Ford 3000 lift slow and jerky when cold after warm up very sensitive oil looks milky could fluid be problem

The "milky foam look" is a CLASSIC sign that there is water (or maybe antifreeze) mixed in with something that has a petroleum base ... such a oil or hydraulic fluid!

If your oil looks normal and you're only seeing this oil in the filler cap when the engine is cold or barely warm then it is probably just condensation from humidity in the atmosphere. Normally that steams off when the engine is at operating temperature for 10-15 minutes. If you have dropping coolant levels, milky oil or other signs of water actually in the oil that would be more serious.

The most likely scenario is that it is foaming or is overfull.

Are you checking the oil level when the motor and trans are warm/ hot, the car is idling on a level surface? If you are adding trans fluid when the car is off and cold you are very likely overfilling it . If you are checking the oil level when the vehicle is idleing and warm and it is still blowing out of the dip stick tube , then check what the transfluid looks and smells like. It should be pink to light red and not smell "burnt".

Let the vehicle cool off, ( overnight) . Pull the stick and see if there is anything on the stick. If not, add fluid until it is just on the tip of the stick. If when cold the oil is on the stick, has a good appearance and is any where near the fill lines proceed to next step. If the oil is above the fill and full lines it is overfull and will foam up in operation. The excess oil must be drained.
Start the car and allow it to idle until it is warm. Pull the trans stick back out and see where the oil is on the stick. When warm and idling it should be in the area between add and full. if it's over those lines when warm, it's over full and needs to be drained to the correct level.

If the oil has a milky appearance it is contaminated with water or other substance; you need to take the car for service. It is likely the coolant from the radiator and the oil cooler for the trans have been leaking by contaminating each other. Both systems will need to be completely cleaned and the source of the leak will need to be fixed before the car is used again.

You have a verry serious problem, If the oil looks milky .There is antifreeze geting in to it, It could be a crak head gasket, Or evan a internal crak in the engine block, I hate to stay, With the transmission looseing fluid, That is serious (Allso) Start looking for a (Different) Vehicle.

I personally have a 1974 Ford 3000 diesel, and have had trouble with the rear hydraulics. I believe that you likely have the wrong weight oil in the reservoir. It sounds like it is too heavy, so when it is cool, it is too thick to cycle through as quickly as it needs to and you have slow reacting lift arms. By the time the tractor warms up the oil thins out and cycles more quickly. Try draining the rear reserve and using a lighter weight oil. If that doesn't solve the trouble then I would check the filters to see if they are intact.

all power steering fluid is the same actually us can use transmission fluid if u want
now being as you had to add fluid i would assume u have a leak some where in the system
you may be low on fluid also there probably air in system (when u have a leak it also allows air into system especially when you run low on fluid)
also if anyone ever put stop leak in system stop leak is a lot thicker oil and will take longer to heat up and thin out in cold weather to allow easy turning
first check for leaks repair if needed
if no leaks are found drain system add fresh power steering fluid
if that doesn't fix problem you have a bad power steering pump replace pump

Is your fluid level low? Does it have a burnt smell - clutches burnt. Your trns filter may need changing and the oil replaced.

overheating, white smoke from tail pipe(ignore this one during cold weather), oil is light brown or milky looking which indicates water in the oil, and of course loosing coolant when there is no coolant leak

you can go to NAPA or Autozone and tell them the year make and model and they can get the right transmission fluid for your car and if you live where it is subzero tempatures then I would recommend a heated dip sticks for parking over night

Wankel Rotary engine guys no headers or gaskets

This milky substance does not affect engine performance or any other functions of the vehicle. During cold weather, moisture contained in blow-by gases (exhaust , oil, fuel, water vapor) is cooled by the intermediate housing wall and condenses due to difference in temperature. A chemical reaction between the moisture reacts and the engine oil in the intermediate housing will yield the milky fluid. This fluid then eventually dissipates
as the engine warms up to full operating temperature.

The milky fluid does not affect the quality of the engine oil and therefore the engine performance is not affected either. Mazda has verified that the amount of moisture in the oil is within the acceptable standard for motor oils commonly found in the market.

However, you should verify that the coolant reservoir is full and that there is no sign of engine coolant leakage.

You can also go to you Mazda dealer and ask for a new oil level gauge tube plastic insert which has been developed as a countermeasure to keep the milky substance off of the dipstick (however, the substance will still be in there- it's a cosmetic fix only).

Hope this helps