Leaking red fluid

[Shawn51fla]

OK, i just bought this 2018 ecoboost premium Feb 11th. Love the car, all the cool new gadgetry and this one came with navigation and the cool gauge cluster upgrade. Great price as well, $21,042.
Well i loaded the cobb stage1 Friday, didnt really feel any added power, maybe a little but wasnt impressed. Tonight i abused the car a little for a short period of time having some fun, get home admiring the car i notice a trail of fluid, it started as i began to back into drive way. Theres a puddle under the car and i can see it dripping. Its Red. Im guessing tranny is leaking bad, car only has 32K on it.
I would add it seemed to shift harshly from my drive home from dealership, not real bad but seemed to downshift jerky like.
And the day before i thought i smelled burning fluids of some kind but passed it off as imagining something bad to happen because i was finally happy with a car.

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[Shawn51fla]

OK, i just bought this 2018 ecoboost premium Feb 11th. Love the car, all the cool new gadgetry and this one came with navigation and the cool gauge cluster upgrade. Great price as well, $21,042.
Well i loaded the cobb stage1 Friday, didnt really feel any added power, maybe a little but wasnt impressed. Tonight i abused the car a little for a short period of time having some fun, get home admiring the car i notice a trail of fluid, it started as i began to back into drive way. Theres a puddle under the car and i can see it dripping. Its Red. Im guessing tranny is leaking bad, car only has 32K on it.

Also would i call where i bought it being it was 10 days ago or am i dealing with Ford on warranty.

 

[sk47]

Hello; Before you panic check to see where the leak seems to be coming from. There should be a transmission oil cooler some where. Often built into the radiator. Could be a lose fitting. There are likely sensors and other things bolted into the transmission case. Get it up in the air and have a look.


Most important thing is to not drive it until you find the leak

 

[sk47]

Also would i call where i bought it being it was 10 days ago or am i dealing with Ford on warranty.

Miles are ok at 32K. You should be ok on the powertrain warranty as well. I think it is at least five years /60 K miles.
Some depends on where you bought the car and what sort of warranty, if any, they offered. On used cars around me thay will have an "as is, where is" sort of sheet on the window. If so then once you drive it off the lot it is your problem.
Maybe some one else on here has better answers.

Also you may run into a problem with the tune, but that is beyond my experience.

Good luck

 

[Shawn51fla]

Its leaking to the left of the 2 lines right at a seal.

 

[sk47]

Hello; I see the two lines in the picture. Might be as simple as replacing an O ring or some sort of such gasket, but I have not actually done any such work on one of these transmissions. So there may be more to it. Best to wait for someone who has some hands on experience.
Looks like the two tubes ought to be the lines that run to the trans oil cooler. A discharge and a return line. Also looks like there is only one bolt holding a bracket which secures these lines.

I hesitate to suggest that you try to tighten that bolt. Snap that off and your troubles will be much worse. I have not worked on that particular sort of way to attach a transmission line, so just do not know.
Check with Ford to see if you are covered before doing any such work.

 

[Shawn51fla]

Hello; I see the two lines in the picture. Might be as simple as replacing an O ring or some sort of such gasket, but I have not actually done any such work on one of these transmissions. So there may be more to it. Best to wait for someone who has some hands on experience.
Looks like the two tubes ought to be the lines that run to the trans oil cooler. A discharge and a return line. Also looks like there is only one bolt holding a bracket which secures these lines.

I hesitate to suggest that you try to tighten that bolt. Snap that off and your troubles will be much worse. I have not worked on that particular sort of way to attach a transmission line, so just do not know.
Check with Ford to see if you are covered before doing any such work.

Well you are right, where i bought it states no warranty from them but does have 3year36k and 5 yr 60K through Ford. I guess i call them to come pick it up since i cant drive it. I dont know anything about fixing them is why i bought a newish one. My 2003 BMW Z4 had 0 issues no leaks and had 96K on it. Buy a much newer car and 10 days later my driveway is trashed and im car less with a $350 payment. Brutal, i thought Ford had changed. My others Dad told me to avoid Ford and hes a mechanic. I said thats the old Ford. Guess whos laughing at me now.

 

[Cobra Jet]

If the Dealership where you bought it, sold it as a used car with an “as is” clause from them, then you can’t go back to them. Unless, you just recently bought it and your State has some type of consumer protection under the Lemon Law regarding used vehicles - then you might have a shot of them honoring some type of repair. Check out your State’s DMV or Attorney General site and make sure it s a.gov site, not some 3rd party site with inaccurate info.

As for the Ford Warranty:
3/36 is Bumper to Bumper
5/60 is Powertrain (engine, trans and rear)

You’re under the 3/36, so the trans would normally get service work using that warranty provision first. If you were past the 3/36, the trans would get serviced under the 5/60. The 5/60 runs concurrently with the 3/36.

Now I don’t know if you are aware, BUT when “tunes” are loaded to an S550, Ford Dealerships can tell because the PCM logs key cycles. A Dealership can deny a warranty claim IF there is suspicion it was caused by a modification and proven that said mod was a direct result of failure part ABC. A Tune is considered tampering with the vehicle’s software logic, per Ford’s Warranty. Now don’t go scared, I’m not saying you’ll get denied, just putting out the info so you’re aware in the event a Ford Dealership finds the car was tuned.

 

[Shawn51fla]

That would blow, being the car has had the tune for maybe 50 miles. I think by law they have to prove a mod caused the problem. I hope!
And that would be shifty being the problem is red fluid spilling under the car not the computer.

 

[Shawn51fla]

Now am i better leaving the tune on or put it back to stock ecu? Can they tell when the tune was installed?

 

[kz]

That would blow, being the car has had the tune for maybe 50 miles. I think by law they have to prove a mod caused the problem. I hope!
And that would be shifty being the problem is red fluid spilling under the car not the computer.

Nope - they will just deny to do anything and then you would have to prove that it didn't have anything to do with the tune.

Yes, they can tell tune was installed but I would still put a stock one on.

 

[CJJon]

Sorry OP, sounds like you made some mistakes here. First. ignoring the jerky shifting right from the dealer's lot and then the smell of burning the day before. Need to really investigate those kinds of things before thrashing a car. Especially a used vehicle you just bought. The crappy Cobb tune was the icing on the cake.

I'd be ready for a denied warranty claim.

 

[sk47]

Hello; If Ford denies the service work for some reason then come back on here or check with a
"trusted "mechanic. My impression is the leak might be an easy fix based on where it appears to be coming from. My thinking is there is a gasket or O ring which has failed or come loose. Trouble is I am not familiar with the actual bracket so just guessing can be risky. Even if it can be a DIY repair likely is best to try to get the repair done under warranty.
My thinking is you have lost some amount of fluid while driving. If the fluid loss is slight then likely not any internal transmission issues. However if you lost enough trans fluid there can be some internal effects. It would not be good to have done a leak repair only to find the inside of the transmission is needing some repair.

I do hope the news is not bad for your sake.

 

[Shawn51fla]

from color can anyone say is that tranny fluid? Its main drip is right at that lip above the lowest bolt in center.

 

[Shawn51fla]

Sorry OP, sounds like you made some mistakes here. First. ignoring the jerky shifting right from the dealer's lot and then the smell of burning the day before. Need to really investigate those kinds of things before thrashing a car. Especially a used vehicle you just bought. The crappy Cobb tune was the icing on the cake.

I'd be ready for a denied warranty claim.

From what i have read here some jerky shifting is common with the car, and the COBB tune is very well covered and endorsed by many to be a safe easy added punch to the car for minimal cost. And i would add the COBB tune made it shift smoother, in normal mode it was very smooth like my Moms Malibu, but just as gutless.
And i did mention i didnt feel the added power from the Tune, and i read recently the added punch is at 4000 rpm and i dont beat on the car even that much to have felt it.

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