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PTU fluid flushing


Nepats25

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Hey guys, first post here and I am currently doing a lot of maintenance on my late model 2009 Ford edge and have a couple questions about the ptu. The fluid was awful looking. Putting in amsoil 75w140 severe service and I have done two drain and fills. With a 10 minute ride in between. I want to do more but I cannot find an answer on how much to fill it. Well I found one post saying to use a zip tie and getting the level about 1 and a half inches down from the hole, that seems weird to me. Why couldn't they just make it fill until it comes out??? Is this the proper level? I know it's 1.1 pints but I cannot get that much out or in at one time.

 

Any input?

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You could probably fill till it overflows, but then you should also install a vent tube extension such as in this TSB for the Taurus:

As for the TSB: http://www.revbase.com/BBBMOTOR/TSb/DownloadPdf?id=171259
and the part in the TSB: AG1Z-7034-A

 

Presumably the same part number fits the Edge, but verify at the counter.

 

PTU fluid will expand, and it needs somewhere to go. By putting an extension tube on, you prevent it from puking unnecessarily.

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There were several oversights by Ford on the PTU like no proper drain plus unless you're tooling around in Dubai. Since you've read the thread on the zip tie trick you've also seen the thread on a retro install of a drain plug. So, the fact that we don't have an ability to check the level beyond a zip tie doesn't surprise me.

IIRC, the Ford techs fill it by volume.

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Ok, I can't fill by volume because I can't know for sure how much came out or if what came out was the correct amount that was supposed to be in it. There was some seepage near the seal.

 

 

EVH, no I did not have to remove anything. If you have a long enough hose on the suction pump it is pretty easy. I came in from the backside and up and over the exhaust flange. Also need a fairly small diameter hose to make sure it goes in the hole and past the gears inside to the bottom. I'd say the hose I used was 1/4 outer diameter

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  • 2 months later...

I have a 2008 MKX and the Ford Shop Manual I have says to fill it to the bottom of the fill hole.

 

Specifically it says "With the vehicle on a flat level surface, fill the PTU with lubricant. The fluid must be even with the bottom of the fill opening. Fluid capacity is 0.53L (18oz).

 

They also say not to reuse the filler plug - but I ignore that.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I bit the bullet today and drilled and tapped a 1/4" NPT drain hole in the PTU. I started by using a small drill bit to get a pilot hole. I was careful not to allow the drill bit to go too far into the PTU after it broke through. Then I waited for it to drain. The oil coming out was really black and thick. At first not much oil drained so I removed the fill plug which allowed the oil to drain much better. Almost like the vent was plugged - next I should investigate that. Once draining stopped (about 1/2 an hour) I drilled a 7/16" hole and again was very careful not to allow the drill bit to go too far into the PTU. Once through, I used a bunch of Q-tips with one tip bent to a 90 degree angle and tried to sweep the inside for any remnants of aluminum shavings from the drilling process. Then I used a 1/4" NPT tap to put some threads in the hole. I went in and out/back and forth numerous times and cleaned the cutting edges on the tap regularly so I wouldn't get too many shavings pushed into the PTU. It helped that some oil was still draining a bit from the PTU to lube the cutting edges. Again I used Q tips to clean out the inside edge of the tapped hole once I was finished tapping the threads. Then I wrapped Teflon tape around the plug and installed it. Refilled the PTU with clean oil and took it out for a test drive. I'll change the oil again tomorrow to flush the old dirty stuff out then I should be good for a while hopefully.

Thanks so much to this forum and the work of others to pick a hole location and for the idea to put a drain in. It always bothered me that I couldn't change the oil in the PTU - now I can.

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  • 9 months later...
  • 3 weeks later...

I flushed the fluid of my PTU a few months ago and I used 0.5l on it.

 

Last year I flushed for the first time, after 3 years) and as far as I remember it was possible to remove ~ 0.275l. I presume that Ford doesn't fill with 0.5l, but didn't find any official information.

 

I wasn't sure about using 0.5l and was expecting some leakage or something, but not really happened.

 

Last Feb I took the car to a regular maintenance visit in a dealer and they don't even notice anything with the PTU so I believe it works fine with 0.5l.

 

Planning to flush again every 6 months.

 

BR/Kleber

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