No dipstick?

[dodge man]

What is it with no dipsticks these days? Do they not trust people to look at them? I changed the transmission fluid in my daughter’s car and there is a fill plug on top that access to is tough. It’s a 2016 Ford Fusion, 150,000 miles. Then there is a plug on the side you remove and fill it until it runs out. Then drive it to warm it up and remove the plug and check it again. A dipstick would be much easier.

 

[Roadworthy]

Perhaps they want to discourage owners from doing their own maintenance. They make more money if it's serviced by the dealer.

 

[oldnslo]

Surprised there is a drain and level plug accessible for changing oil. I don’t remember which vehicle it was but it was a “sealed” trans with no fill port either.

 

[scootr]

Had a BMW Z4 that would check the oil and show the level on a scale in the dash cluster.
Lots of newer motorcycles going to a sight glass. My Kubota has a sight glass for hydraulic oil and a dipstick for the engine oil. I had to put a dye in the hydraulic oil to see it reliably.

 

[mjonesnh]

Had a BMW Z4 that would check the oil and show the level on a scale in the dash cluster.
Lots of newer motorcycles going to a sight glass. My Kubota has a sight glass for hydraulic oil and a dipstick for the engine oil. I had to put a dye in the hydraulic oil to see it reliably.

Last time I changed hydraulic oil the New Holland brand was already dyed red in bucket. No sight glass but makes it easier to see on dipstick

 

[bcp]

I've heard the dipsticks all went into politics.



Bruce

 

[dodge man]

No transmission filter either, apparently just a large screen. When I changed the fluid I only got about a third of it out. I’ll have to change it again soon to get it a little better. I’m not sure what I spent for the oil change and transmission fluid, maybe $50 to $60. I wonder what a dealership would have charged her?

 

[vic4news]

I can’t even check the oil on my 2016 F150 without a using a step stool. The dipstick handle is only about 2” long.


My older cars actually had a dipstick you could reach.

 

[sd455dan]

View attachment 5473167View attachment 5473168What is it with no dipsticks these days? Do they not trust people to look at them? I changed the transmission fluid in my daughter’s car and there is a fill plug on top that access to is tough. It’s a 2016 Ford Fusion, 150,000 miles. Then there is a plug on the side you remove and fill it until it runs out. Then drive it to warm it up and remove the plug and check it again. A dipstick would be much easier.

just started reading this thread but...
Forcing us back to doing it like some motorcycles. Totally inconvenient for owners who do their own maintenance.

IMO rates right up there with Tesla when they removed the turn signal stalk - actually that is the worst stupid thing I have seen, once it really cost them sales they put them back in the following years, Maybe enough owner complaints will get Ford and RAM to put them back. A bad sensor can also give bad info to the computer. What about kids on a trip driving a vehicle that uses oil no way to know exactly how much to add.

 

[JTKub]

That vintage Fusion has a similar setup to my 2016 Chevy Malibu, 2021 Equinox and 2021 Traverse, except transmission drain/fills is as easy as an engine oil change on those. They all are the same setup, with a top mounted easy to access fill/breather cap, a drain plug and a level check plug.

 

[KennyG]

I think we've reached the point where automatic transmissions are no more likely to leak than manuals. When was the last time you saw a dipstick on a manual transmission?

 

[big bubba]

i have no prob checking the gear oil level side fill plug on manual transmissions, done it all my life. Having said, i would never own an engine that did not have a oil level dipstick & only relied on sensors.

Though i'd check my sister's beemer engine oil only to find it didn't have one. to me that's bs

 

[dodge man]

The fill plug on the Fusion transmission is on top but the access is terrible, buried under the air intake hose, wiring and an AC hard line almost on top of it. It took a couple of minutes to get it out but 10 minutes to get it back in.

 

[big bubba]

The fill plug on the Fusion transmission is on top but the access is terrible, buried under the air intake hose, wiring and an AC hard line almost on top of it. It took a couple of minutes to get it out but 10 minutes to get it back in.

at least you have it figured out. I'd be skeptical of a Quik Lube place to change the fluid on that model

 

[Jstpssng]

I think we've reached the point where automatic transmissions are no more likely to leak than manuals. When was the last time you saw a dipstick on a manual transmission?

What about checking to ensure you haven't cooked it? One thing that they finally started adding is a transmission temperature gauge. Aside from being able to monitor, it made me realize how important a cooler is. My Colorado with cooler runs about 95 pulling a 3000 lb trailer. The GMs my company bought didn't have coolers, and ran around 190° in everyday driving. They also overheated quicker when working them, on more than one occasion I had to stop to let the fluid cool when pushing through snow.

 

[big bubba]

given all the sensors these days, wouldn't a dashboard check light trip if tranny runs too hot on current models? what year is your Colorado?

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

This isn’t new. I have a 1999 Mustang that is the same

 

[GrandpaSmurf825]

Had a BMW Z4 that would check the oil and show the level on a scale in the dash cluster.
Lots of newer motorcycles going to a sight glass. My Kubota has a sight glass for hydraulic oil and a dipstick for the engine oil. I had to put a dye in the hydraulic oil to see it reliably.

Newer? My 1976 Kawasaki KZ900 used a sight glass. No dipstick. I don't know that they were the first but all the 900's and KZ1000's used a sight glass. The Z1 was the first of the 900's. Sight glass is right above the brake pedal on this Z1b.

 

[GrandpaSmurf825]

Surprised there is a drain and level plug accessible for changing oil. I don’t remember which vehicle it was but it was a “sealed” trans with no fill port either.

I'm thinking a 2000 Pontiac Grand Am I had was without a dipstick. My memory might be faulty or even corrupted.

 

[Jstpssng]

given all the sensors these days, wouldn't a dashboard check light trip if tranny runs too hot on current models? what year is your Colorado?

My Colorado is fine. It's all of the other trucks i've driven.
There is no light to trip. I've shut down on my old Sierras when temps hit 220°.
With no dipstick, how do you tell if you burnt the fluid?