i think my tranny is going out. my truck has about 200k miles on it. the tranny has gotten really windy and loud. when im going like 70 and let off the gas, i get this weird noise, like a scraping sound. do i need a new tranny?

 

5spd manual or 4spd auto?

 

4spd. auto

 

How does the fluid look and smell? How often has it been changed?

 

fluid is starting to get a little brown. its probably time to change it. i dont know when it was done last

 

If it's brown, it's burnt. Drop the pan and check for particles, there should be a magnet in there plus you may find non-magnetic junk in it too. If there's a plastic bobber in the pan, it's NEVER been changed and at 200K on original fluid with these symptoms, the tranny probably should be rebuilt or replaced. It's possible a filter replacement and a complete flush MAY keep it alive longer, but it may not.

 

i know that the fluid has been changed before, but it was by my dad, and i just dont remember the last time it was done

 

ive been told by a few people that with a high mileage tranny with fluid that hasnt been changed in a long time that you may as well leave it. something about atf has cleaning detergents of some sort in them and these get "burnt" away over time so when u put fresh fluid with the "detergents" sometimes it will result in a gasket leak. this is just what ive been told, thought id pass it along. if someone knows im wrong please speak up.
Scott

 

All right, since you asked, I'll tell you that it's wrong.

It's an old wive's tale, but with just the smallest bit of truth to make it keep making the rounds.

Often someone waits for a trans problem to show up before making the first fluid change, like the original poster on this thread. Now they think to change the fluid, but it's too late. The trans was already junk before the change, and the new fluid didn't save it. It hadn't died completely before the change, but the life left in it was days, not years. The fluid gets changed, and the trans dies, just like it would have done if they left the old fluid in it. Now they think it dies because they changed the fluid.

 

I have been told the same, sometimes if it has never been changed it is best to just leave things alone. But if you know it has been changed KEEP changing it.

 

This is probably a stupid question, but how often should you change your tran. fluid?

 

Every 30,000 miles is a good time to change the fluid.

 

well i took mine in to have the tranny flushed. and they said they wouldnt do it because it was past the recomended service date. what should i do?

 

Either try somewhere else that knows what they're doing, or do it yourself with these instructions:

http://www.ford-trucks.com/article/i...nsmission.html

 

They prolly took one look at your fluid and decided they didn't want any liability issues because they are pretty sure the tranny is on its last legs.