I drove my truck to Ft. Fisher today to the area where 4x4's are allowed on the beach. There is a stretch of beach that I think is 4 miles. The sand was soft and the truck struggled a little even in low range. I drove down to the end and coming back I smelled transmission fluid the whole way.

Does this mean I need a larger transmission cooler or was it the transfer case smelling?

 

I would guess your fluid was really overheating. Check it to see if it smells burnt or is really dark. If so change it. When on sand you should air down your tires so you aren't just spinning your wheels.

 

Yes, I think I will deflate the tires to 20-25 psig next time. The tires on the truck are stock size, Dayton brand, 35psig max pressure, with somewhat of an off road tread pattern. It didn't spin that much but the deep sand was a real drag on the engine/transmission.

I just took a look at the transmission cooler. It appears to be at least a 6x10inch plate design which is pretty big I think.

I bought the truck used in April with 69k miles on it. I'm sure it has not had a trans fluid change. I have the fluid and filter in the garage. It's time to change it.

 

Try running in low range in the sand. For proper flotation in the sand I would recommend 15 PSI in the tires to start.

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I run on the sand dunes around here quite frequently. Never had any issues that I know of with the truck. But I air down to AT LEAST 15psi. I can go most places except the huge hills in 2wd. Never tried low range, but maybe I will. Driving on sand with normal PSI ratings is killer on the entire truck. I drive by people all the time that don't do this and the wheel hop and general strain comming off the motor makes me winse.

 

I was in low range. It didn't spin that much but the sand was soft and deep. It would spin when I got out of existing tracks and cut a new path through the soft sand. Next time I will air down to maybe 20 psig from 35 and see how it does. The engine temp did not vary at all. Stayed on mid scale. May have heated up some if I had not been in low range.
Maybe I should pick up an air tank. I have one of those 12volt compressors but they take forever to pump up a large tire.

 

Do what you've got to do. But even at 20psi my truck feels like it struggles a lot more when goofing around on the dunes then at 15psi.

In da sand.

 

How often should transmission fluid be changed?

 

30k miles if you abuse the tranny a little, towing off roading etc, maybe more often. Drive like Grandma and 60k to 100k is ok.

 

How is it changed? Just unplug the grommet(underneath) and fill it up at the engine?

 

Take it to a shop that has a fluid exchange machine.

 

so once you deflate your tires and play in the sand, how do you re-inflate them to drive home?

 

My 2000 F150 had a torque converter drain plug, so you could remove the trans pan and remove about 4 or 5 qt. To drain the rest you had to remove the rubber plug in the torque converter housing, turn the engine with a 18mm socket and pull handle until the drain plug was at the bottom and then drain the TC. This way you drain all but about 1/2 qt of fluid. If you want to drain the rest you can disconnect the cooling lines and drain them or blow them out, not worth the trouble in my opinion. Then refill.

I just found out yesterday when I tried to change the fluid in my 2002 that it does not have the tc drain plug. So, I just replaced the 4 1/2 qts that I drained by removing the pan. Next time I may take it to a shop to drain all of it. Or, maybe I'll just continue to replace 4 1/2 qts at a time and do it more often. My truck now has about 75k miles on it and the plastic plug was in the pan. So, it was the first time the pan had been off.

Also, I took it out to the beach yesterday with the tires at 25psig. It did much better on the sand. I drove slowly and didn't smell the trans fluid like the last time. I love being able to drive on the beach. The section is 4 miles long. Later in day, my wife and I were the only ones down at the end. We could not even see the next truck. Felt great to be on an isolated beach like that.

 

I have a 12v compressor that I can get them up to 25-30lbs with in not much time. Then I just drive slowly to the gas station and fill them back up.

The dunes where I go is a state park, its a huge tourist attraction, there is free air at the exit but its always got a huge line. I just drive away and go 6 miles to the gas station.

 

I reduced mine to 25 psig yesterday and drove home that way about 13 miles. I have a compressor in my garage. The other options are to stop at a gas station and pump them up or you could take an air tank that has been pressurized to pump them up. Or you can use one of those 12volt compressors that plugs into your cigarette lighter connection. These will take a while to inflate but they will do the job.