Replacing Tranny Filter/my experiance

Running this by you to save someone else from having the same problem I did with Transmission filter.... I dropped my transmission pan of my 2000 ses.....Has AXOD on the pan...so I think I have the AX4S unit.
When I pulled the Filter from the transmission, The Seal for the Tube stuck in the Transmission...No surprise...I took a screwdriver and removed what I thought was the old seal.....Got a new Filter kit at Advance Auto, but the Filter would not fit in the transmission....I tried bumping...tapping with a hammer...It just would not go back in.. I figured that I may have gotten a cheap aftermarket filter...so I went to Ford and paid through the nose to get an Original Equip part....It turned out to be Identical to the one from Advance..same brand and all....and I was still dead in the water. I called a machanic friend and he came over and had it fixed in a few minutes...Thinking the seal was all rubber, I had removed only the INSIDE of the old seal, The seal had a metal core so when I thought I was looking at a clean tramission port, I was looking at the metal interier of the SEAL.... Another thing learned is that the Filter and GASKET from ADVANCE cost only 12.95 ....The FILTER ONLY from Ford was 29.95 Same Brand , just in a Motorcraft box.

so, to the more important part, how did your old filter look?

so, to the more important part, how did your old filter look?


Old Filter was not bad....just a film ....the magnet had only a small bit of sludge...no large metal shaving, etc. just some very tiny shavings of metal I was pleased to see that the transmission showed no signs of impending disaster.......
Hugh