Transmission flush location
02-10-2017, 03:22 PM
#1
3rd Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Jasper, IN
Posts: 772
Transmission flush location
Hey guys,
2006 V6 automatic
It's that time for me. I called around to different ford dealers and they range from 180-250. Seems high.
Are there other shops you would be ok with soing this job? I dont know what it entails so i dont know its complexity. Carx has a flush for 129. I am ok with them changing the oil, but not sure i trust them with this. Midas? Pep boys?
I am in Indianapolis, so if you know a great place in this area, please let me know.
Thoughts?
2006 V6 automatic
It's that time for me. I called around to different ford dealers and they range from 180-250. Seems high.
Are there other shops you would be ok with soing this job? I dont know what it entails so i dont know its complexity. Carx has a flush for 129. I am ok with them changing the oil, but not sure i trust them with this. Midas? Pep boys?
I am in Indianapolis, so if you know a great place in this area, please let me know.
Thoughts?
Last edited by LordRipberger; 02-10-2017 at 04:31 PM.
02-10-2017, 08:30 PM
#4
Moderator
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Michigan again!
Posts: 8,579
Best bet actually is the dealer. It is pricey, but it also is more complicated and the dealer has the tools. Local quick change won't have the procedure for draining and then filling probably. It requires getting the car and transmission up to operating temperature, and for most accurate filling the final should be done with the car in gear.
There isn't a dipstick, so you drain by pulling the drain plug, and then remove the inner part of the plug before putting it back in place. A filler tube goes inside that and you have to pump the fluid up into the transmission until it starts to drain back. Then put the fill plug back in, start the car, get it to operating temperature and run it through the gears. Pull the fill plug back out and add more fluid until it drains back. Then - start the car again, put it in gear, and pump more fluid in until it drains back out again. The Ford dealer uses a Ford adapter and fill kit; at least the one local to me and local to my office did.
There isn't a dipstick, so you drain by pulling the drain plug, and then remove the inner part of the plug before putting it back in place. A filler tube goes inside that and you have to pump the fluid up into the transmission until it starts to drain back. Then put the fill plug back in, start the car, get it to operating temperature and run it through the gears. Pull the fill plug back out and add more fluid until it drains back. Then - start the car again, put it in gear, and pump more fluid in until it drains back out again. The Ford dealer uses a Ford adapter and fill kit; at least the one local to me and local to my office did.
02-15-2017, 01:22 PM
#7
Gentleman's Relish
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: AZ
Posts: 13,090
Hey guys,
2006 V6 automatic
It's that time for me. I called around to different ford dealers and they range from 180-250. Seems high.
Are there other shops you would be ok with soing this job? I dont know what it entails so i dont know its complexity. Carx has a flush for 129. I am ok with them changing the oil, but not sure i trust them with this. Midas? Pep boys?
I am in Indianapolis, so if you know a great place in this area, please let me know.
Thoughts?
2006 V6 automatic
It's that time for me. I called around to different ford dealers and they range from 180-250. Seems high.
Are there other shops you would be ok with soing this job? I dont know what it entails so i dont know its complexity. Carx has a flush for 129. I am ok with them changing the oil, but not sure i trust them with this. Midas? Pep boys?
I am in Indianapolis, so if you know a great place in this area, please let me know.
Thoughts?
The dealer actually flushes the system. That is they push clean fluid in one line until clean fluid comes out another line. That's different than a simple drain a refill which is what a shop would do. I would not take it to Midas or Pep boys. They most likely don't have the equipment to do a real flush.
You can do a drain and refill (and filter change if you want) in your garage. the Only specialty tool you need is the refill connector to put fluid back in the pan.
You do not have to buy a special tool. You can make one with a 1/8" NPT Male to 1/4" NPT Female and hose barb with a 1/4" NPT male to 3/8" barb or a barb to match the hose size on a tranny fluid funnel like this one:
Then just a few feet of 3/8" clear tubing to connect the barb on the tool to the funnel.
That way you can gravity feed the fluid back into the pan (same as you would any other type of transmission with a dipstick). The only tricky part is leveling out the fluid.
Easiest way is to have the car sitting level on four jack stand Or two front ramps and rear stands) After you've filled up the tranny to where it starts coming back out the fill tube, start the car up, let it run until it warms up. Put it through all the gears, put into park, then reopen the hole where you had your tool and let the excess drain out. As soon as it becomes a dribble. You're done. There's no real way to drain out too much as the design prevents it from happening.
What takes the longest for me is getting it onto and off the jack stands
06-18-2017, 05:28 AM
#8
3rd Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Jasper, IN
Posts: 772
$250 is way high. $170-190 is what they should be charging.
The dealer actually flushes the system. That is they push clean fluid in one line until clean fluid comes out another line. That's different than a simple drain a refill which is what a shop would do. I would not take it to Midas or Pep boys. They most likely don't have the equipment to do a real flush.
You can do a drain and refill (and filter change if you want) in your garage. the Only specialty tool you need is the refill connector to put fluid back in the pan.
You do not have to buy a special tool. You can make one with a 1/8" NPT Male to 1/4" NPT Female and hose barb with a 1/4" NPT male to 3/8" barb or a barb to match the hose size on a tranny fluid funnel like this one:
https://www.amazon.com/Lumax-LX-1603.../dp/B00GD2HYQW
Then just a few feet of 3/8" clear tubing to connect the barb on the tool to the funnel.
That way you can gravity feed the fluid back into the pan (same as you would any other type of transmission with a dipstick). The only tricky part is leveling out the fluid.
Easiest way is to have the car sitting level on four jack stand Or two front ramps and rear stands) After you've filled up the tranny to where it starts coming back out the fill tube, start the car up, let it run until it warms up. Put it through all the gears, put into park, then reopen the hole where you had your tool and let the excess drain out. As soon as it becomes a dribble. You're done. There's no real way to drain out too much as the design prevents it from happening.
What takes the longest for me is getting it onto and off the jack stands
The dealer actually flushes the system. That is they push clean fluid in one line until clean fluid comes out another line. That's different than a simple drain a refill which is what a shop would do. I would not take it to Midas or Pep boys. They most likely don't have the equipment to do a real flush.
You can do a drain and refill (and filter change if you want) in your garage. the Only specialty tool you need is the refill connector to put fluid back in the pan.
You do not have to buy a special tool. You can make one with a 1/8" NPT Male to 1/4" NPT Female and hose barb with a 1/4" NPT male to 3/8" barb or a barb to match the hose size on a tranny fluid funnel like this one:
https://www.amazon.com/Lumax-LX-1603.../dp/B00GD2HYQW
Then just a few feet of 3/8" clear tubing to connect the barb on the tool to the funnel.
That way you can gravity feed the fluid back into the pan (same as you would any other type of transmission with a dipstick). The only tricky part is leveling out the fluid.
Easiest way is to have the car sitting level on four jack stand Or two front ramps and rear stands) After you've filled up the tranny to where it starts coming back out the fill tube, start the car up, let it run until it warms up. Put it through all the gears, put into park, then reopen the hole where you had your tool and let the excess drain out. As soon as it becomes a dribble. You're done. There's no real way to drain out too much as the design prevents it from happening.
What takes the longest for me is getting it onto and off the jack stands
I ended up taking to a dealer that charged about 185. But I might do my own drain and refill at my next 50k miles just to be safe as the car is racking up miles.