Tradesman

Thanks again brother, I'll be doing this process sometime soon! I wouldn't bother with tapping into your torque converter though. Seems a little iffy with the shavings. I'd just stick to your regular drain and refill procedure.

allinon72

Awesome. One question though...the way the drain plug is extended above the pan surface on the inside, wouldn't sediment sit below that level and not drain out?

Especial86

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, sediment heavy enough to settle will never drain out. But the transmission pan is under heavy circulation, so most particles flow onto the magnet, or get sucked into the filter.
I didn't see a lot of particles laying around in the pan when I dropped it. The magnet and filter seemed to do a good job of holding onto that stuff.

One of the best parts of the drain plug IMHO is the fact that it allows pan drops to be very quick and much cleaner. This allows quick access to the filter and magnet for cleaning. One of the key things to be done in prolonging the transmissions life is fresh fluid and a clean filter. This could be because the particles an automatic transmission sheds can be very very fine in consistency, and can not always be filtered away.

Especial86

iTrader: (1)

Glad to help!
Yeah, I think I'm with you on that. The drains, fills and filter swaps are good enough for me. Then I will just keep my fingers crossed that point on... LOL!

1stTruckGuy

I should mention an easier, albeit more expensive option if you are hesitant to drill the hole and worried about leakage. Ford actually makes an OEM pan for our transmissions with a drain plug already installed.

Ford part number:
F8UZ-7A194-AA

Look around, I've seen it go for between 60 and 80 bucks online at various places. I plan on installing one in the next few weeks, nothing beats an OEM upgrade, even if it costs a little bit more than the DIY solution. I don't know why this pan wasn't included stock on all these trucks, thats something all manufacturers should be doing. Oil is oil and anywhere it sits should have a drain plug, end of story.

60DRB

Especial86,
Does the sealant actually bond the inner nut to the pan in your modification? I've seen others do similar mods, but tack welded the nut inside. Not having access to a welder I spent the money for an OEM pan. Your original fluid was very nasty looking! When I did mine at 78K it was a first time fluid change for my truck and it was nowhere near that brownish color. I was slightly shocked at the stuff on the magnet (mine) though. Seeing that was confirmation of the necessity for regular fluid changes.



http://www.tascaparts.com/parts/2006...icleid=1432397

$52.79, Fits all the V8 transmissions for '04-'08.

Barnabas

What truck do you have? on your link it said it cant verify it fits the vehicle?

I have a 05 FX4 and am coming up on 50k miles and was going to go ahead and do diffs and tranny fluid at 50k

ilammw

I have a habit of doing that...lol

Especial86

iTrader: (1)

Anaerobic sealant has the ability to bond/cure in the absence of oxygen, that's why I chose it..
Yes, it does make a gasket bond the way I used it. I used it in conjunction with the provided fiber washer (inside the pan) supplied with the drain plug kit, and my added nylon washer on the outside of the pan.

If your worried about the nut loosening over time, then you can "stake" the nut to the plug body so it won't turn easily again... I got mine tight enough where I didn't think staking the nut was necessary. Staking the nut is basically taking a punch or a screwdriver and "denting" a portion of the nut and threads together...

I would have certainly preferred welding, but I don't have a tig welder that welds aluminum.. If it was a steel pan I would have definitely mig welded it.

When my plug "weeped" at first it was coming from the threads of the plug body... So I put the anaerobic sealant on the first few threads, and also added the pipe thread compound for extra assurance.. It was definitely overkill, but I like overkill on things like this...

The drain plug is $4 in stock at advanced auto parts, and the extra nylon washer is 50 cents.. I already had the anaerobic sealant, and pipe dope. If you have a couple hours to let some RTV cure before you fill the pan you can use that instead of the anaerobic sealant...

I would highly recommend everybody put a plug in there pan. It just makes life so much easier, and it will be a great benefit to the transmission when you start changing the fluid regularly...

If anybody's fluid has not been done before, its a great idea to dump the first fill after your drain plug install after a good week of driving... Then repeat the process until you feel you have removed as many contaminants as you can... After 2 or 3 drain and fills, try to change the fluid every 30,000 miles. Just drop the pan, clean the magnet, and change the filter at these intervals.. New filters usually come with a fresh gasket, so after 3 or 4 pan drops, change the gasket...
I'm going to changing the filter and gasket again in about a week or 2, at this point I'm pouring in my Amsoil ATF 4..

Especial86

iTrader: (1)

This is the hottest temp my transmission reached while driving a half hour home from work yesterday... The tranny is definitely staying much cooler then before.