2023MY 60k Service Interval — Transmission Issues, Diff Service, and Fan

[Jrvegas22]

Howdy!

My 2023 Ranger XLT (4x4) is at about 59,500 miles and with my 60k service interval coming up I wanted to get others' input on a few things. I am the 2nd owner of this truck with no accident or repair history. First owner was an old guy who seemed to be religious about maintenance and put 43k miles on the truck, of mostly highway miles commuting to work. In the past 17k, I have done consistent oil changes every 4,000 miles with full synthetic.

I am currently using the truck as a daily, but will be quickly shifting into an overland build role once past the 60k threshold as I have other cars I can commute in. For the following info, I have 265/70/17 XL rated Nitto Terra Grapplers with Ford OE 17x8 steelies.

Transmission

I have heard a lot of talk about the transmissions in these Rangers. I have an MY2023 with a build date after the CDF update, however, I am still experiencing some transmission "occurrences." In highway traffic, I get a ton of vibration feedback in 4th gear down to about 1k rpm while decelerating and the truck doesn't want to drop to 3rd. When I step on the gas again, it just vibrates in 4th until it gets back to about 1500-2k rpm before shifting back up to 5th. This issue replicates, although less aggressively, in sport and tow modes. This happens every time I encounter low speed traffic no matter how much I have driven.

I always let the truck warm up until the rpms drop after a cold start before driving and no matter what the fan engages very loudly for the first 5-6 accelerations or 3-4 minutes and limits the power on acceleration. It also does this every time the truck is shut off and restarted, even if I have driven the truck for four hours and stop for gas.

Other than that, the transmission lurches at odd times in between odd gears and there seems to be no consistent pattern to the lurches. Sometimes I can drive 200 miles at a time without a single issue and sometimes it happens randomly on my way to the grocery store. *This last point is not really that abnormal compared with every other Ford I have owned...but I figured I would feel out the responses on here.

Has anyone else experienced issues in the 2023s yet? For the service interval, I am thinking of having them do a drain and fill and then replace the OE plastic pan with an aftermarket one. Please give input on this plan.

Differential

I drive mostly highway miles for work and a lot of easy offroad (gravel/dirt/sand roads) in the greater Houston area. I am pretty mechanically adept and plan to drain and fill both front and rear diffs at 60k miles myself. Does anyone have the aftermarket larger diff cover and have any positive reviews?

Any insight into these issues or any other advice is more than welcome. The truck is paid off and I plan to keep it for overlanding trips until it dies. As I said above, I have other cars I can commute in and daily, so I am not too worried about things breaking, but just want an idea of expectations so I can bake any costs into the budget.

*EDIT* I should note that the truck has never thrown a code or had a dash alert, however, with my previous Fords that has never precluded an issue in the past.

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[RangerBill]

Howdy!

My 2023 Ranger XLT (4x4) is at about 59,500 miles and with my 60k service interval coming up I wanted to get others' input on a few things. I am the 2nd owner of this truck with no accident or repair history. First owner was an old guy who seemed to be religious about maintenance and put 43k miles on the truck, of mostly highway miles commuting to work. In the past 17k, I have done consistent oil changes every 4,000 miles with full synthetic.

I am currently using the truck as a daily, but will be quickly shifting into an overland build role once past the 60k threshold as I have other cars I can commute in. For the following info, I have 265/70/17 XL rated Nitto Terra Grapplers with Ford OE 17x8 steelies.

Transmission

I have heard a lot of talk about the transmissions in these Rangers. I have an MY2023 with a build date after the CDF update, however, I am still experiencing some transmission "occurrences." In highway traffic, I get a ton of vibration feedback in 4th gear down to about 1k rpm while decelerating and the truck doesn't want to drop to 3rd. When I step on the gas again, it just vibrates in 4th until it gets back to about 1500-2k rpm before shifting back up to 5th. This issue replicates, although less aggressively, in sport and tow modes. This happens every time I encounter low speed traffic no matter how much I have driven.

I always let the truck warm up until the rpms drop after a cold start before driving and no matter what the fan engages very loudly for the first 5-6 accelerations or 3-4 minutes and limits the power on acceleration. It also does this every time the truck is shut off and restarted, even if I have driven the truck for four hours and stop for gas.

Other than that, the transmission lurches at odd times in between odd gears and there seems to be no consistent pattern to the lurches. Sometimes I can drive 200 miles at a time without a single issue and sometimes it happens randomly on my way to the grocery store. *This last point is not really that abnormal compared with every other Ford I have owned...but I figured I would feel out the responses on here.

Has anyone else experienced issues in the 2023s yet? For the service interval, I am thinking of having them do a drain and fill and then replace the OE plastic pan with an aftermarket one. Please give input on this plan.

Differential

I drive mostly highway miles for work and a lot of easy offroad (gravel/dirt/sand roads) in the greater Houston area. I am pretty mechanically adept and plan to drain and fill both front and rear diffs at 60k miles myself. Does anyone have the aftermarket larger diff cover and have any positive reviews?

Any insight into these issues or any other advice is more than welcome. The truck is paid off and I plan to keep it for overlanding trips until it dies. As I said above, I have other cars I can commute in and daily, so I am not too worried about things breaking, but just want an idea of expectations so I can bake any costs into the budget.

Some of the symptoms that you describe sound like a bad DPFE EGR feedback sensor. It is about $20 and you can replace it yourself. I would start with that and see how many of your issues are solved. It causes engine jerkiness at lower speeds, partial throttle. See this thread:
https://www.ranger5g.com/forum/thre...mbly-replacement-write-up-lb5z-9j433-b.29247/

Standard Motor Products VP41

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog...sion,egr+pressure+feedback+(dpfe)+sensor,5088

 

[Stevedbvik1]

Howdy!

My 2023 Ranger XLT (4x4) is at about 59,500 miles and with my 60k service interval coming up I wanted to get others' input on a few things. I am the 2nd owner of this truck with no accident or repair history. First owner was an old guy who seemed to be religious about maintenance and put 43k miles on the truck, of mostly highway miles commuting to work. In the past 17k, I have done consistent oil changes every 4,000 miles with full synthetic.

I am currently using the truck as a daily, but will be quickly shifting into an overland build role once past the 60k threshold as I have other cars I can commute in. For the following info, I have 265/70/17 XL rated Nitto Terra Grapplers with Ford OE 17x8 steelies.

Transmission

I have heard a lot of talk about the transmissions in these Rangers. I have an MY2023 with a build date after the CDF update, however, I am still experiencing some transmission "occurrences." In highway traffic, I get a ton of vibration feedback in 4th gear down to about 1k rpm while decelerating and the truck doesn't want to drop to 3rd. When I step on the gas again, it just vibrates in 4th until it gets back to about 1500-2k rpm before shifting back up to 5th. This issue replicates, although less aggressively, in sport and tow modes. This happens every time I encounter low speed traffic no matter how much I have driven.

I always let the truck warm up until the rpms drop after a cold start before driving and no matter what the fan engages very loudly for the first 5-6 accelerations or 3-4 minutes and limits the power on acceleration. It also does this every time the truck is shut off and restarted, even if I have driven the truck for four hours and stop for gas.

Other than that, the transmission lurches at odd times in between odd gears and there seems to be no consistent pattern to the lurches. Sometimes I can drive 200 miles at a time without a single issue and sometimes it happens randomly on my way to the grocery store. *This last point is not really that abnormal compared with every other Ford I have owned...but I figured I would feel out the responses on here.

Has anyone else experienced issues in the 2023s yet? For the service interval, I am thinking of having them do a drain and fill and then replace the OE plastic pan with an aftermarket one. Please give input on this plan.

Differential

I drive mostly highway miles for work and a lot of easy offroad (gravel/dirt/sand roads) in the greater Houston area. I am pretty mechanically adept and plan to drain and fill both front and rear diffs at 60k miles myself. Does anyone have the aftermarket larger diff cover and have any positive reviews?

Any insight into these issues or any other advice is more than welcome. The truck is paid off and I plan to keep it for overlanding trips until it dies. As I said above, I have other cars I can commute in and daily, so I am not too worried about things breaking, but just want an idea of expectations so I can bake any costs into the budget.

The 2023’s have the updated CDF drum but still have the older version of the outer shell ( trash can updated on 10R80’s in 2024) and there have been some valve body revisions too. Both them items have caused some issues for the 2023’s.
Definitely change the fluid in the differentials and don't be surprised at what you see. Don’t forget the transfer case fluid either.

 

[airline tech]

Howdy!

My 2023 Ranger XLT (4x4) is at about 59,500 miles and with my 60k service interval coming up I wanted to get others' input on a few things. I am the 2nd owner of this truck with no accident or repair history. First owner was an old guy who seemed to be religious about maintenance and put 43k miles on the truck, of mostly highway miles commuting to work. In the past 17k, I have done consistent oil changes every 4,000 miles with full synthetic.

I am currently using the truck as a daily, but will be quickly shifting into an overland build role once past the 60k threshold as I have other cars I can commute in. For the following info, I have 265/70/17 XL rated Nitto Terra Grapplers with Ford OE 17x8 steelies.

Transmission

I have heard a lot of talk about the transmissions in these Rangers. I have an MY2023 with a build date after the CDF update, however, I am still experiencing some transmission "occurrences." In highway traffic, I get a ton of vibration feedback in 4th gear down to about 1k rpm while decelerating and the truck doesn't want to drop to 3rd. When I step on the gas again, it just vibrates in 4th until it gets back to about 1500-2k rpm before shifting back up to 5th. This issue replicates, although less aggressively, in sport and tow modes. This happens every time I encounter low speed traffic no matter how much I have driven.

I always let the truck warm up until the rpms drop after a cold start before driving and no matter what the fan engages very loudly for the first 5-6 accelerations or 3-4 minutes and limits the power on acceleration. It also does this every time the truck is shut off and restarted, even if I have driven the truck for four hours and stop for gas.

Other than that, the transmission lurches at odd times in between odd gears and there seems to be no consistent pattern to the lurches. Sometimes I can drive 200 miles at a time without a single issue and sometimes it happens randomly on my way to the grocery store. *This last point is not really that abnormal compared with every other Ford I have owned...but I figured I would feel out the responses on here.

Has anyone else experienced issues in the 2023s yet? For the service interval, I am thinking of having them do a drain and fill and then replace the OE plastic pan with an aftermarket one. Please give input on this plan.

Differential

I drive mostly highway miles for work and a lot of easy offroad (gravel/dirt/sand roads) in the greater Houston area. I am pretty mechanically adept and plan to drain and fill both front and rear diffs at 60k miles myself. Does anyone have the aftermarket larger diff cover and have any positive reviews?

Any insight into these issues or any other advice is more than welcome. The truck is paid off and I plan to keep it for overlanding trips until it dies. As I said above, I have other cars I can commute in and daily, so I am not too worried about things breaking, but just want an idea of expectations so I can bake any costs into the budget.

The one thing that caught my attention here - is the cooling fan issue when the truck is hot, either coming from the fan itself or the sensor control side of it, this alone could be the root of the transmission shifting issues.
By the way you describe it the fan is staying engaged longer than normal and needs a closer inspection - of Temp Sensors and AC Pressure as well as verify the space in between the condenser and radiator are clear and not clogged up with leaves and debris.

I would also check the (known issue) of the Fan Clutch - Support Hose for security and the associated wiring damage issue - ensure its intact.

Another possible PID to monitor and check would be the MAPT sensor - as it’s the load input for the PCM , Load affects shift points and fan speed

 

[Rrrr-Anger19]

With the exception of the Trans servicing the drivetrain is pretty easy and doesn't require much for tools or fluid material. a 1/2" breaker and a catch basin is all you need... the total fluid nearly anywhere is only maybe $40 after tax?

Most of the job is if like me waiting for every last drop to pour out before sealing it up and squeezing the new stuff back in.

Trans job while not impossible is quite messy but the work through isn't difficult either...the 10% of the bolts do require shorter sockets and there isn't a ton of room to turn the wrench, plus the fluid comes gushing out and sticks so bad!

 

[Msfitoy]

In highway traffic, I get a ton of vibration feedback in 4th gear down to about 1k rpm while decelerating and the truck doesn't want to drop to 3rd. When I step on the gas again, it just vibrates in 4th until it gets back to about 1500-2k rpm before shifting back up to 5th. This issue replicates, although less aggressively, in sport and tow modes. This happens every time I encounter low speed traffic no matter how much I have driven.

This is typical behavior of this transmission...in D, it's programmed for high mpg and trades drivability over efficiency (lugs a LOT)...stick to tow or sport mode if this is annoying...

 

[Dereku]

You should have a better trans considering its a 23. DPFE sensor is cheap maintenance that could fix some shudders. Do plugs for the heck of it, mine get done every 30k. Lubricant the splines on the driveshaft with ford blue PTFE goo. That stops some clunky nonsense too. That seems to be a 30-50k service.

Don’t forget sone good caliper grease on the slides. They can get sticky otherwise. I do a ceramic high temp before every winter. Sticking caliper slides can cause shimmys.

Check the driveshaft carrier bearing for play too.

 

[Jrvegas22]

This is typical behavior of this transmission...in D, it's programmed for high mpg and trades drivability over efficiency (lugs a LOT)...stick to tow or sport mode if this is annoying...

Thanks for the response! It sounds like the transmission is fine, at least performing as designed, so I will service all the fluids, replace the DPFE sensor, probably replace the plugs, and continue to monitor the situation.

 

[Jrvegas22]

The one thing that caught my attention here - is the cooling fan issue when the truck is hot, either coming from the fan itself or the sensor control side of it, this alone could be the root of the transmission shifting issues.
By the way you describe it the fan is staying engaged longer than normal and needs a closer inspection - of Temp Sensors and AC Pressure as well as verify the space in between the condenser and radiator are clear and not clogged up with leaves and debris.

I would also check the (known issue) of the Fan Clutch - Support Hose for security and the associated wiring damage issue - ensure its intact.

Another possible PID to monitor and check would be the MAPT sensor - as it’s the load input for the PCM , Load affects shift points and fan speed

Thanks for the response! I will double check the above. I have never noticed the truck overheating, and get pretty exceptional MPG standards from what I have read in this forum, so is there a known issue in the rangers of the temp sensor unit essentially misreading and misfiring the fan?

 

[Dereku]

This is typical behavior of this transmission...in D, it's programmed for high mpg and trades drivability over efficiency (lugs a LOT)...stick to tow or sport mode if this is annoying...

I tune can help a bit too. Give a little more oomph so less lugging. Tune made the biggest difference for me and I probably have 100k on a SCT canned 87 performance tune. Its like a sports + mode.

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