Hey guys, I have read the threads already about gear rollover, but no one posted a sound clip of the noise, I will attempt to upload a recording of the noise my 2002 f350 drw is making at slow speed loaded with my camper on it.

If someone could verify this is what they hear as well that would be awesome, will get some redline to see if that fixes the issue if that is it.

Thanks!

 

Sounds like gear roll over to me.
I went with Redline high temp ATF at the recommendations of others here on FTE.
Its better than before, but will not eliminate it completely.

 

Like Slowsure said, that sounds like gear roll over after downloading the clip and listening to it. I would say I am 99% sure that is what I heard based on my knowledge of the ZF6 and having experienced gear roll over first hand in the past.

When I first bought my truck over 5 years ago, I bought a 30 ft travel trailer the same day and towed it home 600 miles... What an interesting couple days that was. Well, the first time I stopped for fuel I had to do a U-turn and my truck sounded just like that. I about lost my mind because I thought the transmission was on its way out. It did it a few more times on the journey home.

Once I got home I put Amsoil ATF into the case, ran it for 500 miles and then another dose of Amsoil ATF. I put in 6 quarts from the top of the case instead of the 5.5 quarts it calls for. The gear roll over was dramatically reduced with the 1st dose of Amsoil ATF, and nearly gone with the second dose of Amsoil ATF.

About a year ago I switched to Redline High Temp ATF as seen below. I cannot recall one instance of gear roll over happening since switching from Amsoil ATF, which was already doing very well over whatever fluid was in there when I bought it.

If you were in 1st gear when this happened, try Low gear next time. If you were in Low gear when this happened, try giving it a bit of fuel. Normally that would remove gear roll over completely when I was hearing it. Let us know if you have any further concerns or questions.

 

What they said^^^^^. It sounds just like my truck in first gear mainly but sometimes second gear. It all depends on speed and low throttle application, goes away when stepping on the skinny pedal. I've never been worried about the noise just because it's common and it only occurs occasionally in certain circumstances. If it made the noise cruising down the road or under load I would be concerned though.

 

Forget the atf, Redline MTL is what you want, it will shift smoother and be quieter. Order 7 quarts and take the shifter off and fill it that way so you can get an extra quart in there, which also helps with noise.

 

First I have heard of taking the shifter off to fill, is there a write up about that somewhere? I was just going to use the fill port on the side.

Thanks guys for the confirmation. 8 quarts of Redline MTL is in my amazon cart and my wallet is quite a bit lighter. Found it to be about $15/quart if you buy a 4 pack for quart bottles which is odd the Gallon jug is not cheaper.

 

@00t444e I used Redline MTL and found it too "clunky" or "notchy" for my liking. The Redline High Temp ATF hit the spot regarding the viscosity of the fluid and keeping the transmission shifting smoothly at all temperatures. We all know each truck is just a bit different and has its own temperaments though, so it might be worth a try.

@beachcamperf250 might have to spend a bit of cash to find out what he is happy with, but in the end it will be worth it.

I was implying filling from the shifter port when I mentioned "I put in 6 quarts from the top of the case" in my post above. I guess I should have been more clear.

It seems you have already ordered the MTL, let us know what you think about it after it is in the case.

 

MTL is what I have seen referenced in every other thread as the best way to go. First I have seen of using Redline ATF in the ZF6.

 

@beachcamperf250 If you go to www.redlineoil.com and put in your vehicle information at the top of the screen, then select "products for my vehicle" you will arrive to a screen that looks a lot like this one.




In addition, a little while back there was a member on here that had a ZF6 catastrophic failure while on the road. He ended up calling Redline and speaking to someone about the fluid that is to be used and they told him the ATF. I called the same number a couple of days later just to see if we would get a different answer and we I received the same answer as he did.

Please see this link: https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...l#post18105590

If you don't feel like clicking on the link, here is the meat of the post at the link destination. Although, there is A LOT of discussion about ATF, MTL, etc in the thread below that post...


Again, MTL does work and has been recommended as you have seen. Although, I found it too thick of a fluid and did not prefer it over the Redline High Temp ATF. I did prefer the MTL over the Amsoil though, but not the Redline ATF.

In addition, two of us in this very thread referenced Redline ATF, so I would not say that my post this morning is the first time you should have seen the recommendation of using Redline ATF in the ZF6.

Let us know how it goes...

 

I will check into this, geesh I thought it was an easy purchase. Thanks, I appreciate all the info.

 

You are welcome!

I would say give the MTL a try if that is what your first instinct is and what your gut is telling you. If you find the shifting or transmission feels a bitch clunky or notchy, then swap in the High Temp, if it still feels too notchy then swap in the ATF. It will cost you some cash, but you will know for sure what fluid your transmission likes based on how you drive it and the wear it has seen since the truck was built 18 years ago.

Even though 2 trucks are identical on paper, they each have their own personality and preferences in fluids and parts.

Let us know what you decide and how it goes as there will be someone else looking down this same path of decisions in the future.

 

Yup..remove shifter and fill..i used just MercV and 1 bittle of syncromesh..no noises here

 

I tried synthetic atf in mine, it was noisy and would grind easily when shifting. Pennzoil sychromesh made it shift much better, and made it a little bit less noisy. Then I switched to a 90w gl4 rated gear oil similar to Redline's MT90 fluid and it is quiet now and shifts smoothly.

 

Yes sir, but what works for your transmission may not for someone else. This is why the OP should go into this fully informed with all of his options available to him. Maybe the MTL will be good, maybe not.

I just hope he comes back and gives us an update one day.

 

I finally got around to doing this, I went with Napa's merconv and syncromesh to try first.

My thing is I put 6 quarts of mercv and a quart of syncromesh in the top and I still could not see the fluid, is that normal?

Btw, getting that shifter out is no small task. Those bolts were torqued down good.