Noise after trans fluid change

[2013 Geee T]

I changed my trans fluid the other day and last time I put Dexron III in it and it was fine. This time I put Valvoline Dexron III/Mercon combination fluid in there since that was all they had. Plus it was the high mileage stuff too.

Now on the freeway in 5th gear it will make a metallic gear type noise. I thought it was a wind noise at first but its coming from the transmission area. If I put my foot on the clutch it will still do it. If I take it out of 5th into 4th or neutral it will go away. Plus when it warms up it seems to go away. Do you think there is something wrong with the fluid I used? I'm doing my brakes in a couple of weeks and can change it again or should I change it sooner?

One other non related thing. Lately I have been hearing my front shocks when I go over bumps making the typical air pssst sound like you would expect from shocks. I don't remember hearing that before. Is that a potential problem?

 

[COramprat]

Check the fluid level in the tranny. Make sure you have the correct amount. That is all it sounds like to me...low fluid.

 

[SVT32VDOHC]

How many miles?? My 96 Cobra struts were shot at 53K! The right one was like a darn pogo stick!! The left wasn't far behind.

How much fluid did you put it. Too much and too little will both cause issues. The T45 and TR3650 hold just over 3 quarts. On level ground, fill it through the shifter, with the fill plug out

 

[2013 Geee T]

I put 3.25-3.5 quarts in it. Does it have to be that close? I was on a lift so it was level but we drained it completely first and filled it through the fill hole.

For the struts they are the Tokico struts for lowered cars. They have maybe 20k miles on them. They dont seem to be performing any differently.

 

[COramprat]

I put 3.25-3.5 quarts in it. Does it have to be that close? I was on a lift so it was level but we drained it completely first and filled it through the fill hole.

That should be OK but check the level to make sure. Put something under the fill hole to catch any excess that my come out. Feel through the hole and make sure the fluid is right at the bottom of the hole.

 

[2013 Geee T]

What about the type of fluid I used?

 

[COramprat]

That could be an issue...but in my experience it cause grinding when shifting...not the sound you describe. I had the same sound and was a little low on fluid so that is why I suggested looking at that first.

Some people may shoot me for telling you to try an additive but try some Lucus oil and see if it quiets down.

http://www.lucasoil.com/products/display_products.sd?iid=25&catid=2&loc=show

I used about 1/2 quart in my tranny and it worked fine.

 

[blckstng96]

use gm synhromesh

 

[SVT32VDOHC]

With such a small capicity for fluid, I would say 1/4 or 1/2 short of fluid would matter. You should fill it on the ground. Sometimes hoists can lift cars on a slightly different angle than the way they sit on their tires.

The brand of fluid should not matter. I have run multiple fluids through my T5 and T45. As long as ATF says for Ford vehicles your should be fine. However, I did notice that they just came out with another ATF that says: "For 1996 and newer Fords" The other says: "Ford 1995 and older Fords. But they are still Dexron/Mercon...I don't know what they changed. I though it was to calm the "shutter" down a little bit.

 

[2013 Geee T]

I dont think its short since we measured out the quantity out before adding it and even if it was not level we still put the same amount in.

 

[2013 Geee T]

Plus why would it go away when it warmed up?

 

[joeman2199]

hey guys ive got a similar problem on my '03...

ive had the car a few months now and it has about 54k on it. since i live in florida most mornings im above 60 degrees in the mornin, but lately its been a little colder.

Anyways ive have a slight grind 1-2nd **** in the morning, but i just shift slow and it goes away pretty quick. But when i go into 5th its got that wierd noise like the marbles and wind are in my tranny, and then about 10 miles later its gone.

After lookin around i while I figured i'd start off with the dextron III fluid first, today i changed it out, noticed a tag on the tranny that says use mercon for 3.0 litres. I drained it out and it have a little over 3.5 litres in it, so i put in 3.0 of the fluid...

Turns out i still got the 5th gear noise so im not sure what to do. Im thinkin either try a different fluid till it gets better like RP syncromax, regular syncromesh, or the 'secret sauce recipie' the mach 1 boys are raving about which is a bottle of lucas transmission fix and finish it off with mobil 1 atf fluid...

or
just give up and avoid 5th gear in the mornin

any ideas???

 

[SilverBullet00]

To solve my 2nd gear grind I had to switch to conventional castrol fluid. I tried 3.0qts, and it shifted SMOOTH put 5th gear sounder like there was rocks being crushed in the tranny. I added 1/2 qt and it helped, but still a loud crushing sound. I upped it to 4 qts (STILL no fluid coming out of the overflow hole) and it helped the sound out greatly, still shifting much smoother than the stock fluid.

This is my experience, I really miss my T45 I had in my 2000

 

[2013 Geee T]

I was thinking about adding more fluid just as a test but since I moved I have all my tools in storage and dont have my rack connection so it will have to wait I guess.

 

[40th GT]

Turns out i still got the 5th gear noise so im not sure what to do. Im thinkin either try a different fluid till it gets better like RP syncromax, regular syncromesh, or the 'secret sauce recipie' the mach 1 boys are raving about which is a bottle of lucas transmission fix and finish it off with mobil 1 atf fluid...

any ideas???

yeah i have the mobil1 ATF plus 1/2 bottle of lucas trans fix and it has worked for me so far. No grinds or noises whatsoever and I used 3.2 quarts.

 

[kylebgt]

What size tools do you need for the drain and fill plug? I am planning on changing my fluid soon. I was thinking about using 3qts of mobil1 with .5 of some additive, I don't see the point in buying an extra quart of mobil1 if it only takes .2
Any advice before I get my hands dirty??

2003 gee t, I was told alittle while ago that you need to use a mercon atf fluid, maybe its the dexron thats messing you up

 

[mustang50v8]

why are we supposed to put automatic transmission fluid in a manual trans?

 

[2013 Geee T]

2003 gee t, I was told alittle while ago that you need to use a mercon atf fluid, maybe its the dexron thats messing you up

I didnt realize I have 2 threads on the same topic. Ooops!

Anyway I went to the dealer and got the fluid they said they use which was a Motorcraft Mercon VI I believe. I put in 3.5 quarts and it still does the same thing. I used straight Dexron III the first time I did it a couple years ago and it was fine. This is the first time Ive changed it since the 3650 TSB fix so I wonder if that has something to do with it.

I wonder if I added a half bottle of Lucas transmission fix to what I have now if it would do the trick. Where do you get it at?

 

[COramprat]

why are we supposed to put automatic transmission fluid in a manual trans?

It works the same...it is a lubricant more than a specific tranny fluid

Plus why would it go away when it warmed up?

Once it lubes up it will quiet down. That is telling me your level may be OK.

I didnt realize I have 2 threads on the same topic. Ooops!

Anyway I went to the dealer and got the fluid they said they use which was a Motorcraft Mercon VI I believe. I put in 3.5 quarts and it still does the same thing. I used straight Dexron III the first time I did it a couple years ago and it was fine. This is the first time Ive changed it since the 3650 TSB fix so I wonder if that has something to do with it.

I wonder if I added a half bottle of Lucas transmission fix to what I have now if it would do the trick. Where do you get it at?

I've heard Mercon V is fine as well as Dextron III. I've also used Syncromesh. Gets expensive experimenting though. I guess they are all about the same but have read in several places to stay away from synthetics in these trannys. Some issues with the synchronizers.

The Lucus oil you can find at any auto store. Add about 1/4 of the bottle and see if it helps. Kind of thick but I've had good results with it.

 

[hotdog71]

Yeah my 5th gear sounds like crap too sometimes!

I think it has something to do with the TSB I had done 2yrs ago for the 1 - 2nd grind when cold it sounds like metal on metal or like somthing is loose since is comes and goes, but when it's really cold it's sounds really bad.