Mercon V in Power Steering..?

[Scott88]

Is Mercon V safe to use in power steering systems that call for Dex/Mercon III? I have a .5 quart or more left over from a recent ATF change in an '03 Taurus and I would like to use it to top off the PS system after using the Mity-Vac to extract what I can.

Thoughts? Thanks gentlemen.

 

[01rangerxl]

Generally, yes. I say generally only because I don't know if there are certain applications where it's not a good idea. I have used it to top off after turkey baster fluid changes in my Ranger since it was new. That's the only maintenance the power steering has ever received and it's still perfect at 111K miles. Manual calls for regular Mercon in the PS.

 

[fdcg27]

On our old Aerostar, which called for Merc V in the tranny, the OM said to use whatever ATF the tranny used.
I doubt that the PS will notice the difference.
It's not like the friction modifiers really matter to the PS pump or rack.
I'd go ahead and use it myself.

 

[artificialist]

I have done this numerous times.

You will be fine.

 

[tig1]

No problem. I've been using M1 ATF in PS pumps for many years in Fords.

 

[Nightmare]

Mercon V is fine for a Ford Taurus. ( 05 taurus here)
I usually use valvoline mercon V for the tranny and P/S fluid.
I also have a mity-vac, the 7300?, I think.

I went with the mobil 1 full syn ATF for my most recent 5 1/2 qt extract. I will probably use it from now on. Also changed out some of the P/S fluid, .5 qt, with what i had left over.

 

[Scott88]

^ Yep, pretty sure it's a 7300 or 7400... it works great.

Thanks for the input guys, it's greatly appreciated!

 

[RF Overlord]

When Ford stopped licensing plain Mercon back in '07, they did a 180 and said to use Mercon V in all applications that originally spec'd Mercon. This is the exact opposite from their stance up until that point. I was a bit suspicious, but haven't heard of any catastrophic P/S failures from using Mercon V in the last 5 years.

 

[mechtech2]

Originally Posted By: RF Overlord
When Ford stopped licensing plain Mercon back in '07, they did a 180 and said to use Mercon V in all applications that originally spec'd Mercon. This is the exact opposite from their stance up until that point. I was a bit suspicious, but haven't heard of any catastrophic P/S failures from using Mercon V in the last 5 years.


Right. The confusion has pretty much settled down now - it's OK..

 

[engineer20]

i have an 09 taurus and the manual says to use mercon v as the atf for the transmission fluid but also for the power steering fluid. i was wondering the same thing. do i have to use mercon v in it? in my camry, the atf and ps are totally different though the ps is an atf, but just gm atf, as it takes dexron for the power steering and type4 toyota for its atf, and i'll use maxlife for the toyota camry's atf and ps this time since maxlife atf is ok for toyota type 4 and it's dex/merc, but what about using maxlife in the ford? it says it's mercon lv but not a mercon v, so i don't think i'll use maxlife atf in the tranny on the ford, but was thinking about using it as the power steering fluid. is that ok, or should i use mercon v? what about prestone power steering fluid? i heard from a guy at autozone that power steering fluid is better for the seals than using an atf as the power steering fluid. is this true, and should I use power steering fluid or was the guy tricking me and trying to sell me the prestone? why would they make "power steering fluid" esp by prestone which is ubiquitous if most cars use automatic tranny fluid? there has to be some merit in using it otherwise it woulnd't exist. could i use that in either the taurus or the camry?

i'm especially curious about use of valvoline maxlife atf (says mercon lv, not v) for the power steering in the taurus, and mercon v is backwards compatible with mercon but that's not the case with the lv, so lv is not compatible with mercon v systems, right?

and could you use dexron in the taurus power steering or atf_4? would that be better or worse? my mechanic recommended spark plugs and power steering fluid but i think the PS is still good and it's red, so why is he telling me to change it? he's trying to sell me a service I don't need? and the car has 90k, isn't it true i can wait till 100k to change the spark plugs? thanks.

and does lubegard red wear off, as in do you add it every year, or would that be overkill and you'd "overdose" on it, or should you add it every year since it will break down and wear off? thanks.

 

[engineer20]

also, for the 09, there is no tranny drain plug, right? i can drop the pan? (where is it, is it 10mm bolts to drop the pan) and is it easier for me to do this with a jack and jack stands (my jack isn't working well, speaking of which, does anybody know of a place in southeast michigan, or michigan in general, or even northwest ohio/toledo or southwest ontario/windsor that can repair/fix a jack? and on an unrelated note, rod guides, that inner circle, or a place that can repair fishing rods, not rod tips, but places that carry the inner circle, or the arm to the fishing reel or fishing parts stores) (maybe cabelas in adrian?) anyways, is it better to use drive up ramps (i just got them last week and 2 wheel chocks as they were on sale at meijer) or a jack/jack stands for this job, or is either alright? i'm new to using wheel chocks too. i just bought 2. do you put the two on the back two tires/wheels when you jack it up or no or use the ramps as i've never used wheel chocks inthe past and i've been fine. thanks.

 

[turtlevette]

I don't think it matters that much. I put synthetic CVT fluid in my old 79 gm PS. Got it for a buck.

 

[PandaBear]

No problem at all, just use it.

 

[engineer20]

Originally Posted By: turtlevette
I don't think it matters that much. I put synthetic CVT fluid in my old 79 gm PS. Got it for a buck.


u got synthetic cvt fluid for a dollar? where at? is it suitable for newer nissan trannys? (ns-3 standard?) Thanks.

 

[turtlevette]

Originally Posted By: engineer20
Originally Posted By: turtlevette
I don't think it matters that much. I put synthetic CVT fluid in my old 79 gm PS. Got it for a buck.


u got synthetic cvt fluid for a dollar? where at? is it suitable for newer nissan trannys? (ns-3 standard?) Thanks.


You have to look on the clearance cart at auto zone.

 

[901Memphis]

I just used a cheap harbor freight hand pump on my Taurus and went down the dipstick tube and sucked a gallon of fluid out and added four quarts back. I did this a few times with a little driving in between. I couldn't get more than a gallon out due to the way the pan sits on flat ground.

 

[engineer20]

i see. speaking of transmissions, i have a few questions about the taurus transmission. i notice that when i come to a full stop, before i stop (at low speeds, say 10mph) my rpm naturally goes down, but then it shoots up to about 1500 right before the full stop. it does this most of the time. could this be bad, and would changing the transmission fluid with mercon v help (which brand? motorcraft, castrol, valvoline, as these brands make mercon v) and would changing the transmission filter help, or is this normal behavior?

also, on steep hills, it is normal or natural for your car to slip or back up even wen you're not in reverse or neutral and are in DRIVE? doesn't drive mean forward? i noticed both the camry and taurus slip downhill if you're stopped at a stoplight on a hill and you must accelerate hard to get it started/going or else it will slip and fall, and you must step on the brakes. not applying a lot of force on the brakes, and the car slips, is this normal?

 

[stchman]

Originally Posted By: Scott88
Is Mercon V safe to use in power steering systems that call for Dex/Mercon III? I have a .5 quart or more left over from a recent ATF change in an '03 Taurus and I would like to use it to top off the PS system after using the Mity-Vac to extract what I can.

Thoughts? Thanks gentlemen.


I don't know if there is a big difference between Mercon V and the older Mercon.

Just get some Valvoline MaxLife Dex/Merc ATF. That fluid meets the spec for most ATF.

 

[engineer20]

can you MIX power steering fluid (motorcraft has it, the dealer sells it) and prestone makes it too, with mercon v tranny fluid in the power steering reservoir, or is it not good to mix them?

i know coolants can't be mixed, unless chemically the same (can you mix G05 gold with motorcraft gold or zerex asian with toyota red/pink)?
but what about brake fluid or power steering fluid?

i heard you can mix brands of mercon v but you can't mix tranny fluid types. as long as the same type, but different brands, you can mix them like engine oil, but what about mixing power steering fluid with tranny fluid in the ps reservoir, or mixing brake fluid dot 3 with dot 4, as valvoline's is both dot 3 and 4 so i figure mixing brake fluid is safe

is theree anything you can use (i know there's protectant) that can keep your dashboard/interior dust free? i know how to clean it ,but how do you keep the dust from coming back?

 

[engineer20]

also, i have aluminum wheels and you can see the brakes under the wheel. they look rusty, is that bad, and my brakes sort of squeak but they work fine. is the squeaking bad and mean i need to replace my brake pads soon and what if there is rust on the brakes?