A4LD question

[ken_brit]

My transmision is suddenly not shifting from first to second without me letting off the gas and watching the RPMs drop from 1200 to 1000, then I know it has shifted. This took about 2.5 seconds. All other gears are perfect, with the exception of overdrive doing the same thing.
I have so far replaced the vacuum modulator (got that idea from here and ATSG and my local transmision shop) -no change.
removed the valve body (looking for the remnants of my missing screen) had no luck. (here) retorqued the valve body (here and ATSG) slightly better.
My next step would be the speed govenor, but I would imagine it would do that in every gear. Is that right?
Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

[jimbo74]

how many miles are on it? the a4ld may be on its way out.... they are the weakest link in the early explorers

 

[ken_brit]

198,900 all asphault miles.
Yeah, I have been reading here alot about what a hunk o' junk the a4ld is, I guess I should be proud of how long it DID last.

 

[Opera House]

Got a lot of miles

But if this only happens in the 1 to 2, I would suspect the speed governor. Even though it is steel on aluminum, this valve gets scored. A buff down will fix it right up. The overdrive engagement is likely the result of a hardened OD rubber servo piston. At this age I would also suggest replacing the low/reverse servo O rings with the new style double lip to boost line pressure. I assume you have been on "Anybody rebuild an A4LD."

 

[JWood]

Try the Speed Governor....

fix before you do anything internal to the tranny...This worked for me in the past with slow/slip shift from 1st to 2nd.

Good Luck....mine's been rebuilt twice.

 

[Opera House]

I didn't mention this

because it sounded like you had worked on the valve body. Look on www.atcdg.com and click on tech. Under A4LD there is a TB on the 3-4 shift as a result of a clogged filter screen in the solenoid. I like the tech section of ATC but they are unfriendly to us weekend rebuilders. They wanted to charge me retail $22.50 for an ATSG manual. Still find the best deals at bulkpart.com and my local Transtar.

 

[Msupertek]

A4LD

This is going to sound like a dumb question but have you ever had your Transmission Flushed, not a drain and refill but Flushed with a machine. I am a Technician at a Ford Dealer and I have had some experience overhauling Auto Trans although that is not my primary routine ( I am a Drivablility Tech ), but we have solved many odd problems where there was no permanent damage but for instance you have some trash in the valve body or build up in a circuit, our flush machine seems to work miracles. If you have never had it done, go to your nearest Ford Dealer and ask if they have a BG Auto Trans flushing machine. It runs at my dealer about $150 bucks but it is worth it especially on high mileage vehicles it allow the pump pressure to push all the old fluid out into a tank and draw a 100% new fresh fluid in, we also have an additive which helps break down varnesh and debris which are circulating through your system. For all the people who save $70 by just serviceing it by dropping the pan you might as well throw your money away it is nowhere near the same as a flush. Hope this helps you. By the way does this event only take place when the trans is cold or all the time???

 

[Opera House]

The only miracle

Is the $150 they get from you. I can't tell you how dead set I am against these machines.

 

[Msupertek]

FORD CERTIFIED TECHNICIAN

Not from me, and if you are dead set against these machines you probably have problems with your tranny. Out of all the services I have performed while in the field including during the period I overhauled Transmissions, the trans flush machine is one of the most impressive. Some services are not very efficient. The trans flush is, the only way to get even close is to literaly take apart your transmission and clean it then reassemble it and fill it up. By the way if you would like to promote that, send all your followers to my dealer I'll do the tear down and clean for 10 hrs a pop if someone wants to pay me for it or just flush it for a $150. Most of the cost is fluid and the flush additives, Techs at my dealer only get paid 1.0hrs to perform the service.
BY THE WAY FORD MASTER CERTIFIED AND ASE MASTER CERTIFIED TECHNICIAN.

 

[Opera House]

Thanks for the offer

But, no thanks. I work on my own transmisions. I've seen the work that "experts" do! Sure, it works good if the transmission isn't dirty to begin with. Perhaps your experience sample is skewed because you are working on newer transmissions. "Click & Clack" even recently mentioned this was chancy on high mileage vehicles. I'm all for cleaning and not stirring up a bunch of sediment.

Would like to welcome you to the many transmission threads. Free and open discussion helps everyone. Looking forward to your comments on rebuild tecniques and recent TSB information on the 5R55E et all.

 

[Msupertek]

Hey Opera, as me and my buddy ( The Tranny Man at my dealer for 15 yrs - he is also master certified-) find your remarks humerous. Weekend builder huh, well we do it daily. The trans flush works great, if you have a high mileag vehicle that has never been service, then you are gonna have to pay pretty soon for an overhaul no matter what ya do to service it. Also i feel you must not understand the procedure of flushing the trans due to your statement (stir up sediments), all the flush machine does is uses pump pressure from the trans to flow the fluid in and out. Let me Splain for ya. You install the cooler line to the machine (which goes to an empty used fluid tank), you install the other line to the inlet (where the trans pulls cooled fluid from the cooler), then you turn on the vehicle so it runs (this allows the trans pump to build pressure), and you turn the valve to flow/transfer. Then Hocas Pocas the old fluid is stored in a container and 100% fresh fluid fills the trans, once pressure drops slightly on fill side it is done you can also see the fluid going through a sight glass and it is pretty red. Your done, it really should be called A TRANS FLUID EXCHANGE. Try it or you can just keep not serviceing your trans and just overhaul it every once in a while. I like to flush mine (it has 150k on it) not because I don't know how to overhaul it, but because I prefer not to if it can be avoided. To all a good day, KEEP YOUR TRANS IN GOOD CONDITION, KEEP THE FLUID FRESH AND RED.

 

[Opera House]

Some miracle!

It's the additive. Flush makes it sound like you clean it all out at once. What happens is the stuff in the TC, clutch packs, servos and sitting on top the seperator plate takes a while to come out. I've done this on high mileage vehicles where new fluid is introduced and a couple of months later the filter is coated. I've found a couple of pan droppings and then a flush gets it back to a stable clean condition. A lot of stuff makes its way to the pan on the second drop. You won't clean the TC just running at idle. So if you have to qualify a flush on a high mileage vehicle, there is no miracle. Dropping the pan a couple times first is much safer.

 

[Msupertek]

I think there actually something we might agree on!

If you have extremely high mileage on your vehicle and have never serviced or flushed it, then anything you do to it could infact jar some crap loose and cause a problem. MY POINT IS DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY ON A DROP THE PAN AND DRAIN 6 QTS AND REFILL 6 QTS WHEN YOU CAN REQUEST A FLUSH THAT REPLENISHES ALL 12 OR MORE QTS. If you keep your maintenance schedule up to date ya don't have to worry about problems. If you have waited until you are having problems then after a flush or a service it might be worse than before you performed the service. However I have flushed some that had lots of trash in em and crapy smelling brown fluid and they drove away fine. Does this mean it works on everyone that is abused and not maintained properly, obviously not. Is it better to drop the pan in that situation, I don't think so if you got enough crap in there to cause instant breakdown, your screwed so get ready to buy a trans or trans overhaul. I STILL HAVE THE SAME POINT OF VIEW, SO DOES OUR TRANS DEPT AT MY JOB WHICH INCLUDES A GOOD PAL OF MINE WHO HAS ONLY BEEN OVERHAULING TRANSMISSIONS FOR 15 YRS, (I had him look at this column because I have always been for flushing and I decided to ask his opinion as well, of course he agreed with me.) So keep your trans clean, the extra money for the service will pay off in the end, or experience premature failure and break out the check book. No more will be heard from me good luck to you all.

 

[explorerjoe]

Well, I know its a little late, but I had my trans flushed, by a FORD certified tech. when I bought my vehicle. It was "recommended". I walked away with that stupid happy grin on my face. By the way, my A4ld failed at 4200 miles after the flush.. The fluid was anything but red. Smelled like trans fluid, looked liked motor oil. Ford should include a pan drop at 2000 miles for the $150 they charge to change $30 worth of fluid. It is a good idea, but by no means a complete process. A trans flush MUST be followed up. By the way, I am rebuilding my own trans. My rebuild has numerous aftermarket improvements. look for my future posts.........

 

[Glacier991]

I think opposing viewpoints are a healthy thing. makes everyone re-evaluate critically where thay are coming from. I second Opera House's invite to stay around. You sound like a great resource! You may be surprised at the level of sophistication some folks on here have, and also able to give some good input from your extensive Ford background too!

Happy exploring...

Chris

 

[Ross-N-Chicago]

To chime in, my A4LD has been acting up about 3000 miles after the flush. I'm staring a rebuild in the face but can manage in 3rd for the time being. I now also have a front seal leak. I wish I had never done it--a full synthetic fluid exchange (with filter) on a dino ATF tranny that never had any problems.

The only good outcome of this is I am a better informed X owner.

 

[JWood]

Hey Ross, I too have a leaky

front seal, in fact it was down 2 1/2 quarts yesterday causing a noticeable slippage. The trans shop wants $350 to replace that seal, the rear engine seal which leaks, and perform other "service" while it's out.

Does that sound like a good price?

What should I make certain they "Service"?

 

[TPLYNCH]

I wish I had never done it--a full synthetic fluid exchange (with filter) on a dino ATF tranny that never had any problems.

Ross, did you do this before coming to this site, or did someone here tell you to do it????, cause the general consensus with these trannies is, if they are older, DO NOT switch to synthetic, cause the synthetic cleans things out and will open up leaks on older gunked up trannies. Same is true with engine oil. A lot of people who switch to Synthetic on a high milage engine invariably wind up with leaks that never existed before, and more trouble than the change was worth....

 

[Ross-N-Chicago]

Tom,

This was after coming to this site. No one told me, I just had read enough threads and felt comfortable doing it. However, I hadn't read enough A4LD threads at all before the swap.

Knowing what I know now I would not have done it. I would have dropped the pan, used the update filter, topped off and MAYBE added an external filter. My A4LD NEVER SLIPPED or gave me any trouble until I took the trouble to it.

I cannot tell all of you how pissed I am that I did this to myself. It truly angers me each and everyday since she started acting up...

 

[Phat_Bastard]

Servo Seals replace

I am having the 1st to 2nd shift problem. I am curious who stocks the servo seals for them, like a standard auto parts store???

I recently bought the rebuild kit from bulk parts, would they be in there?? Opera House, do you know that???