Doing Bucket trans flush method - HELP please

[SlkMerc]

Filter changed, pan back on.

I have the discharge line identified and a bucket full of new mercon V in another with the other cooler line/rubber hose. Ive put 5 quarts in the trans dipstick tube.

Car started. Put in reverse, prking brake on. Can see fluid coming out of the discharge.

Pickup side not sucking in oil - What do I do now? I have to drive this car tomorrow.

Thanks

[SlkMerc]

I'll be refreshing this page every 10 minutes.

[loud2004marquis]

cant you just put the rest of the trans fluid in through the dipstick tube?

[SlkMerc]

It all in that GD bucket. I thought of that too, I just dont see why it isnt picking up the oil. I read the How To - I guess Ive done something wrong - hopefully I will get a definitive solution to get this done. Thanks in advance everyone.

[TFB]

I've always just added fluid through the dipstick tube... I honestly dunno about these transmissions but on most the return line is just that, the discharge line is "pushing" the fluid back through the return, it is not pulling...

[burt ragio]

I have not changed the trans fluid this way. It does make perfect sense.You would think you have done evrything correct & the fliud should draw via the return line. My guess why it is not is there is nothing but air in the line & can not pump. Add as much trans fluid in the fill tube as you can then start the car with emergecy brake on put in gear & in should then draw the fluid via return line.

[FordNut]

There is no suction. That method won't work.

[SlkMerc]

I added it in the dipstick tube. 16 quarts went in it shows overfull if im looking at it right. It wouldnt engage any gear at first, then slowly got better, Im letting it cool off. Isnt the procedure to put it through the gears repeatedly? When I first ran it and it wasnt picking up, it drained the 5 I put in thru the tube and it wasnt picking up. Maybe air? IDK. Tomorrow I will do the same back and forth dealio. I do recall my 1st marauder, I did the axles. I had to do figure 8's to get the rear end fluid all up in the diff. etc. Anyways, hoping for the best. Waiting on more replies and thanks again dudes.

[fastblackmerc]

Hope you didn't damage the tranny.

The transmission pump does just that. It pumps. There is no suction.

[SlkMerc]

Man did I miss something. Jeez I even started a thread awhile back about what I was going to do, no one replied that I was off the mark - Guess I missed that one. When I was waiting and watching for the fluid to pick up from the fresh supply, I kept seeing trans fluid coming out of the other side hose. I shut it down before it stopped discharging so I dont think I ran it dry. I also put 5 quarts in and for sure didnt get that much out before I stopped and resumed adding thru the dipstick. As mentioned, the car didnt engage fwd or reverse at first. Once I went thru the gears it progressively got better but not 100% - I ran out of time and decided to cool it off and try again tomorrow. Im sure what I did didnt help it thats for certain.

[LANDY]

after i had the trans rebuilded on my previous MM and filled it up by the dip stick it took 14 quarts total counting the TC, if remember correctly.

i put 12 quarts in it and it would engage and slip, i added two more and went on a 1k mile trip right away with no problems, its still running good acording to the new owner. thanks to the builder.
i drained the pan only and added new mercon v after the trip. worked perfect for me.

[Blackened300a]

When I had mine done, it was hooked up to a machine with a pump that pulled the fluid and pumped new fluid back in. The trans pump isn't strong enough to do this method on its own.
Put a funnel in the dipstick tube and fill the normal way and hope you don't have any issues.

[TFB]

As long as you don't run the engine for a long period after the fluid stops running from the discharge line, it won't damage anything...

I've always serviced the trannys without converter plugs by cleaning the pan and repl the filter, then adding six or seven quarts and running it till the flow into the bucket stops... Reconnect line, refill and I'm done... Always works... It's a old trick I learned from the Generic Motors guys, none of the GM transmissions have a converter drain plug...

[RF Overlord]

As long as you don't run the engine for a long period after the fluid stops running from the discharge line, it won't damage anything...^^^what TFB said^^^ I doubt you caused any harm.
I added it in the dipstick tube. 16 quarts went in it shows overfull if im looking at it right. It wouldnt engage any gear at first, then slowly got better, Im letting it cool off. Isnt the procedure to put it through the gears repeatedly?You put all 16 quarts in at once? No wonder it shows overfull. It does take a while to fill all the valve-body spaces and the torque converter, and yes you should select each gear in turn and let it sit for a few seconds before moving to the next one. Once the car will drive normally, take it for a good run to get the ATF up to normal temp and recheck the level and adjust as necessary.

[burt ragio]

As long as you don't run the engine for a long period after the fluid stops running from the discharge line, it won't damage anything...

I've always serviced the trannys without converter plugs by cleaning the pan and repl the filter, then adding six or seven quarts and running it till the flow into the bucket stops... Reconnect line, refill and I'm done... Always works... It's a old trick I learned from the Generic Motors guys, none of the GM transmissions have a converter drain plug...

Are you saying after you drop the pan you remove the converter plug drain it. Install new filter replace converter plug new filter install pan. Then remove discharge line. Start the motor in or out of gear ? Run until empty then reconect line. Add trans fluid via trans tube ?

[TFB]

Sorry maybe what I posted isn't clear, if it has a converter drain plug(not just pan plug), then you drain both, service pan/filter and refill, no running fluid into bucket is necessary...

Without a converter drain plug, service pan/filter, overfill the pan through dipstick tube and run the engine with discharge line flowing into bucket... To be really sure the converter is mostly flushed of old fluid, you can add another four to six quarts and run it a second time, then reconnect line and refill pan... Using this method you'll use around 14-16quarts total...

[FordNut]

Man did I miss something. Jeez I even started a thread awhile back about what I was going to do, no one replied that I was off the mark - Guess I missed that one.

Sorry about that. Awhile back someone else started a thread about this, I commented it wouldn't work and was essentially told I was full of :bs:

[burt ragio]

What part number is the trans filter ? What manufacturers make as good or better than the stock filter ?

[RF Overlord]

The Motorcraft number is FT-105.

Transmission filters are pretty much equal, like aspirin. Any of the "usual suspects" are fine: Purolator, WIX, NAPA Gold, and yes...even FRAM.

[fastblackmerc]

What part number is the trans filter ? What manufacturers make as good or better than the stock filter ?

I would just get a name-brand filter.

NAPA part numbers:

Felpro Gasket: TOS 18706
Filter: ATP 17796

Gasket (rubber coated steel) and filter: ATP 1593

The OEM gasket is rubber coated steel and is reusable.

[SlkMerc]

Well back at it today. Weird as hell, last night the dipstick showed WAY full. Today I checked after it was warmed up and it wasnt even on the dipstick. Put a quart in it and went back and forth in the driveway. Took it out and it seems to be fine. Shifts positively as far as I can tell. I was able to romp on it hard a few times as well. Once I got it home I went throught the selector again and checked it in park. It was a tad in the crosshairs - looks like I dodged a bullet. I will do this again myself I think, now that I know what to do. Was about $120 for everything. Local Wiffylube wanted $240 and the dealer was $310. I will NOT do it again on ramps - just not high enough to get under and work comfortably. Thanks again.

[whd507]

The last time I did it, I replaced the pan with a TCI pan I think, and I drained the converter. the previous fluid service was a shop who flushed it, but I suspect there was dex/merc in the machine as it shuddered even though I supplied 20 qts of Mobil 1 fluid.

draining the converter, and dropping the pan is my preferred method.
Glad it worked out for you.

[TFB]

Well back at it today. Weird as hell, last night the dipstick showed WAY full. Today I checked after it was warmed up and it wasnt even on the dipstick.

It's been my experience that after you dump in several quarts, there is enough fluid "hanging" inside the fill tube to give a erroneous reading, always seems to take far longer for the tube to clear than you'd think...

[SlkMerc]

For sure. Im STILL having a hard time getting the fluid leveled right. I warm it up, drive it. Reverse is fine - slight delay going into Drive. No slip shifts fine. Check the level and not even on the stick. Add about a pint - R,D,P, 1, R, 2 - etc etc. Wipe the dipstick clean, stab it again. One side reads way up the dipstick, the other barely showing. Repeat about 5 times. Add a little more - again shows WAY up the dipstick. I parked it, wait for tomorrow and try again. WTF am I doing wrong? - Ive never had such a time checking and maintaining fluids. The ATF is nice and clean though!

[RF Overlord]

You're prolly not doing anything wrong. It usually take me about 3 days to get the level sorted out when I do a drain & fill.

Some hints, most of which you may already know or be doing:

Be sure car is LEVEL.
Be sure fluid is at operating temp...this means more than just a ride around the block.
Check level with engine running...in park.
Add fluid ½-pint at a time and wait a good 5 minutes in between for the fluid that clings to the inside of the dipstick tube to fully drain.
Use the "lower" of the 2 readings on the stick.

Don't shut the motor off at any time while doing all of the above. Also, there no need to run through the gears each time you add fluid...only on the initial refill.

[massacre]

The transmission "sucks" the fluid up through the filter from the fluid in the pan.
The return line just returns the cooled fluid to the pan.

[TFB]

For sure. Im STILL having a hard time getting the fluid leveled right. I warm it up, drive it. Reverse is fine - slight delay going into Drive. No slip shifts fine. Check the level and not even on the stick. Add about a pint - R,D,P, 1, R, 2 - etc etc. Wipe the dipstick clean, stab it again. One side reads way up the dipstick, the other barely showing. Repeat about 5 times. Add a little more - again shows WAY up the dipstick. I parked it, wait for tomorrow and try again. WTF am I doing wrong? - Ive never had such a time checking and maintaining fluids. The ATF is nice and clean though!

You need to add then, the "low side" of the stick is the reading that's closer to actual...

[RF Overlord]

The transmission "sucks" the fluid up through the filter from the fluid in the pan.
The return line just returns the cooled fluid to the pan.Um......yeah?