I'm looking in junkyards for a transmission that will work in a 2001 Taurus SE with 24 valves.

I've been told a Sable Mercury transmission will work but I've also read that if I have a 3.0L OHV V6 12V Vulcan motor then the replacement has to come from any Ford Taurus or Mercury Sable with the 3.0L OHV V6 12V Vulcan motor.

I'm also told there are two kinds of tranny, the AX4S and the AX4N, that are not interchangeable.

What's the truth and how would I know if I have a Vulcan motor or a Duratec?

Thanks - rev

 

What is the 8th digit of your vehicle's vin # ?

 

Hanky:

1FAFP55S01G152954 is the VIN# - what does that 8th digit tell me?

Do you mean the character in the 8th position or the 8th digit? (since some characters are letters).

Assuming I can tell from that 8th digit, what about a situation in the junkyard where they no longer have the motor, is the VIN number printed somewhere else on the vehicle?

Thanks! for the response.

 

Just from your first description of 24 valves , it is a Duratec engine.
Vulcan engines generally have 12 valves.
Getting the 8 th digit kinda makes the estimate a little more accurate.
Yes, the 8th digit signifies what engine was placed in the vehicle when built.
A Vulcan motor usually has a, U,N,or 1 designation.
A Duratec usually has a ,S or 2 , designation from the info I have in front of me at this time. The N and 1 engines were Flex fuel.
The 2 engine was Ford's SHO engine.
You could also google "Ford vin decoder"
On the driver's door should be a label with a code letter or number that provides the trans in the vehicle. That should save you a lot of time if you have the code explanation while searching for the best trans.
I'm pretty sure the code letter "L" is an ,AX4S & the letter X is for an "AX4N".

 

Fantastic! So now I know what I have and what model the replacement transmission has to come from (something with a matching motor).

What about the two non-interchangeable trannies - the AX4S and the AX4N?

Was one of these always associated with a Duratec and the other with Vulcan? Is that information I can obtain from a plaque or sticker on the tranny or another digit in the VIN?

The junkyard won't want to return my money so it's important I get this right.

Thanks for all your help!

 

The transaxle tag should be located on top of the converter housing.
The AX4N section of my info states that the AX4N was used in ,
Taurus,Sable - 3.0L (2V), 3.0L (4V) and 3.4L SHO.
I believe the AX4N vehicles had a TCS, transmission control switch in the shift handle where the AX4S was an overdrive trans without the switch in the shift lever.
You may need to check with someone that has addl info on how to tell from the tag on the trans as to just which one it is.

 

Awesome dude - you seem to know everything.

So I match the engine I have with the engine I'm getting the tranny from

Then make sure the tranny type is the same by checking the either from the transaxle tag, the Ford VIN decoder or even the shift levers?

That should nail it

Thanks a million!

 

Good VIN decoder here:
https://www.fleet.ford.com/maintenan...vinResults.asp