2013 Fusion Hybrid Transmission Leaking

[GrySql]

It sounds like you guys have to find better dealerships! I don't mean to be crass, but I drive 50 minutes to my dealership just to avoid the crappy dealership 15 minutes away. ;

+1

[hytibill]

I have read from multiple sources online that the surveys the dealership sends you after a service is actually very important to them. I don't know if you can use this to your advantage next time. I think that if you give them crappy reviews they will simply quit dealing with you, but perhaps you can tell them that you're aware of this survey and give them a chance to redeem themselves?

 

http://consumerist.com/2007/03/07/dealerships-fakealter-customer-satisfaction-surveys-to-get-marketing-money-from-toyota/

http://www.yelp.com/topic/boston-bullying-by-car-dealership-customer-service-surveys

http://consumerist.com/2012/04/04/giving-a-ford-dealership-bad-survey-grades-is-basically-tossing-their-employees-out-on-the-street/

[Ram]

I changed my oil 3 mos ago, and trans was stained with tranny fluid. I take into dealer today for service and have them inspect it. They say its fine. At least its documented that they say its fine. Also got the DRL's turned on for $62.00 and some change.

[stijojo]

This is what it said on my invoice from the dealership:

Customer States veh is leaking transmission fluid confirmed concern. Found that trany fluid was leaking from one of the lower trany case half bolts. Removed bolt and cleaned up bolt and hole. Put silicone in hole and reinstalled bolt. Test drove and rechecked for leak. All ok.

 

I am not so sure about this fix when i talked to the service rep he told me " we patched it" and will keep an eye on the leak next time i come in if it still going on then they will take it all apart and reseal whole transmission. This dosnt build confidence with me at all but they said it was a Ford approved fix. If you are a ford mechanic i would love to hear your thoughts on the fix. I will keep an eye on it and document their comunications because i didnot realize silicon patch is a approved fix.

 

Thats what happened so far i will keep you guys posted and would love to get some imput on the whole situation.

Well now its september and i went for my #2 oil change and guess?? My transmission is leaking again. So in my case the silicon patch is a major fail. Hope this time they actually fix it its getting old and frustrating at this point. So my adventure with my dealer continues. Will keep you posted. :angry22:

[hybridbear]

Well now its september and i went for my #2 oil change and guess?? My transmission is leaking again. So in my case the silicon patch is a major fail. Hope this time they actually fix it its getting old and frustrating at this point. So my adventure with my dealer continues. Will keep you posted. :angry22:

Get Crystal involved.

[stijojo]

Get Crystal involved.

I got ford involved the first time and after several contacts with the dealer i got the patch. I will contact ford again and at least make sure that the problem is documented. I love the car. Sometimes you have a problem and thats ok but fix it right the first time i dont have time for this lets guess untill its fixed. Today the dealer contacted me and i will take the car in on 29th to take the transmision apart. That makes me happy and scares me as i am not confident that it will be fixed. Hope they get me a nice rental. I am just frustrated with the situation.

[FordService]

I got ford involved the first time and after several contacts with the dealer i got the patch. I will contact ford again and at least make sure that the problem is documented. I love the car. Sometimes you have a problem and thats ok but fix it right the first time i dont have time for this lets guess untill its fixed. Today the dealer contacted me and i will take the car in on 29th to take the transmision apart. That makes me happy and scares me as i am not confident that it will be fixed. Hope they get me a nice rental. I am just frustrated with the situation.

 

I got your PM, stijojo. Check out your inbox for my response; I'll do what I can to help.

 

Crystal

[Kcouture25]

Might be having the same issue.

 

Love the car so far. Took it in for the first oil change today at 10,000 miles. The tech at the oil change place let me know that it looks like transmission fluid has been leaking. Went immediately to the Ford dealership, but they couldn't even look at my car today. Since I had to head back to Alexandria, I had to take my wife's car and she will try and get my car looked at tomorrow. Hopefully this can be fixed and not turn into a recurring issue.

 

With this being my first brand new car, my biggest worry is that I'll have major mechanical issues. I'll try and keep the forum updated so you can be mindful of the same issues on your vehicles.

[GrySql]

Might be having the same issue.

 

Love the car so far. Took it in for the first oil change today at 10,000 miles. The tech at the oil change place let me know that it looks like transmission fluid has been leaking. Went immediately to the Ford dealership, but they couldn't even look at my car today. Since I had to head back to Alexandria, I had to take my wife's car and she will try and get my car looked at tomorrow. Hopefully this can be fixed and not turn into a recurring issue.

 

With this being my first brand new car, my biggest worry is that I'll have major mechanical issues. I'll try and keep the forum updated so you can be mindful of the same issues on your vehicles.

The post above yours is our Ford Rep, Crystal. Click on her name and send her a PM about this, she can do good things for you at the Dealership. Don't wait to get her involved, the sooner the better.

[Kcouture25]

I'll do it right now. Thanks!

[FordService]

I'll do it right now. Thanks!

 

I got your PM and sent you a response, Kcouture25; thanks for reaching out! :)

 

Crystal

[md13ffhguy]

Changed my oil yesterday and was curious what I'd see when I dropped the large cover underneath the engine compartment. I had previously noticed some evidence of fluid leakage around the transmission case halves during the previous oil change. Not that I thought it would get better, but I don't think it was significantly worse. Snapped a few pics. I was thinking of re-torquing the bolts, but was unable to easily find the specs, so I simply took a 13mm hand wrench to each of the three bolts you can see here. I wasn't concerned about over-torquing, since I couldn't get much leverage, but I was surprised that I was able to snug them just a hair tighter.

 

I have almost 30K on the car now. I'm assuming this would fall under the 5 year/60K drivetrain warranty, so I plan to keep an eye on it. If it seems to be mitigated by snugging the bolts, I may not worry about taking it to a dealer, since it's even chances they'll muck this up (or something else) one way or another.

[Texasota]

Changed my oil yesterday and was curious what I'd see when I dropped the large cover underneath the engine compartment.

In your second picture it almost looks like the leaking is occuring around the head of the bold where it mates to the aluminum transmission case. There appears to be oil clinging at that location which is at a higher elevation that the seal between the two halves of the transmission case. Does not seem like oil would have migrated from the seal (between the halves) to the bolt head.

Edited November 23, 2014 by Texasota

[GrySql]

I was thinking of re-torquing the bolts, but was unable to easily find the specs, so I simply took a 13mm hand wrench to each of the three bolts you can see here. I wasn't concerned about over-torquing, since I couldn't get much leverage, but I was surprised that I was able to snug them just a hair tighter.

 

The 7 bolts that attach the HF-35 CVT to the engine are: Torque: 35 lb.ft (48 Nm)

==

=====

The 21 Case Cover bolts are: Torque: 18 lb.ft (25 Nm)

-

Install the transmission case end cover assembly and the bolts.

Torque: 18 lb.ft (25 Nm)

Edited November 23, 2014 by GrySql

[hybridbear]

Changed my oil yesterday and was curious what I'd see when I dropped the large cover underneath the engine compartment. I had previously noticed some evidence of fluid leakage around the transmission case halves during the previous oil change. Not that I thought it would get better, but I don't think it was significantly worse. Snapped a few pics. I was thinking of re-torquing the bolts, but was unable to easily find the specs, so I simply took a 13mm hand wrench to each of the three bolts you can see here. I wasn't concerned about over-torquing, since I couldn't get much leverage, but I was surprised that I was able to snug them just a hair tighter.

 

I have almost 30K on the car now. I'm assuming this would fall under the 5 year/60K drivetrain warranty, so I plan to keep an eye on it. If it seems to be mitigated by snugging the bolts, I may not worry about taking it to a dealer, since it's even chances they'll muck this up (or something else) one way or another.

Your pictures look similar to the leaking we had on the white FFH. The dealer claimed that this was "seepage" and not a leak and thus would not be covered under the TSB.

[GrySql]

Your pictures look similar to the leaking we had on the white FFH. The dealer claimed that this was "seepage" and not a leak and thus would not be covered under the TSB.

The amount of fluid that has accumulated on the engine cover looks more than seepage, Dealers say some interesting things.

That engine cover will absorb the fluid and eventually be destroyed and need replacement if the leaks are not fixed.

Hopefully, now that the bolts are tighter there may be less 'seepage'.

[billford]

Your pictures look similar to the leaking we had on the white FFH. The dealer claimed that this was "seepage" and not a leak and thus would not be covered under the TSB

 

That picture does not look like a seep, it looks like a leak. If there's oil drops hanging off the case, that's a leak. If the car did not have the lower engine cover, then the oil would have dripped on the ground, which would be a leak.

 

Since the transmission does not have a dipstick, you have to check the oil level through a plug on the drivers side of the transmission case. Thats not something that everyone will do including a full serve gas station or even a dealer. So if your transmission is leaking, you probably don't know how much fluid is in it. I would get it repaired a.s.a.p.

Edited November 24, 2014 by billford

[GrySql]

 

That picture does not look like a seep, it looks like a leak. If the car did not have the lower engine cover, then the oil would have dripped on the ground, which would be a leak.

 

Since the transmission does not have a dipstick, you have to check the oil level through a plug on the drivers side of the transmission case. Thats not something that everyone will do including a full serve gas station. So if your transmission is leaking, you probably don't know how much fluid is in it. I would get it repaired a.s.a.p.

+1

The transmission fluid should be even with the bottom of the oil leveling plug hole.

The Mityvac MITMV6412 ATF Refill System is used to add fluid to the HF-35, so it's a Dealer fix only.

Edited November 23, 2014 by GrySql

[hybridbear]

The amount of fluid that has accumulated on the engine cover looks more than seepage, Dealers say some interesting things.

That engine cover will absorb the fluid and eventually be destroyed and need replacement if the leaks are not fixed.

Hopefully, now that the bolts are tighter there may be less 'seepage'.

That picture does not look like a seep, it looks like a leak. If there's oil drops hanging off the case, that's a leak. If the car did not have the lower engine cover, then the oil would have dripped on the ground, which would be a leak.

 

Since the transmission does not have a dipstick, you have to check the oil level through a plug on the drivers side of the transmission case. That's not something that everyone will do including a full serve gas station or even a dealer. So if your transmission is leaking, you probably don't know how much fluid is in it. I would get it repaired a.s.a.p.

I agree. I will never return to that dealer for sales or service. I asked if they checked the fluid level. They said that there was no need since the leak was so slow that it would take a long time before low fluid became an issue. Some dealers are truly incompetent...

[md13ffhguy]

I'll get it checked out sometime soon, probably in conjunction with a couple recalls. I honestly believe the amount of fluid lost is negligible. We'll see. Maybe I can get a service appointment aligned with my holiday leave in December. Hard to go without a car...

[Barneybusa]

Ditto. Went to change engine oil when prompted by alert. Pulled the FRP skid plate and voila! Oil seeping from transaxle case. At 8300 miles, this Ford leaks more tranny fluid than my 2002 Taurus.

[FordService]

Ditto. Went to change engine oil when prompted by alert. Pulled the FRP skid plate and voila! Oil seeping from transaxle case. At 8300 miles, this Ford leaks more tranny fluid than my 2002 Taurus.

Have you spoken to your dealer about this? I'll be happy to check into some options, if you'd like. :)

 

Meagan

[SpenceJT]

Took mine 2013 (purchased used, in late June with just over 8K miles) for (my) first oil change at 10,500 miles, and my mechanic reported that I have a "leaking transaxle in the hybrid drive case".

If this is actually a component of the Hybrid drive-train, it should be covered under the 100K mile warranty yes? Does anyone know how long a repair (at my authorized dealer) take? Is this something where I'll need to arrange time off? drop off for half of a day? or something that I can have done while I wait?

Regards,

Spence

[hybridbear]

Took mine 2013 (purchased used, in late June with just over 8K miles) for (my) first oil change at 10,500 miles, and my mechanic reported that I have a "leaking transaxle in the hybrid drive case".

 

If this is actually a component of the Hybrid drive-train, it should be covered under the 100K mile warranty yes? Does anyone know how long a repair (at my authorized dealer) take? Is this something where I'll need to arrange time off? drop off for half of a day? or something that I can have done while I wait?

 

Regards,

Spence

You can read the experiences of others in this thread. It appears that the repair is not something that can be completed while you wait. You can try contacting a variety of dealers to ask for a loaner vehicle while your car is serviced. It should be covered under the 8/100 warranty.

[smr2112]

Just found out I have this issue TSB 14-0085 on my 13 Fusion Hybrid @ 16000 miles. Found during a normal oil change.

Dealer needs car for 3 days or so like the others. Would not normally see this very slow leak because of the covering

under the car not letting it out.

 

Curious if anybody who has had this was OK afterwards? Seems to be straightforward to fix. Sill server woman/person

service person can't tell me a thing about it at all, not at all technical. I totally trust the mechanic, but trust people in

these forums more !

 

Anybody who had this give an update?