership do it, as they are probably the only place that can. I gave Eau Claire Ford (I know quite a few of the workers there, family friends) a call and set up an appt to get the ATF flushed. 45 minutes and $190 later I'm back on the road with new ATF. I haven't noticed any big differences in how the car drives/shifts, which is probably a good thing. I'm very glad I did the flush sooner rather than later.
Good information, but I like to change transmission fluid every 30K. My Ford dealer also performs the BG service on the transmission while doing the fluid change. I am also having my rear differential fluid changed when I get the transmission done....
I may be the odd duck again. My average fuel economy over the last two years is 27.9mpg, mostly commuting (mixed driving). On trips, I run in the low 30's no problem.
During the winter, the mpg does drop, but still isn't bad. It also stars to drop off quickly as you get above 75mph.
Good advice I have been thinking about this my 2010 just turned 96k so its due for a transmission flush. Also a FYI most premium gas in WI contains no ethanol and for my car it make a difference in gas mileage
It would have to be a 35% fuel economy increase to be able to justify the cost. The difference in price between standard unleaded and premium in this neck of the woods is outrageous. IIRC I filled up at $2.249/gal with 87, 91 was 2.899/gal.
The BG service I mentioned is a cleaning process that uses a chemical to clean the transmission after the old fluid is removed and the new fluid is put in. They have a bunch of different cleaning for just about all parts that use fluid. I had them do the BG cleaning when I had the PTU fluid changed, I highly recommend it. I will also have them do it when I get the rear differential fluid changed.
If you haven't had the PTU fluid changed, I also recommend you find a dealer that will change it well before the 100K that Ford recommends. We have found that the fluid in the PTU is basically turning into mud between 40 and 50K....I had mine changed at 23K, and plan on having it changed again when I get to about 45K on the car.
There is a drain plug for all transmission types (6F35,50 and 55) I can send a picture up on request. However there are a few things to keep in mind:
- There is no dip stick, you will have to order the right one at Ford (question is if you can even order them as private party)
- The filter is inside the housing and cant be changed without taking the transmission apart
- You need special Mercon LV fluid
Overall, I would not recommend to do this at home but you certainly can.
Mine's a 2010. I have a dip stick. Maybe it's a trim level thing?
The trans in the SHO's is the 6F55.
I suppose if it is a trim level option that came in/with the SHO's only, maybe any of the rest of you could just order the part (from the SHO) & wallah. Done.
That's great, thank yor very much for looking this up. The "cap" looks exactly like on the shop manual and I have to admit that I never removed it yet so I assume it is a dipstick to, just with an odd shape
Glad we could figure it out together!
Aisin is a manufacturer of transmissions. However, the 6F50 is a transmission came out of a joint venture from GM&Ford and is produced by Ford itself - so has nothing to do with Aisin.
Perhaps someone in the know could describe what is done when the transmission is flushed (versus just draining 5 qts from the pan). Do they have to cut into the transmission cooler lines (that feed up to the radiator)? How do they know when all of the 11 qts. has been replaced? Color change? Is there some step (this BG cleaning thingy) that is done between getting all the old fluid out and replacing it with new fluid? When you specify a full flush at the Ford dealer, do you automatically get the BG treatment? I get the sense that if the flush is done at 100k, and it costs $190 at the Ford dealer, this is actually money very well spent.
I'd like some clarification on the points raised above as well. The first dealership I went to and inquired, the guy just shut me down. He was like it's just a waste of $ at this point to do it at 55k miles. I was like... um, okay. It's the first time that a stealership has refused to even talk to me about work. Oh, he quoted something like $300 so I'm glad he just let me walk.
On a side note, is there an easy way to determine the specific transmission that we have in our bull? Is it printed on the bottom like the old Gen4's (AX4N, AX4S, etc)?
I understand that the filter cannot be removed, but, if the fluid can be drained at home maybe it is something I would look into doing. Is the actual cleaning process called BG or was that just the one local place? What does BG stand for? Just want to know before walking in and the service manager looking at me very strangely.
BG service is a company that offers a bunch of cleaning services, everything from transmission, engine coolant, fuel system, and many more...when I had my PTU fluid changed they did the BG service to the PTU. I have also used the upper engine cleaning, fuel system cleaning on various vehicles. The dealer must be a BG dealer in order to do the BG service. If you are not familiar with BG here is a link to their website: https://www.bgprod.com/services/
This company has been around for years and when the latest generation SHO was introduced, they actually purchased one and used it as a test bed for their vehicles...there may still be some info on this floating around on the web, I just haven't looked for it lately. I think they have the best cleaning services available...my Ford dealer is also a BG dealer, but they don't make a big push for the services unless they find you need one done while your vehicle is in their shop...
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