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Transmission Issue???


Bret Cummins
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2006 Ford Fusion SEL V6 - 128,000 miles

 

I got off work today and when heading home I had to pass someone, so when doing that I noticed when decelerating my RPM's would jump down really fast, IMG_5704.TRIM.MOV . So I pulled over and restarted my engine which I wasn't sure if that would help. And when accelerating I noticed when the vehicle shifted, it would shift fast and I could feel the shifts a little more than usual, IMG_5705.TRIM 2.MOV . I also notice when going around 40 mph the RPM's would be right under 1,000 RPM's so when I'd try to accelerate the vehicle would jump a little. ALSO, when I was stopped at a stoplight, I noticed the RPM's were around 600, which I think is much lower than usual. The car just doesn't feel like its usual self. Should I take it into the Ford dealer to maybe reset the computer for the transmission?

 

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I took your advice and allowed the PCM to relearn, which I believe helped a little but definitely didn't solve the issue. After doing some more driving, coming home from work today, when flooring the car, the car would make it to 6,000 RPM's but when I released the accelerator, it instantly went down to 3,000 RPM's, it didn't slowly make its way down to 3,000, it was just instant. When the car shifts when accelerating, you can definitely feel the shifts more because it shifts so fast, as seen in my previous videos above.

 

I did recently start hearing some squealing, like a belt, coming for the engine when warming up my car a couple days ago. I'm not sure if that has anything to do with it.

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23 hours ago, Oracle_Ed said:

When did you last do a transmission fluid drain and refill?

 

I am very glad you mentioned that because I checked the transmission fluid this morning, while the engine was heated up and running of course. The fluid was a darker brown and a little gritty. So I'm going to get that changed. I went to O'Reily's to see if they had any after work and they looked up on their computers and it suggested Mercon in their system, but in the owners manual is specifically says not to use Mercon... so I went to AutoZone and they didn't have anything and told me to just go to a Ford dealership and get it from them.

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Bret - If I'm not mistaken, the trans you have in that car is the Aisin TF-80SC, which requires a very different trans fluid than the Mercon stuff..  It is referred to by different names, depending on the brand, etc.. 

 

The most common name for it is T-IV, or Type 4 fluid.  Ford also has their own version, known as XT-8QAW.   Mobil calls theirs JWS3309, and Toyota sticks with the simple T-IV name.

 

Amazon sells the Toyota stuff at a (fairly) reasonable price - $75 for a 12-quart box.  Amazon - Toyota Type-4 fluid - $75 for a 12-pack.  Free shipping (non-prime).

 

If you leave anywhere near a Ford dealer, you might also go ask their parts counter person if they have the XT-8QAW stuff for a decent price.  I've heard it can potentially be had for around $6-7 a quart.

 

If it looks and feels as bad as you're describing, I'd definitely do a full drain & fill (or maybe 2 of them,  separated by a day or so of driving) to clean that trans up.

Edited by sirtanon
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7 hours ago, sirtanon said:

Bret - If I'm not mistaken, the trans you have in that car is the Aisin TF-80SC, which requires a very different trans fluid than the Mercon stuff..  It is referred to by different names, depending on the brand, etc.. 

 

The most common name for it is T-IV, or Type 4 fluid.  Ford also has their own version, known as XT-8QAW.   Mobil calls theirs JWS3309, and Toyota sticks with the simple T-IV name.

 

Amazon sells the Toyota stuff at a (fairly) reasonable price - $75 for a 12-quart box.  Amazon - Toyota Type-4 fluid - $75 for a 12-pack.  Free shipping (non-prime).

 

If you leave anywhere near a Ford dealer, you might also go ask their parts counter person if they have the XT-8QAW stuff for a decent price.  I've heard it can potentially be had for around $6-7 a quart.

 

If it looks and feels as bad as you're describing, I'd definitely do a full drain & fill (or maybe 2 of them,  separated by a day or so of driving) to clean that trans up.

 

Thanks so much, that really helped me a lot. I still haven't gotten it changed because this weekend has been crazy. I will give you an update when I do it this week. I live right down the road from my local Ford dealer, so I'll be giving him a call, that way I'd be able to do it tomorrow.

 

Does the Fusion have a transmission filter for the six-speed? I didn't see anything in the owners manual.

Edited by Bret Cummins
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While I can't speak to the filter for the AISIN transmission, I CAN speak to the one for the 6F35 that comes with the 2.5 engine..

 

While the 6F35 technically DOES have a transmission filter, it is securely housed within the transmission and CANNOT be changed without completely removing the trans from the car and splitting it open.  The transmission case is built like a sandwich - two halves with a gasket in the middle, a conveniently-located drain plug, and no pan.  Basically, the filter is not user-serviceable.   This is the main reason why most Ford mechanics recommend doing a drain & fill every 30,000 miles.. the logic being that draining the fluid takes a bunch of the contaminants with it, thus keeping the filter from completely loading up and impeding flow.

 

As far as I can tell, the AISIN TF-80 trans is built similarly.   You can have a look and see if you can find a pan to be sure.

 

Now, one thing I have considered doing in the past was splicing in an in-line remote filter in the transmission fluid cooler line.. Basically add in an oil filter remote filter relocation kit in the middle of the trans fluid cooler line, and use a Fram Ultra filter.. which would add a ton of really good filtration..  But at this point I'm holding off.. not sure I want to introduce a potential failure point in the trans lines.. 

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35 minutes ago, sirtanon said:

While I can't speak to the filter for the AISIN transmission, I CAN speak to the one for the 6F35 that comes with the 2.5 engine..

 

While the 6F35 technically DOES have a transmission filter, it is securely housed within the transmission and CANNOT be changed without completely removing the trans from the car and splitting it open.  The transmission case is built like a sandwich - two halves with a gasket in the middle, a conveniently-located drain plug, and no pan.  Basically, the filter is not user-serviceable.   This is the main reason why most Ford mechanics recommend doing a drain & fill every 30,000 miles.. the logic being that draining the fluid takes a bunch of the contaminants with it, thus keeping the filter from completely loading up and impeding flow.

 

As far as I can tell, the AISIN TF-80 trans is built similarly.   You can have a look and see if you can find a pan to be sure.

 

Now, one thing I have considered doing in the past was splicing in an in-line remote filter in the transmission fluid cooler line.. Basically add in an oil filter remote filter relocation kit in the middle of the trans fluid cooler line, and use a Fram Ultra filter.. which would add a ton of really good filtration..  But at this point I'm holding off.. not sure I want to introduce a potential failure point in the trans lines.. 

Yes.  The TF-80 has an internal, non-user serviceable filter like the Ford 6F series.

.

 

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You can change the fluid and see if it helps, but I'm not sure that you have anything wrong. I can't see anything abnormal in your videos. I think you are just saying the shifts are harder than normal? If you've been driving more aggressively lately that may be the case with the adaptive shift strategy. If you pass someone and let off, then the transmission will upshift sequentially and lock the torque converter, so you will see the RPMs drop in steps like your video, which is normal. How long have you had this car?

 

Warm idle of 600-700 RPM is normal.

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