ATX drain and fill How To W/ Pics

Ya those pics are in my photobucket...ill make sure to keep em there

Only things I would suggest adding would be...

1) Checking the fluid should be done while at operating temp, as well as Park.

2) Before changing your fluid, be sure the fluid is at operating temp.

Other than those little things...

Great Job! I will leave this stickyed and just link to it from the CD4E FAQ thread.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Originally posted by unisys12:
Only things I would suggest adding would be...

1) Checking the fluid should be done while at operating temp, as well as Park.

2) Before changing your fluid, be sure the fluid is at operating temp.

Other than those little things... Great Job! I will leave this stickyed and just link to it from the CD4E FAQ thread.

Sorry, I was in a rush to get it done because my tranny was draining while I was doing this...also it is my first how-to...hopefully I will find something else to make another one on too. I was gonna say that about the fluid, but a thing to remember is that it is HOT!! I waited 30 min before I even gathered all the tools and such (I learned from the first drain and fill...did not wait anytime..big mistake)

Another thing... get your hand out as fast as you can when the drain plug finally falls out. That stuff pours out wicked fast! My hand and lower arm got a nice fluid shower!

Question, is there any specific brand of fluid you guys would reccomend most?

Originally posted by AaronZ34:
Question, is there any specific brand of fluid you guys would reccomend most?

The majority of people prefer Mobil 1 Synthetic ATX fluid. I personally used Supertech Walmart brand... cheap and efficent. Works great, no problems. It was about $3.50 for a gallon.

Is there a list of all NEW part numbers for a 1999 contour ? I need 3 shift forks and shift tower ...Not sure if the ones listed in the sticky are current ?

Josh,

Was this meant to be in the ATX drain/fill how-to thread? I wouldn't think so, but whatever floats your boat.

Ray

Just a couple of quick question, You said on step 11 to drive around the block and do it two more times. Are you saying to change the fluid two more times? Second question, is there not a filter on these ATXs?

Originally posted by Steve3616:
Just a couple of quick question, You said on step 11 to drive around the block and do it two more times. Are you saying to change the fluid two more times? Second question, is there not a filter on these ATXs?

Yep do 3 total fluid changes, to make sure you cycled all of the old fluid out. And no, there is not a general replaceable filter... you have to drop the holy tranny to change it. The filter is meant to last the lifetime of the car however.

The tranny filter is suppose to last the life of the car? So, that is why Ford put it in an odd place?? And, just changinging the fluid is suppose to help?? How stupid are the people at Ford these days?? Or is it too many drugs?? I'm serious. I can't believe they would want sane people to believe that crap. I've been a Ford person all my driving days (35 years) and they are just getting dumber and dumber. Sadly, we have to deal with this crap. Sorry for the rant on Ford, again. Well since I obviously can't afford to have the filter changed, I'll just change the fluid and hope for the best. At least now I know why the "maintenance schedule" recommends changing fluid every 30K. I will try again to replace the TSS myself. Altho, and make a note of this, the tranny is shifting much better since I did no more than remove the electrical plug and put it back on after decideing it would take more than the hoped for 15 minutes. It still bangs a bit when putting it in drive and going to 2nd when cold but after it warms up it shifts almost like new. Later I will see if I can make a mention of this in the ATX HOWTO. You know, "try this first" to see if it helps/works before spending the time/money to replace.

Later. Pepse.

Sorry about that I thought I was answering something on one of my posts.

Later. Pepse.

Instead of doing this process 3 or 4 times why not disconnect the tranny fluid return line (drivers side wheel well), start the car and let the fluid be pumped out. The tranny will pump out about 3 or 4L at a time, once it slows down turn the car off, add new fluid to the tranny and repeat the process (3 or 4 times) until the fluid coming out is the same color as the fluid going in. The entire process including removal and installation of the tire can be done in less than 20 minutes.

Because while running the tranny and pumping fluid out at the sametime, you run the great risk of burning your clutch packs or just plain causeing undo wear on the components of the tranny.

Yeah, it could be done that way. I'm not saying that it can't, but I personally feel that the risk is too great. I will add that the best option is performing a flush on the tranny, but in cases where the fluid has never been changed in longlonglong time, that could do more harm than good.

Well if you had a bucket of fresh fluid and stuck the retun/inlet line into it then I'd probably say it would be ok.

If you do this while the car is cold then it would be better as than hot. You don't want to loose all you ATF when the transmission is already hot.

Hell, it probably won't matter either way. If it is idling in park while you do it as there is no pressure on any clutch packs or bands at that point. I'd just be a little leary if it was already up to operating temp. I say this last bit about it not mattering because how many times have people with trans leaks leaked run low on oil and realize it later then fill up and everything is still fine. And that is with pressure on everything.

Originally posted by warmonger:
Well if you had a bucket of fresh fluid and stuck the retun/inlet line into it then I'd probably say it would be ok.

Well the only problem with this is that the the return inlet for the pump does not draw from a line, but rather a sump. The pump literally pushes the fluid through the system and out of the cooler to the rear lube. Once the fluid runs through the rear lube section, it drops into the sump. The pump then pulls the fluid out of the sump, through the filter. At this point, it does pull from the Main Regulator Valve at an unknown pressure. If I had to take a stab at guessing, it would be 50-175psi in D,1 or 2 and 73-252 in P,R or N. It doesn't matter though, because there is no way to tap this location to bring new fluid into the system.

For reference, I got this info from the CD4E Oil Schematic, which can be found on the A-Teams website.

When I use the hose in a bucket method to do a fluid exchange, I add the new fluid through the dipstick tube. I try to do at at about the same rate as it is getting pumped out. The exception is when I'm doing a fluid exchange on a trans that doesn't have a dipstick tube, such as the 5 speed in the Explorer. Then I must use the two bucket method to suck fluid into the trans as the other is pumping out. That gets to be a bit tricky.

I.......would just pay for a system flush. On my 1 contour, I must have done about 5 fluid changes drain and refil and still the fluid was dark....After the flushing, all of it was out...

Bob

Originally posted by btrautman:
I.......would just pay for a system flush. On my 1 contour, I must have done about 5 fluid changes drain and refil and still the fluid was dark....After the flushing, all of it was out...

Bob

I did the same thing. I got it done for $80. But I do enjoy the how to. VERY VERY GOOD job. I think I might give it a try next time.

I added an external filter in the return cooler line.
So, this filters the oil and the internal filter which can only be replaced on a rebuild I dont have to worry about. By the way Carquest sells a filter specific for this, BUT I used a 3/8 input large metal can fuel filter from autozone and it worked just fine. Thousands of miles later the fluid is still clear and red. Think of it like this, gasoline has more solvent action than ATF and the gas filters to at least 10 microns or better. And these filters have to take high pressure without exploding, which by the way, the retrun line does not have a high pressure. Just dumps into the sump I think.
I also added an external oil cooler made for a ford focus, fit in with very little trouble. I installed the external cooler in the return line and then it goes into the filter and then it returns to the transmission. There have been no flow problems even in cold weather.

Thanks for the input downey! Every little bit of experience counts!!

"6. When all the old fluid is out reinstall the drain plug."

As stated in the Ford CD manual, should wrap some teflon tape around the drain plug to prevent leaks.

Originally posted by sdowney717:
I added an external filter in the return cooler line.
So, this filters the oil and the internal filter which can only be replaced on a rebuild I dont have to worry about. By the way Carquest sells a filter specific for this, BUT I used a 3/8 input large metal can fuel filter from autozone and it worked just fine. Thousands of miles later the fluid is still clear and red. Think of it like this, gasoline has more solvent action than ATF and the gas filters to at least 10 microns or better. And these filters have to take high pressure without exploding, which by the way, the retrun line does not have a high pressure. Just dumps into the sump I think.
I also added an external oil cooler made for a ford focus, fit in with very little trouble. I installed the external cooler in the return line and then it goes into the filter and then it returns to the transmission. There have been no flow problems even in cold weather.

if it has a cooler already, why add another one, or is stock cooler not that great. if you added another cooler, are you now using 2 coolers at the same time, or replacing stock cooler

It's supposed that stock atx cooler is not efficient, so, an additional cooler will help not to overheat cd4e. I installed mine in 5 hours, i'm a newbie.