Only do a drain and fill, never a flush. If you’re unsure, drain and fill, drive 100 miles, then do it again.
I have a 2016 with the 2.5L and 93k miles. I did a transmission drain and fill at 50k miles twice. I did another at 92k because the transmission started slipping between 2nd and 3rd when the temperature dropped to 40°F. It fixed the slip and smoothed out some of the hard shifting. I’ve seen videos of people doing it at 100k for the first time and it helped. Ford recommends it around 150k. You should be fine to do it, but there’s always some risk.
@Greer
Mine’s the 1.5.
Charlotte said:
@Greer
Mine’s the 1.5.
It should be the same 6F35 transmission. Ford just changes the fill check spot for some reason.
Keep up with maintenance. I have a 2017 2.5 hybrid, and it’s been great to me.
I have the same issue. I’m planning to change the transmission fluid soon to see if it helps. Does it shift harder from 1st to 2nd at higher RPMs, or is it smoother?
Fordlady said:
I have the same issue. I’m planning to change the transmission fluid soon to see if it helps. Does it shift harder from 1st to 2nd at higher RPMs, or is it smoother?
It shifts hard if I accelerate quickly from a stop. If I accelerate slowly, it’s smoother. The rest of the gears are smooth no matter how fast I go.
@Charlotte
That’s interesting. Mine is the opposite. It shifts hard if I drive slowly from 1st to 2nd, but if I accelerate faster, like up to 3-4k RPM, it shifts smoothly. We might have the same issue though.
@Fordlady
I had a different car that was rough at low RPMs but smooth at higher RPMs.
One thing that helped me with the rough shift from 1st to 2nd was easing off the gas pedal when shifting. I baby it in low gears, and it’s made a big difference. I only notice the rough shift when the car is cold on startup. I have a 2013 SE with the 1.6T.
Everyone here is debating the transmission fluid, but here’s what I did. I changed the spark plugs, did an oil change, replaced the coolant, cleaned the air filter, and detailed the interior.
Teagan said:
Everyone here is debating the transmission fluid, but here’s what I did. I changed the spark plugs, did an oil change, replaced the coolant, cleaned the air filter, and detailed the interior.
Did that help with the shifting?
@Charlotte
No, because I don’t have that issue. You asked what to do after buying one, and I answered. You could also clean the MAF and throttle body to see if it helps with shifting. Also, try using a bottle of Lucas or Seafoam to clean the injectors.