Background: I've owned my 2014 King Ranch screw 5.0 2WD for almost 4 years. 105K miles when I bought it and 161K now. shifting has always been smooth until a few days ago. I also had my mechanic change out fluids at around 120K, but I'm out of town so I can't check to see if tranny fluid was done. But I think it was.

Probably unrelated, but I did get an oil change on Friday. (4 days ago) I didn't realize I was close before I left town and the monitor came on about a week ago. Checked and I was right at 10K miles so didn't want to wait until I got home.

Issue: I had noticed a few rough shifts recently, so yesterday I paid closer attention. Every shift from 2-3 was hard, whether accelerating gently or quickly. Also most from 4-5 were also hard. All other upshifts were smooth and all downshifts were smooth.

My concern is that I am away from home, and will be driving from Iowa to Texas this Saturday - approximately 1000 miles. I'd prefer not to put it in the shop this week and have to delay my return, or deal with an unfamiliar shop and mechanic. Does this sound like something serious, or am I likely to make it home with no issues?

Thanks!

 

Unhook the battery for 15 minutes, see what happens to the shifting the next few days.

I would recommend switching to 5000 mile oil changes.

 

.

 

Thank you. Are you saying the simple act of changing oil and, I assume, resetting the IOLM qualifies as a repair? That is the only thing that's been done to my truck since I've owned it. That and the fluid changes that I mentioned that happened over a year ago.

The process seems simple enough, and certainly can't do any harm, so I will find an open stretch of road and try this tomorrow.

 

Any specific reason or research for your recommendation on oil change timing? I generally change oil around 8-10K or when I get the IOLM reminder. Whichever comes first. And I only use premium full synth oil.

Soon after buying my truck and joining this forum, I read this sticky.
https://www.f150forum.com/f38/when-s...mation-372752/

If you are disagreeing with this, then you need to provide a pretty strong argument. Besides, I don't believe there is any connection between engine oil and the transmission. If I'm wrong, please set me straight.

 

Changing the trans oil is not a standard service fluid on this truck, it should be, but go tell Ford that. So yes, certainly make sure it was changed when you're able to check - if not, get it done ASAP, you want a pan drop, new filter, new ATF, make sure it's either Ford's MerconLV or better still, Amsoil OE fuel efficient ATF.

For the time being, the suggestion to reset the PCM as mentioned is your best bet, it will force the trans to relearn itself, see how it goes over the course of the long journey. Don't worry about performing that drivecycle, just get the reset done.

I'll also echo the oil change interval, the 10k change is absurd, 5000 miles or less is more realistic. Realistically, 62k for new ATF is also realistic, per the original design of the transmission, ZF.

 

Yeah, we all read that link, just consider the following.

1) The OLM does not know the state of the oil, it's a guess, based solely on known information, such as, drive cycle length, temperature, amount of throttle opening, fuel type used, how much idling, how much high speed etc etc.
2) Advertising a truck for sale that has a low cost of ownership (only need oil every 10k, "never" need to change ATF) is great for the showrooms and it *does* in fact help for the CAFE ratings for Ford, so it's in their interest to extend these things.
3) Service intervals given by manufacturers are the *minimum* amount of servicing required to meet warranty requirements.
4) You'll not find a mechanic, engine builder, or person that tears down engines that would recommend *any* engine does more than 5-6k miles on an oil change. The engines cost so much, the oil changes are pennies.

You're right about no connection between engine oil and transmission, otherwise you've got a much larger problem

There is potential for there to be cracks in the solenoids (i am trying to remember a recent post) that is present, allow leakage of ATF through them and result in a harsh shift when hot - however, until you can confirm if you're on the factory ATF, i wouldn't worry too much, a change of the ATF would be the first thing i'd try in your situation.

 

"Why gather data about your oil in order to make actual informed decisions when your truck can guess for you??"

The "Ford knows best" mentality fades away pretty quickly when you realize why Ford recommends 5W20 oil in the Coyote. Hint: It's not because 5W20 provides the best protection and longest engine life. I keep banging on and on about this, but Ford ONLY cares that your truck make it through the warranty period. After that they don't give a fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck what happens. Every decision they make is intended to reduce cost of production and assembly and ensure reliable operation through the warranty. That's it. Fluid weights and change intervals included. If you have an older, higher-mileage vehicle, it's on you to learn a bit and understand what you need to do to keep it going. Covering your ears and going, "LA LA LA I CAN'T HEAR YOU MY TRUCK KNOWS BEST" isn't a winning strategy.

An oil change costs me about $35 for the 7 quarts and Motorcraft filter. Worst case I'm changing the oil twice as often as I need to if I'm doing 5000mi vs. 10,000mi. So I'm spending about $70 extra per year in hopes that it makes even a tiny, minute difference in the life of the engine.

That seems like a reasonable tradeoff to me, especially considering how the IOLM wasn't really set up to account for an engine with nearly 300,000 miles on it and all of the variables introduced getting to that mileage.

 

I appreciate all the input, and I respect your opinions, but I didn't intend for this thread to turn into another "when do I change my oil" thread. There are plenty of those already. But the truth is, all you guys are giving me is "your opinion." Is it "better" to perform oil changes more often? Maybe. It certainly doesn't hurt anything in your engine. But if it's not necessary, then it's just a waste of time, money and resources. I started buying cars with small, high performance, turbocharged engines about ten or more years ago. I did all the research then. And literally EVERYTHING I've ever read confirms that premium synthetic oil properly protects engines well beyond 10K miles under normal, light load operating conditions. I rarely tow or load down the back of my truck with thousands of pounds of heavy equipment. So unless there is some new, respected study that says otherwise, I'm going to follow the experts, as opposed the to the opinions of internet strangers.

I do GREATLY appreciate the guidance on my transmission issue, which was exactly what I came here for. Thank you all very much for pointing me in the right direction for that.

 

i hope for your sake its not the start of the lead frame issue. Definitely check the ATF level