2015 Ford F-150 ATF and Diffs
- Thread starter Thugzy
- Start date
- Status
My preference is to stick the Mercon LV. There are probably better fluids out there, but it works well and is available for around $5/quart. I would drop the pan and replace the filter. It's easy and the gasket is re-usable. Just be aware that when you refill the fluid, you will have to have the engine running (or you will not be able to fill the last two quarts) and the fill hole and dipstick tube are beside the passenger side cat converter. The dipstick has a "hot" and "cold" line. Unless the fluid is up at about 170f (which it wont be during refilling), you will have to use the "cold" line. I used about 8 quarts when I changed my 2016, so if you want to get more than that changed, you will have to do a couple of these drain-and-fills. Remember to clean the magnets in the pan (there are two) and otherwise it's pretty straight forward. If you want to make it easier on yourself in the future, dorman makes a pan with a drain plug:
Dorman 6r80 pan
Dorman 6r80 pan
Hey just posted a similar questions as well.
I have a 2011 F150 5.0 that I serviced the transmission on last week. A year ago or so, I had pumped about 4 quarts out of the pan and pumped 4 quarts of Maxlife ATF that is "Mercon LV Compatiable" back in. Last week, I went to the local dealership and bought 8 quarts of Mercon LV and a filter. After doing the job, I noticed smoother shifts overall, but especially my 1-2 shift. I have a 5 Star tuner that i'm running a tow tune with and thought that was giving the harsher shifts, but I now suspect the Maxlife because I am still running the same tune. By the way, Oreillys, Autozone etc. wanted over $8 a quart for Mercon LV, I paid just over $5 a quart at the dealer. I have used Maxlife ATF in GM applications without issue, but as of now i'm sticking with Motorcraft Mercon LV in my F150's 6R80. fordtechmackuloco on youtube swears that the oem fluid must be used in this trans., he may be correct, or it's possible a pan drop and fill with new filter and Maxlife may have produced the same results. BTY, I have 145K mile on my truck.
Last edited:
I bought Mobil 1 75w140 for the rear diff., but I need to get a bottle of friction modifier before change it.
In all the applications heavy duty and not Amsoil ATF has never given me a reason to doubt its performance. I'm using it a few of the family vehicles and I have used it personally for over a decade. Great stuff, use with confidence if you go that route. My unclde tows a lot of weight with his Ram 2500 regularly and even at the severe duty interval the Amsoil comes out red. It's darker than it went in but not by much. By comparison the OEM fluid would come out almost black.
I've never used Motul ATF so I can't speak for that brand.
I've never used Motul ATF so I can't speak for that brand.
Last edited:
Mag 1 LV is a good option as well for the trans, it's officially approved and cost around 5.40/qt on Amazon.
Good info on the Maxlife. Thanks. I was actually going to try it but rethinking it.
I thought the rear diff used a 90 weight, not a 140.
I thought the rear diff used a 90 weight, not a 140.
I've used Maxlife in many Mercon LV applications and there is no difference in performance or shifting.
Last year I did the same thing for my '16 F-150 when it rolled over 10K miles. Chose Castrol Transmax Full Synthetic Multi-Vehicle ATF (which incidentally carries both Dexron VI and Mercon LV OE approvals) and Amsoil Severe Gear 75W-110 to replace the stock 75W-85 FF. I went with the slightly thicker gear oil as an experiment see if it would dampen what I'll call the "backlash clunk" when the trans performs its' rather firm 2-1 downshift as you come to a stop. The Amsoil had the desired affect.
Originally Posted by XL1200RFan
Last year I did the same thing for my '16 F-150 when it rolled over 10K miles. Chose Castrol Transmax Full Synthetic Multi-Vehicle ATF (which incidentally carries both Dexron VI and Mercon LV OE approvals) and Amsoil Severe Gear 75W-110 to replace the stock 75W-85 FF. I went with the slightly thicker gear oil as an experiment see if it would dampen what I'll call the "backlash clunk" when the trans performs its' rather firm 2-1 downshift as you come to a stop. The Amsoil had the desired affect.
Is it a 2-1 downshift or a 3-1? My trans has never downshifted from 3-2-1 while stopping under normal driving. The characteristics of the 6R80 is that it goes 3-1. If it is indeed going from 3-2-1 you may want to get it checked out unless they changed something for the MY 15s?
Last year I did the same thing for my '16 F-150 when it rolled over 10K miles. Chose Castrol Transmax Full Synthetic Multi-Vehicle ATF (which incidentally carries both Dexron VI and Mercon LV OE approvals) and Amsoil Severe Gear 75W-110 to replace the stock 75W-85 FF. I went with the slightly thicker gear oil as an experiment see if it would dampen what I'll call the "backlash clunk" when the trans performs its' rather firm 2-1 downshift as you come to a stop. The Amsoil had the desired affect.
Is it a 2-1 downshift or a 3-1? My trans has never downshifted from 3-2-1 while stopping under normal driving. The characteristics of the 6R80 is that it goes 3-1. If it is indeed going from 3-2-1 you may want to get it checked out unless they changed something for the MY 15s?
- Status