PTU drain plug - shavings?

[Redbull14]

Having my PTU replaced after 120k and a bad “propane” smell at low speeds. Looking to tap the case for a drain plug. Any concern from metal shavings that might get into the case while trying to tap the plug? A local machinery guy told me he would be concerned about that.

 

[Ta2dResqr]

Having my PTU replaced after 120k and a bad “propane” smell at low speeds. Looking to tap the case for a drain plug. Any concern from metal shavings that might get into the case while trying to tap the plug? A local machinery guy told me he would be concerned about that.

Shavings should not go into the case until you break the interior surface. This means most will be out. You can aid this with a vacuum. You can also put grease on your drill bit or tap to help trap the shavings. After it is all done, you can run some fluid through with the drain bolt out to push anything else out.

 

[SM105K]

I drilled mine with grease on the drill bit at the end. However, I wouldn't think twice about a very small amount of aluminum shavings, esp when you are going to be changing the fluid.

 

[Redbull14]

Thanks for the info. BTW, I would gladly have paid an extra .02 for the car for the luxury of having a drain plug to change out the “lifetime” fluid every other year. Wake up Ford….

 

[SM105K]

Thanks for the info. BTW, I would gladly have paid an extra .02 for the car for the luxury of having a drain plug to change out the “lifetime” fluid every other year. Wake up Ford….

The PP PTU's have a drain plug. I have one and I still drilled and tapped mine on the bottom.

 

[SeanDev]

Having my PTU replaced after 120k and a bad “propane” smell at low speeds. Looking to tap the case for a drain plug. Any concern from metal shavings that might get into the case while trying to tap the plug? A local machinery guy told me he would be concerned about that.

When I tapped mine, I ran a quart through just to flush out any remaining shavings. And I tapped while ptu was full, to facilitate shavings coming out.

 

[DouglasB_SHO]

I just had my 105K mile PTU tapped and fitted with a drain (see other threads about PTUs for the source!) My mechanic called me concerned when nothing drained out, and then stuck a screwdriver through the hole and it came out with sludge. He ran a transfluid flush through it for three hours until it was clean. There were no smells or any indication of a problem -- just a late precaution on my part to finally get it tapped, flushed, and filled. From here on out, it will get flushed and filled every 30K.

 

[SeanDev]

If it was that gunked up, good idea is to remove breather tube and stick a pipe cleaner down there to remove sludge, to prevent pressure build up.