I had issues with my trans so I bought a used one, mine is the early 03 half year. I got to looking at the drain spout on mine and the new one & the new one is 1/2" shorter than my old one, that would mean I'd get less fluid in the pan. Has anyone ever heard of this issue? I looked for a TSB about it but found nothing. Thanks
Confused about trans drain plug/spout
- Thread starter WS6HUMMER
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oddball
Dedicated LVC Member
'03 was a transition year - some had 5r55N's still, while Ford was transitioning to 5r55S's. I would expect such a difference between the two. Are you totally certain you have the same model for both the stock and the replacement? One easy tell is the fill plug changed locations between the designs.
Not true. ALL '03's+ had the 5R55S. The computer language between the '00-'02 and '03-'06 is incompatible. The 5R55N won't work in the '03+.
Hope you bought a 5R55S and not a 5R55N.
Thanks for the posts & replys, I ran the VIN on the trans that I got & it was 2/10/03 & a V8 so I'm sure its the right one now. I asked a close friend thats a professionel builder about it & he said they should be the same. Its pretty obvious the replacement has been rebuilt, knowing that people strip out the torx heads quite often I'm hoping that they builder replaced the drain/ plug/spout with another 5r55. Its in the car now, I'll let U all kow how it turns out. Thanks
oddball
Dedicated LVC Member
We had a guy on here a few months ago that had pictures proving a 5R55N in an '03. Looks like '03 was a transition year with some having the N, some with the S.
I can say that 03 is a split year, when I looked up my transmission on our computers & work it asked for a production date. 03 is a split year & I have the early 03 trans. When I pulled the spout out of the replacement trans I got the invoice from the yard I got the trans from, our software automatically prints out the full vin# on any in stock part we invoice out, I called a ford dealer with the vin & the trans I bought was 2/03 & a V8. I asked a friend that is a professional trans builder about it & we both came to the conclusion that maybe since it had obviously been built before, the builder found a stripped drain plug (he says they strip them alot since they have lock tite from the factory) & replaced it with a 5r55? Every time I called the trans a 5r55s he corrected me & called it a N or w. FWIW.
If that's the case then nothing electronic from the early '03s is interchangeable with the later and '04-'06. Ford switched from OBD2 to CAN-BUS in '03 (part of the 500 changes also allowing for an electric cooling fan) and these two systems can't communicate. Maybe some "hard" parts are interchangeable........
Like I said... ALL 03's+ have a 5R55S. You can argue with Mark Kovalsky if you want. He did the calibration on the transmission and knows a thing or two about it. It appears there is some interchangeability between the 5R55S and the 5R55W; of which I am unfamiliar.