Leveled F150

Can anyone tell me what all is done when your transmission gets serviced? And will it make a noticeable difference in the way the truck drives and shifts or not really?

Storm Chasing Ford

I'd like to know that too, as my truck is going in to have transmission service done here pretty soon.

chromefonica

It depends on how many miles you have on it. If you have a lot of miles (150K) on it and have never had the tranny serviced before, you probably want to do a couple of fluid and filter changes over a couple thousand mile periods. If you have if flushed with that much wear on it you mind end up pushing some of the metal flakes and crud all through the tranny and possibly messing up. If you have under 100K on it, I would have the trans flushed.

If you are just doing a fluid and filter change it is easy. Pull the pan off (there will be tranny fluid in it so expect it to spill). When I did it on my old truck I pulled all of the bolts out aside from 2 on opposite corners which I left in about 2 threads to hold the pan up. I put a trash bag over the pan so it wouldn't spill everywhere and removed the 2 remaining bolts. Drain the fluid from the pan. Pull the filter off. Put the new filter on. Bolt the pan back up (the gasket is reuseable if it isn't torn). Add fluid. Done.

Side note: There will most likely be a plug rolling around loose in the pan when you take it off. You can throw it away. It just plugs the end of the filler tube when the tranny is being assembled at the factory. When they install the dipstick it pushes the plug out into the pan.

Leveled F150

Thanks man. What about driving and shifting? Did it make a difference? And also I have 124k on the truck and I dk if it's ever been flushed. Should I have that done?

chromefonica

Are you having shifting issues? I was having some with mine. That why I decided to service it. But I had 180k on it and I had bought it used. So I wasn't sure if the trans had been serviced before. The truck had 60k when I bought it. But it did start to smooth out after the second fluid and filter change. I think you would be ok for a full service with a flush.

Leveled F150

It's not that it's shifting bad just a Lil hard sometimes and it feels like its slipping a Lil when i stop andI turn hard. Like taking a right turn from a stop sign. And it just feels sluggish.

60DRB

Just did the pan-drop partial fluid (only got about 5 1/2 quarts out) & filter change on mine yesterday. It has about 78K and I'm the third owner... The fluid was dark compared to new fluid-no surprise there (and the plastic plug was in the pan, also no surprise). The magnet was covered in grey goo, and there were more little metal flakes on the magnet than I would've like to have seen. Small as a speck up to as big as 5/16" long- not too many of those. I guess that's normal? Cleaned the magnet and installed the old gasket and a pan with a drain plug.

chromefonica

Does it do it under a load like towing or a lot of weight in the bed?

Tradesman

You should notice that the transmission shifts a bit smoother and is more crisp when the gears kick in, but these trannies are complicated so you can have other issues. It's a relatively easy process to do it yourself but it can be quite messy. You should do it more frequently if you're towing and hauling on a regular basis. Remember that heat is the worst enemy of transmissions and you should have an adequate transmission cooler. Keep in mind that a cold transmission is bad as well, these trannies have a certain optimum temperature range. And finally one thing to consider is that the valve bodies are very delicate, so some technicians/advisors do not recommend flushing under pressure, but to service the transmission more frequently depending on the fluid condition.