Technical Is Type F ATF the same as Mercon?

Question about a Ford AOD which calls for Mercon. Is that the same as the old Ford standby ATF Type F?

 

Nope, not the same thing. Mercon is more 'slippery' compared to type F.

 

That's what I figured. Thanks.

 

nowadays they sell Mercon-Dexron III fluid, which is probably as close as you can get to what the AOD wants.

 

If I'm not mistaken, you can currently get a dual-rated Mercon/Dextron ATF, you'll have to look at the labels. And 'back in the day' Ford type F was used as a 'high performance' ATF in GM/Mopar automatics. Whether that's still true I can't say...

 

Ford had better friction modifiers than the GM fluid. It's drawback was it couldn't tolerance heat well. I was service manager in El Centro and our warranty rate was well above the failure rate of the rest of southern California. Our area ran from the Palm Springs area to the Mexican border. We constantly ran 50% higher failure rates. The Ford rep allowed all of us the higher rate without complaint. Drag racers use type F for its better friction modifiers and didn't worry about heat build up.