My next oil change will be at 70,000 miles on my 2012 EB 4WD F150.
My only maintenance issue with the truck so far has been a small rear diff leak, repaired under warranty. Then a year later a bearing in the rear diff was whining, and needed replacement, under warranty.


My dealer recommended at the 70,000 oil change, that we do a plug change. 100,000 miles
seems to be a dream for a lot of trucks, and a misfire can cause other problems you don't want. So I'm okay with that.

He also recommended changing the transfer case fluid. That, along with the
front and rear diffs, show a 150,000 interval. Is this really needed?

I asked about the 100,000 interval on the cooling system. He said that was fine for the EB. But he's seen problems with the 5.0 and recommended they be changed early. So I'll stick with the 100,000 coolest interval for my EB.

I'm also thinking of a tranny fluid change. I don't trailer or haul. Just cruise at 55-65, so I put little load on my tranny compared to you real truckers.
I recall a video by the Ford Mech where he advocated an even earlier fluid change regardless of how you drive.

So, thoughts on the transfer case and tranny fluid change at half the recommended life?

Edit: I should add that I realize tranny fluid change intervals has been
discussed in past years, but most it was theoretical. Now that we have more miles, there may be folks with opinions based on fluid and tranny condition with
real miles on which to base their opinion.

 

I ditched the plugs in my '13 EB at 40k miles in favor of the new SP534 that has a .030" gap. I'll probably swap them every 25k miles now that I'm tuned. What I'm saying is that I'm shocked you got 70k on the stock plugs in the EB.
I'm a fan of cooling system flushes, so yeah I'd let them do it. I'll do mine at the next big interval most likely, especially due to the tune, to keep the truck happy.
Do you work your trans hard? If so, then have them flush it, but I'd request seeing how dark the fluid is first.

 

I usually wait until the services are due, unless there is a repair being made. As far as spark plugs, I haven't had a set go past 75K without needing changed. My 2013 with the Coyote 5.0 has about 53K on it right now.

 

Based on my experiences on other vehicles, 150k on transfer cases and transmissions is too long. I would be inclined to change them out.

The differentials could probably wait if money is tight.

Just my opinion.

 

I had the plugs, transmission fluid, rear differential oil, and the radiator flushed in my truck at 76,000 miles. I wasn't having any issues with the truck, I just did it early because those fluids and plugs were 5 years old.

 

Font diff. shouldn't need changed since it is rarely used . Rear diff. should be fine since you had a bearing replaced. Fluid should have been changed then.

 

I'm at 70K now. I had the plugs changed at 61K miles due to a random misfire and then at 68K miles, the #2 coil needed replacement.

I intend to do the coolant flush and tranny flush at 100K miles. I don't intend to touch the x-fer case or the axles till 150K.

 

I wish I would have gotten some pictures of the fluid in my transfer case when I changed it out at 130k on the expedition ..... That might have changed your mind

Just an opinion, but it sounds like the OP's dealer has a pretty good feeling for the service needs of the various trucks and is making reasonable recommendations. I wouldn't have any problem following their advice. It sounds like they are looking after their customers rather than just trying to line their pockets.

For what it is worth, I've got 60k on the transmission fluid and 30k on the transfer case fluid. I'm planning on doing both shortly. The transmission has given me some signs that the fluid might be due, and the transfer case was so dirty when I changed it, I feel a short change is warranted, especially when it is so easy to do.

After going 140k on the power steering fluid, I should have changed that long ago as well.

Some of these (TC and PS) take so little effort and fluid, trying to maximize the fluid life just isn't worth it, IMO.

 

x2 on these miles for service.

I've done oil change and tire rotations every 5k and air filter at 25k. I did my plugs WAY too early at 40k, though I was trying to address a slight choppy in-gear idle.

 

I say, change lubricants sooner rather than later. I have read before that "normal" service is not something that most drivers experience. I think they must consider highway driving, as normal service. Stop and go city driving and also towing/hauling would be severe service interval.

 

I did my trans fluid at about 80k miles. It actually made a noticable difference in shift quality :shrug:

 

The front diff. is hard to do, but, it also it's not needed because those gears only spin while you're in four wheel drive so that fluid can last for a longer period of time. I'd skip it.

The rear diff. can be done in the driveway at home with basic tools and $15 worth of fluid and silicone gasket maker. Takes very little time. You'll spend ten times more money if you let the dealer do that.

The transmission is almost a must to do at home, because the dealerships I called would NOT change the filter or clean the pan magnet. They want to use a "flush" machine, which is a waste of money because these transmissions have thermal bypass valves that won't allow them to get all the fluid out. And even if they some how did, you still have a dirty filter and magnet inside.

The transfer case was the easiest of all. 10 minutes and some Transfer Case Fluid from the dealership or online (needs to be Motorcraft). I'd never pay anybody to do this.

Plugs on the EcoBoost need to be done a lot sooner and more often than on the Coyote because of the direct injection and forced induction. The Coyote will run well being neglected a LOT better than the EcoBoost will.

Coolant flush is the only thing I'd pay the dealership for because that's a messy and time consuming job at home. Let them do it, and then buy yourself a gallon of the proper fluid (mine takes the orange Dexcool type) and top the reservoir off at home after driving for a day or two.

 

WXboy, the transmission change sounded extremely hard for a backyard mechanic, when I looked at the manual. Because of the thermal bypass calve, you can only add a small amount until it warms up. Then you have to deal with the hot exhaust (fill tube under the truck). I choose to have it done. Good or bad, it seems like the flush machine is the way most shops do it theses days. I had mine changed at about 35,000 miles to deal with transmission shudder.

 

If you are going to have the transmission done at the dealer, make sure they have a heated flush machine. You have to get the transmission hot and feed it hot fluid to keep the thermostat open so all the fluid is exchanged.

There are a couple other ways to do an exchange at home, but the easiest is to just drop the pan fluid 3 or 4 times to get 90% or more of the old fluid exchanged.

I would not let the filter or magnet keep me from doing a flush. Dirty filters work better than clean filters and the filter is such that it wont plug up until the trans has failed already anyway. That is to say, they don't filter much in the first place. It would be nice to clean the magnet, but for me it isn't a deal breaker.

 

I'm not following your logic here. Everybody knows that when a filter plugs up, it creates big problems regardless of whether it's a fluid filter or air filter.

The filters for these trucks are less than $20 bucks online and they are easy to change. I'm not sure why you wouldn't just drop the pan, swap the filter, clean the magnet, and button it back up.

Yes, the difficult part is getting all 7.5 quarts of fluid back in while the engine is running, but I found that a $6.95 "oven glove" from Amazon.com allowed me to work around the catalytic converter with no fears of getting burned. I spent $100 total, and now I have the peace of mind knowing that over 50% of my fluid is fresh, and my filter is brand new, and my magnet is clean.