Ford Explorers have been around in one shape or form since the 1970s. In that time, the Explorer has gone from simply being an option package on a pickup truck to one of the best selling midsized SUVs sold in the United States. With all those changes came many transmissions, including the “sealed for life” unit offered in the mid 2000s on certain models. Checking the transmission fluid on most Explorers is not difficult and can be done in a matter of minutes. Checking the fluid on a “sealed for life” transmission should be left to a certified transmission technician.
Start the Explorer, depress the parking brake and open the hood. Locate the transmission dipstick and pull it out. The transmission dipstick should have the words “transmission” or the abbreviation “trans” written on the handle. Wipe the fluid completely off the dipstick and reinsert it completely into the transmission dipstick tube.
Get into the Explorer’s driver seat and put your foot firmly on the brake pedal, pushing it down as far as possible. Shift the transmission from park, down through all the gears, allowing it to fully shift into each gear before moving to the next. Shift back to park, stopping in each gear briefly on the way back.
Get out and pull the transmission dipstick out once again and look for the fluid level on the stick. It should land in the crosshatched area. If it is below this area, put the funnel in the dipstick tube and add transmission fluid, no more than a pint at a time, until the fluid comes up into the crosshatch. Make sure the fluid you add is the proper kind for your year and model Explorer. Do not mix transmission fluid types.
