Auto tranny fluid for Zetec...

[iskoos]

Have 95 Contour GL Zetec ATX at 170k miles.
Haynes manual says tranny fluid is Mercon. I found SuperTech autotranny fluid at Wal-Mart. It was marked as Dexron III (or something like that) and Mercon. In the back it says not to be used with Ford vehicles equiped with F type tranny or something.
Just wanted to make sure this is the right one. I finally decided to change the fluid on my Contour. 170+ miles and never been done before

 

[Big Jim]

That is the fluid your owner's manual calls for, or at least the closest thing you can get today. Ford no longer licenses Mercon and recommends Mercon V where Mercon had been specified. Mercon V is a better but more expensive fluid, and some are reluctant to switch to it on an older car.

I would use the stuff you posted about.

 

[Pugulis]

Be careful of the no name brands at Wal-mart. You don't know where they came from. No offense to anyone but Wal-mart products are CRAP. I have never bought anything from them and never will.

 

[iskoos]

It is made by SuperTech so it has a brandname at least.
I saw Mercon V as well I was about to buy it but in the back of it, it was saying "Not to be used where Mercon is the specified fluid" so I left it.
And the other SuperTech was the only that has "Mercon" in the label.
Mercon is about $1 cheaper than Mercon V. So Mercon V should be a better fluid but I won't use it if it says "Don't" in the label.

It deosn't have to be Wal-Mart if you guys recommended some other brand/product, I can get it. Is there a common one that this forum recommends?

 

[Big Jim]

There is nothing wrong with Wal Mart's brand (Supertech) oils. At one time they were supplied by Valvoline, and may still be in some parts of the country. The primary vendor now is Warren, the same company the makes Peak motor oil.

If you really want to learn about all things oil, hang out at bobistheoilguy.com

 

[iskoos]

I got the SuperTech stuff from Wal-Mart.
Okay one more thing, the Haynes manual says that the tranny needs to be completely cool for the fluid change. That sounded weird. Why would it need to be cool?:shrug:

 

[zorrex]

So you don't burn yourself? Lol I really don't think it matters much. Have it sit for like an hour before you change it. I suggest draining and refilling a few times. I have some rough approximations of the fluid levels as you drain and refill, as you can see below:

You can drain the 3.9 quarts all at once. In between each drain + refill just take a quick lap around the block and it should be fine. Then just do it again.

So I ran some quick math...

Drain + Refill.......Old Fluid (qts)....New Fluid (qts)
1...........................6.4....................3.9
2............................4......................6.3
3...........................2.5.....................7.8
4..........................1.55...................8.75

The number of quarts indicates the number of quarts of fluid left of each AFTER that particular drain + refill is done.

*DISCLAIMER* This only applies to a 10.3qt capacity ATX. Values may change slightly for other capacities.

 

[iskoos]

Ouch!.. So I have 10+ quarts in there already!...
And when I do the first drain-refill, I will be replacing about 30% of the fluid huh?

I can't see myself doing this 4 times to be honest. I plan on doing it twice but not in 15 minutes. I was more like thinking of driving it a week or so after the 1st drain-refill and then do the 2nd drain-refill.
Hope this is okay...

I also plan on using a fine screen to catch any metal particles. If I drain the fluid into the oil pan straight, I will never know.

 

[zorrex]

Yeah the time period won't matter much. A few minutes versus a few weeks really isn't any different when you compare that to the life of the vehicle! But if your fluid is pretty gunked up then I'd recommend 4 or 5...

 

[iskoos]

Thank you guys. When I get a chance to drain it, I will post a picture of what comes out so you guys can look and make comment. Also so that others can see how a tranny fluid after 170k+ miles look like

 

[iskoos]

Did the first drain...

Did the first drain...

Guys,

I did the first drain finally. The fluid came down pretty fast. It wasn't gunked up at all. No burnt smell either. It was black though (in the plastic container) but it was not all that bad when you feel it.
I only had very few metal particles on the first plastic container.
I then filled it with SuperTech Mercon fluid.
I will drive it a week or two and then repeat it.

Please see the pictures. Not bad for a car that has 170k+ miles with no tranny service before huh?

 

[zorrex]

Holy crap...That's SO much more disgusting than when I changed mine at 105k or so :shocked:

 

[iskoos]

Zorrex,

I was looking at the chart you posted on previous page. I really cannot grasp this. Why would we get less than 4 quarts out of 10+ when we drain the fluid?

And was my fluid looking really that bad? Is it the color that scared you?

 

[zorrex]

There is still a lot of fluid in the torque converter and valve body. This fluid doesn't drain out when you pull the plug in the back. So, the graph I posted shows the amounts of new fluid and old fluid each time you drain and refill, assuming you go for a drive to mix it up really good in between each drain and refill.

And yes, that color is REALLY dark.

 

[iskoos]

Alright, I will do the 2nd drain-refill this weekend and I will picture what's coming out as well.
If I see the fluid as dark again, should I go for th 3rd or even th 4th drain-refill? What would you do?

 

[mikeswartz]

mercon v is perfectly compatible for all contour and mystique auto transmissions. it supercedes mercon 4 and 3. it is a full sythetic fluid which is why it costs more. i have had it in my 206k mystique for about 20k now, everything is fine.

 

[Big Jim]

Mike,

There is no Mercon 4 or Mercon 3.

It was just plain Mercon until Mercon V was released. There were no numbers in between.

Perhaps you are confused by the fact the most all (if not all) Mercon fluid (Ford's specification) also met the GM Dexron III spec.

And yes, Mercon V is fine as a replacement for Mercon.

 

[zorrex]

Alright, I will do the 2nd drain-refill this weekend and I will picture what's coming out as well.
If I see the fluid as dark again, should I go for th 3rd or even th 4th drain-refill? What would you do?

Considering how disgusting the fluid looked after the first drain, I'd do three at LEAST.

 

[iskoos]

Considering how disgusting the fluid looked after the first drain, I'd do three at LEAST.

Can't wait to see how it would look when I do the 2nd drain. I am hoping it will show better color. I will consider the 3rd one seriously. I only paid $10 for a gallon so another $20 is not much.

Jim, I was wondering what that Mercon 3 and 4 is when reading Mike's post myself. Like I said, I was about to buy SuperTech Mercon V but I saw that it wasn't recommended for some of Ford vehicles before certain production year and mine was in that group. Plus Haynes manual was calling for Mercon only. So I went for Mercon not Mercon V. I will use the same for the 2nd and 3rd drain-refill...

 

[Big Jim]

I don't know if there was ever a compatibility issue. There may have been when Mercon V was first introduced. I have heard that early Mercon V was not compatible with some earlier seals, but have not been able to confirm it.

I do know that a year or two ago, Ford quit licensing Mercon. What you buy now says something to the effect "for use where Mercon is specified. It is probably very close to the same fluid as when it was licensed. Now that it is not licensed, Ford is not involved in its quality control.

I also know that when Ford quit licensing Mercon, they back specked Mercon V where Mercon had been used on Ford products. If there had been compatibility issues they were long since resolved. It is also possible that Ford originally was not willing to spend the money to validate Mercon V for use in earlier transmission, something that could have been very costly.