5R55W - 2002 EX - 104K miles - Seems OK w/ One minor(?) concern.

2002 Ex Limited 4.6 V8 AWD bought new May 2002, now @ 104K miles. Never used to tow, most miles were highway until 5 years ago moving here (few open roads), but hardly has seen 'rough service'. Has only had heavy loads a couple of times and only for short distances. Not abused, not 'raced'.

Service History:

When almost brand new (about 2K miles) after a gas stop in high heat, the tranny took a couple of seconds to engage when placed in Drive, but never repeated the behavior.

@29K miles, (about 1.5 years old) had dealer flush tranny as I thought it was shifting softly and maybe inconsistently. Dealer reprogrammed tranny (TSP I think), ran fine after.

@87K miles, (about 5.5 yrs old) drained and refilled tranny and repalced tranny filter (did not flush). Fluid seemed okay. No problems running.

@102K miles, (about 7.5 years old) had the dealer flush the tranny and replace filter. This was about four months ago.

Now @ 104K miles 4 months later (it is a 'spare' vehicle currently so it does not see a lot of use).

Problem: Now when the tranny is cold, and only when it is 'cold' (65-75F) and I drive up or back up my very steep driveway at very low speeds it shudders very, very slightly in first (if going up head first) and reverse (if backing up driveway). Worse in first, but not really bad, but I do notice it.

I did a comprehensive driving test cold and hot today in all sorts of conditions and it seems 100% fine otherwise. It also does not seem to do the shudder when hot going up or backing up the driveway. It does not do the shudder any other time. When doing my driving test I checked for all the problem signs I have read here on this site and it shows none of those problems. Seems to shift fine in all conditions otherwise.

So I am confused as to what the problem could be and what actions I should take, if any, to prolong the trannies life, as I have grown very leery of these 5R55Ws.

I am considering doing a solenoid block replacement and valve body rebuild just to be on the safe side.

I think that the servos and bands adjustments are only for 2nd/5th and Overdrive.

Any insights are appreciated. A solid answer leading to a confirmed solution comes with pledge for a $100 donation to this webiste or to the website's preferred charity (choice of the site). You have my word on it.

Thanks and sorry for the extreme length of the post.

FWIW, I checked the tranny fluid level today, wondering if any sloppiness, laziness, impatience, or ignorance might have resulted in an underfilled tranny, which may or may not contribute to my concern.

With the Ex level and on jack stands and the tranny hot/warm, pulling the plug revealed a very, very slow drip . . , drip . . , drip . . . I did pump about one quart of Mercon V in it, pulled the adapter, and got a somewhat accelerated drip, drip, drip, but not a steady flow. So I left the added quart in it.

We'll see. I'm probably just guessing at this point.

One more data point (may not be meaningful). Today while testing the steep driveway slippage thing, I noticed that when I go into Drive from reverse or nuetral that I hear a slight squeak coming from under the truck. Never heard that before. It is very subtle, and I was only able to hear it with the windows down and in the section of my driveway that is bounded by rock walls.

Alrighty then.

Then absence of a response leads me to conclude that the best action is no action.

I will then proceed into the future without taking action, as I'm probably working this with too much energy.

Thanks!