Dodge55Royal Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 My '55 Dodge requires "Type A" transmission fluid according to the owner's manual. I have some Mercon that the container says is for Ford and GM products. Can I use that in my car? I did a search for "Type A" transmission fluid and nothing came up on the NAPA and Advance Auto websites. What should I use? It's at least a quart low. Thanks in advance.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocketraider Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 Dexron III/Mercon should work fine for you. Do not use anything marked Dexron V or VI. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodge55Royal Posted May 7 Author Share Posted May 7 7 minutes ago, rocketraider said: Dexron III/Mercon should work fine for you. Do not use anything marked Dexron V or VI. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TTR Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 (edited) With 40+ years of extensive experience, including several hundred thousand driven miles in countless Chrysler Corp. cars with cast-iron Power- & Torqueflites along with numerous overhauls, rebuilds & services I don’t use anything other than Type F. While they will work, especially if only adding a quart or two, Dexron/Mercon type fluids don’t have all the necessary properties to provide long service life for these transmissions. My rule of thumb: Type F can be used in all 35-40+ year old automatics, but Dexron etc shouldn’t be used in same age, i.e. older Ford or Chrysler engineered automatics. Edited May 7 by TTR (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodge55Royal Posted May 7 Author Share Posted May 7 It took two quarts of Dexron III / Mercon as Rocket Raider recommended. Thanks for the additional info.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocketraider Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 Hopefully your Chrysler transmission functions properly now that its fluid is at proper level. Type A hasn't been generally available for nearly 50 years since one of its primary components was whale oil. Dexron was GM's approved substitute formulation for A; Ford created Type F in early 60s to remedy issues they were having with A in Cruise-o-Matics and F's friction properties just happened to work well in drag racing automatics. It was an open secret that B&M's high-priced "Trick Shift" fluid was F with some blue dye added. But I'll be first to tell you I don't know diddly about anything, much less automobiles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul S Posted May 8 Share Posted May 8 The trans in our '54 Packard should be type A. For some reason after doing some research I wound up using "B&M Trick Shift fluid" and it worked well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank DuVal Posted May 9 Share Posted May 9 On 5/7/2024 at 3:34 PM, TTR said: Dexron/Mercon type fluids don’t have all the necessary properties to provide long service life for these transmissions. The only thing different is the friction modifier. I do not ever recall a TorqueFlite owner's manual calling for Ford Type F transmission fluid. Just Dexron once type A was obsolete. Sure Type F works, but I bet there are many TorqueFlites with Dexron running still. 😉 You get the same statements on Studebaker groups, just like which oil to use. Oh no, Type A Suffix A is no longer made, what fits my Detroit Gear 150? Oh, you have to use Ford type F, Oh no, that's wrong, you have to use Dexron/Mercron, etc etc etc. And the factory fill was SAE 10 motor oil......😮 I say run the red stuff and it will be fine! Isn't all ATF red? Yep.🤣 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted May 11 Share Posted May 11 The correct information on GM transmission fluid is that you can use anything that is newer type of fluid, but you can not use the older fluid. That was the specification criteria. For type A fluid transmissions and at the time power steering units you could use type A, but Type A can not be used on any newer vehicles. That means for example if your vehicle says to use Dexron 4, you can not use Dexron 3 and smaller number Dexron including Type A. Back use of a higher number than the unit calls for fine. You can use all the way up to Dexron 6 in your vehicle and you should be fine provided the transmission is in good condition. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TTR Posted May 13 Share Posted May 13 (edited) On 5/8/2024 at 9:59 PM, Frank DuVal said: The only thing different is the friction modifier. I do not ever recall a TorqueFlite owner's manual calling for Ford Type F transmission fluid. Just Dexron once type A was obsolete. Sure Type F works, but I bet there are many TorqueFlites with Dexron running still. 😉 You get the same statements on Studebaker groups, just like which oil to use. Oh no, Type A Suffix A is no longer made, what fits my Detroit Gear 150? Oh, you have to use Ford type F, Oh no, that's wrong, you have to use Dexron/Mercron, etc etc etc. And the factory fill was SAE 10 motor oil......😮 I say run the red stuff and it will be fine! Isn't all ATF red? Yep.🤣 Majority of my vintage automatic transmission rebuild/service experiences, along with few hundred thousand miles of usage, are based on dozens of cast iron Power- & Torqueflites, a few Twin Ultramatics and couple of Dynaflows, all which originally were designed/intended to use Type A fluid, but after it started to become difficult to obtain, I discussed with couple of friends (engineers in petroleum/lubrication industries) about alternatives and concluded Type F having most suitable chemical construction/properties for Type A replacement and I've been using it ever since (for over 30 years). YMMV. Edited May 13 by TTR (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank DuVal Posted May 13 Share Posted May 13 Dynaflow and Type F? For Shame! 🤣 There is no reason for a friction modifier in a transmission that does not shift!🤣 But it can't hurt... hence my run anything red comment....🤣 Type A became difficult to find back in the early 70s, 50 years ago....😉 I've been running Dexron (whatever number) since then. Unless I was working on a Cruise-O-Matic. Not even a Ford-O-Matic. Why? Because Type F did not appear on the market until 1967! So it could not have been factory fill on Ford-O-Matics, Dynaflows, Torque-Flites, Detroit Gear, Flight-O-Matic, etc etc etc. I've known several transmission repair shops that bought Dexron by the 55 gallon drum and ran it in everything they rebuilt. So, different people think differently. I'm not here to change your mind, since Type F works for you, just saying I've seen many hundreds of thousands of miles on all sorts of automatic transmissions running Dexron (whatever) fluid, so I recommend it to all except the weird foreign automatics. I did buy Honda fluid when I needed some for customers. 😉 Got to keep warranties in place.👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodge55Royal Posted May 17 Author Share Posted May 17 On 5/7/2024 at 2:28 PM, rocketraider said: Dexron III/Mercon should work fine for you. I put some of that in and it seems to shift fine. Thanks for all of the responses especially the one that mentioned whale oil. Whale oil? So they killed whales a long time ago so they could use their oil in automotive transmission fluid? Wow! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted May 17 Share Posted May 17 That was one of the last uses. Before petroleum became generally available, it was used for lamp oil. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank DuVal Posted May 17 Share Posted May 17 Yep, the whole whaling industry of the 1800s was not so much for the meat... oil and baleen (whalebone for corsets, etc) . Whaling outlawed in 1971 here in the US, except for Inuits. 😉 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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