2015 EcoBoost shifting HARD into third gear (3rd gear)

[SHOdded]

5/60 is a good interval for coolant and transmission fluid changes, under normal driving conditions. If driven leadfooted-ly and/or tuned, cut those intervals in half.

One way to make it less tedious is timing the work with an oil change. For instance, an oil change, coolant drain/fill, and trans drain/fill that coincides on an annual basis.

The transmission has a drain plug and the coolant has a plastic petcock to help facilitate DIY.

 

[StealBlueSho]

Cant check the fluid cold. It has to be up to normal operating temp. Since there is no trans temp gauge on the car, the easiest way to read it is with an OBDII adapter and software to access the data.

I used the OBDLINK MX Bluetooth adapter but a VEEPEAK will work just as well for this purpose. Most people are using Torque Pro software with the adapter. Forscan Lite is an option, but unlike TQP, it is not customizable.

What is considered normal operating temp? 140F+?


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[StealBlueSho]

Nevermind...

180F - 200F is normal operating temps.... I have never seen temps that high on my 2016 PP with the aux cooler... 170’s max...

http://www.fordservicecontent.com/F...tleSelected=G1639363&topicHRef=G1639364&div=f


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[paul bamford]

5/60 is a good interval for coolant and transmission fluid changes, under normal driving conditions. If driven leadfooted-ly and/or tuned, cut those intervals in half.

One way to make it less tedious is timing the work with an oil change. For instance, an oil change, coolant drain/fill, and trans drain/fill that coincides on an annual basis.

The transmission has a drain plug and the coolant has a plastic petcock to help facilitate DIY.

Great comment, but I have a few questions. Lingo is not my strong suit. 5/60 means? Then you said annual change for all fluids? We all do oil more often then that. I live in Indy, cold and hot temps...we get the run of the mill temp wise here. Do you have the same elements...? Just a few things I am thinking of.

What about the PTU fluid change? How often for that?

Going out in garage now to check all the fluids and i'll try to take some pics...more to come guys...again, thanks for all the help.

 

[tech10002]

Great comment, but I have a few questions. Lingo is not my strong suit. 5/60 means? Then you said annual change for all fluids? We all do oil more often then that. I live in Indy, cold and hot temps...we get the run of the mill temp wise here. Do you have the same elements...? Just a few things I am thinking of.

What about the PTU fluid change? How often for that?

Going out in garage now to check all the fluids and i'll try to take some pics...more to come guys...again, thanks for all the help.

5 years or 60000 miles, half that if you’re tuned. PTU is a good idea tuned or not. From what I’ve read, 20 to 30k is a good interval. I’m going to do mine every 20. Probably should change RDU fluid too at a similar interval if tuned.

 

[SHOdded]

5 years 60,000 miles. I was not saying to change oil once a year lol. I meant if you change it regularly say twice a year, every other oil change could become a time to drain/fill the fluids also. There are a lot of people who do this across makes and models, not just the SHO.

PTU fluid changes every 2 years/30,000 miles is a good rule of thumb. Sooner if the SHO is driven hard - taxi, tow, extended idling, racing, etc. RDU at every other PTU fluid change.

We do get similar conditions here in MD, how low the temps go and for how long depends on the specific part of the state. Pennsylvania winters are brutal tho.

 

[OmaHahn]

Look at the condition and color of the fluid. If it looks burnt I would change it. If it's low you need to find the cause since it is a sealed system. I usually don't look at autotranny fluid change until 100kish give or take for regular use and much sooner if heavy use. (towing, track, heavy foot etc.). You will need to watch all the fluids in the drivetrain. You have several items that require change of fluids at some point.

Drivetrain failures are no joke and not uncommon on these cars so make sure it's tip top before the extended warranty runs out

Totally agree and use your nose! You will definitely know when you smell an old burnt tranny fluid!

 

[SHOdded]

There is a "TStat" for the transmission, also called a bypass valve. Under a certain temp, just like the engine TStat, it keeps fluid from circulating out to the cooler. The trans TStat for the non-PP setup is different from the one for the PP setup. The PP TStat opens earlier, I would have to check postings over on EBPF to confirm exactly how much earlier. But that is an easy upgrade for the non-PP setup to keep the trans happier. If trans temp is triple digits or above (personal opinion), I think you are good to go for normal driving/quick bursts of performance driving. Extended sessions of performance driving really should wait till near/at operating temps.

Taken from comparisons on BITOG back in 2007, temps in Centigrade
temp Amsoil ATF PetroCanada Mobil1 ATF RedlineD4
-40 8820 9535 4708 5111
-20 1074 1052 762 798
0 237 220 200 205
20 77 70.2 73.6 74.3
40 33.5 29.8 34 34
60 17.4 15.4 18.5 18.4
80 10.4 9.1 11.4 11.2
100 6.8 6 7.6 7.5
120 4.8 4.24 5.44 5.36

We see normal temps around 80C (176F+) to be in the 10+ range. 40C (100F+) is about 30+ range. So I figure anything at or above a comfortable range for humans in temperate climates is a good rule of thumb for engines and transmissions as well. Not sure why it works out that way, but it does.

 

[SHOdded]

old old reference but if anyone has access maybe they could pull/post this article?
1960-01-01
Automatic Transmission Fluid Viscosity at Low Temperature and its effect on transmission performance 600049
A LOW-TEMPERATURE study of the relationship between the performance of a step-type automatic transmission and the transmission fluid viscosity is reported in this paper.
It is shown that the low-temperature malfunction of these units is due to the viscometric properties of the fluid and that at the temperature at which the fluid reaches a certain critical viscosity the transmission will fail. A mathematical analysis of the mechanism of failure supports the conclusions drawn from the experimental study.*
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4271/600049
Citation: Selby, T., "Automatic Transmission Fluid Viscosity at Low Temperature and its effect on transmission performance," SAE Technical Paper 600049, 1960, https://doi.org/10.4271/600049.
Download Citation
Author(s): Theodore W. Selby
Affiliated: Research Laboratories, General Motors Corp.
Pages: 11