Changing The Transmission Fluid on Your Hybrid Maverick (DIY Step By Step)

[HeyBales]

The book says 100k IIRC. Maybe 150k. FWIW there is a guy on YouTube who rebuilds Ford hybrid transmissions (specially the HF35 which ours is very similar) and he said that changing it every 50k would "significantly" lengthen the lifespan of the transmission. That's just normal driving in a sedan, so if towing, driving in extremely hot weather, driving in the mountains etc changing it every 30k in the Maverick might be beneficial.

150K actually.

Car Care Nut for the equal Toyota transmissions recommends around 60-90K, and references that because of the heat potential and keeping long term.
He is talking cars though, so indeed if towing/off road stress, more frequent.

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[HeyBales]

So are we checking the fluid level at the fill plug with the motor running on the hybrid Mavericks?

I saw one reply saying operating temps, other said running.

But I'm sure I've seen the manual pages in a post regarding checking the level, along with a video of the same routine of a check, which means same fill level as replacing it - and it was room temp called out.
Point was made start truck just to get rotation, then off and check.
Back on level ground too, not lifted on one side.

Quick review of many videos on the similar Toyota and Ford eCVT's - none say run the car or drive it around to warm it up.

 

[MakinDoForNow]

Follow up question. Has anyone used a different ULV ATF other than the Ford brand? I was thinking of using Valvoline ULV fluid which is about half the price. Since Ford doesn't make the transmission fluid does anyone know who the manufacture is?

It appears to be Kendall (Phillips 66, I believe). Shape and color of bottle is the same.

 

[HeyBales]

Awesome write up . My 15' Outlander Sport Cvt 2 was every 30K miles. Drain 4.5qts, drop pan, replace mesh filter and most important: change the Cvt cooler filter. Of course that tiny little cooler filter got overlooked by many owners because it was buried underneath the battery tray and 2 brackets

So the CVT that uses bands and pulleys - not motor and gears.
Probably kept it going much longer than procrastinators.

 

[Ruggybuggy]

According to John Kelly at Weber State the eCVT requires additives which protect the polymer coatings on the field coils. Heat can destroy those additives and if coatings deteriorate the copper coils can melt. The winding are square wires and have 90° turns to make the motors smaller, saving copper, and more powerful. The coatings have to carry heat rapidly. In one of his videos he had tech's from the Bahamas that on the earlier models of the eCVT are changing the fluid ANNUALLY due to hf35 failures from heat. These are earlier models than maverick though. I personally at 100+°F switch to 91 octane and limit speed to 68-70:mph.

So if we know who manufacturers the Ford ULV transmission fluid we could skip the middle man and save.

 

[Ruggybuggy]

It appears to be Kendall (Phillips 66, I believe). Shape and color of bottle is the same.

Could be but Kendall might just have the same bottle supplier as the Ford fluid manufacturer.

 

[Ruggybuggy]

I saw one reply saying operating temps, other said running.

But I'm sure I've seen the manual pages in a post regarding checking the level, along with a video of the same routine of a check, which means same fill level as replacing it - and it was room temp called out.
Point was made start truck just to get rotation, then off and check.
Back on level ground too, not lifted on one side.

Quick review of many videos on the similar Toyota and Ford eCVT's - none say run the car or drive it around to warm it up.

That's the confusing part. Maverick owners who have done the service report adding significantly more fluid then they took out. Maybe the exact level is not that critical?

 

[Hardening2753]

The book says 100k IIRC. Maybe 150k. FWIW there is a guy on YouTube who rebuilds Ford hybrid transmissions (specially the HF35 which ours is very similar) and he said that changing it every 50k would "significantly" lengthen the lifespan of the transmission. That's just normal driving in a sedan, so if towing, driving in extremely hot weather, driving in the mountains etc changing it every 30k in the Maverick might be beneficial.

And that's why I chose to do it at the interval I did. I do a lot of forest roads up and down mountains. So it's very hot and dusty for the transmission. This was the first fill and drain I did on the truck and they were visible metal shavings when I first cracked open the bolt. I know that's totally normal but it does cause extra fiction if you leave it in there for an extended length of time.

If it was regular grocery getter truck then I would probably left it for a while like a 100k moles

 

[Hardening2753]

Could be but Kendall might just have the same bottle supplier as the Ford fluid manufacturer.

I would recommend that you buy the Ford mercon one. You can't go wrong buying OEM for transmission fluid. I feel that with engine oil you can pick and choose the brand that you want but transmissions are more delicate when it comes to the fluids they use.

I bought my fluid from RockAuto for $6 a bottle

 

[Hardening2753]

I saw one reply saying operating temps, other said running.

But I'm sure I've seen the manual pages in a post regarding checking the level, along with a video of the same routine of a check, which means same fill level as replacing it - and it was room temp called out.
Point was made start truck just to get rotation, then off and check.
Back on level ground too, not lifted on one side.

Quick review of many videos on the similar Toyota and Ford eCVT's - none say run the car or drive it around to warm it up.

Every car is a little bit different and that's why I opted to replace basically the same amount that came out. You can't go wrong replacing what you took out. Coincidentally it was a that same quantity that it started coming out of the fill port. I did have the truck on a car jack but I lowered it some and made it level before I did the fill

 

[inline_five]

That's the confusing part. Maverick owners who have done the service report adding significantly more fluid then they took out. Maybe the exact level is not that critical?

My coolant levels are literally at min from Ford. Like, at the min line min. So I'm not surprised that they can put more in. I'm sure there is a good and "good enough" level.

 

[inline_five]

And that's why I chose to do it at the interval I did. I do a lot of forest roads up and down mountains. So it's very hot and dusty for the transmission. This was the first fill and drain I did on the truck and they were visible metal shavings when I first cracked open the bolt. I know that's totally normal but it does cause extra fiction if you leave it in there for an extended length of time.

If it was regular grocery getter truck then I would probably left it for a while like a 100k moles

Yeah it has a filter but why have all that around in the transmission? Easy and cheap to replace. For most, a good practice would be to change early on to rid the transmission of any remanent particles then every 50k IMO.

 

[HeyBales]

That's the confusing part. Maverick owners who have done the service report adding significantly more fluid then they took out. Maybe the exact level is not that critical?

I would say it is - but prior threads also mentioned their factory filled level was low. And too low is worse.

Why I wouldn't say you should always put in same amount that came out - as that could have been wrong.

Same as some threads have said the fill bolt was very loose. But you'd torque that down to spec, not keep it the way it was.

Just poor quality control - which many can attest to occurring somewhere on their truck.
Not sure why some examples are seen, but it's assumed it couldn't happen here.

 

[Mikk]

So are we checking the fluid level at the fill plug with the motor running on the hybrid Mavericks?

No, that is the procedure for a conventional automatic.
Ford's procedure says to
a) turn the steering all the way to the left for easier access to the fill plug.
b) run the engine for one minute.
c) shut the engine off, wait five minutes, then remove the fill plug to check the level.

 

[Ruggybuggy]

No, that is the procedure for a conventional automatic.
Ford's procedure says to
a) turn the steering all the way to the left for easier access to the fill plug.
b) run the engine for one minute.
c) shut the engine off, wait five minutes, then remove the fill plug to check the level.

Thank you for clearing that up.

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