Transmission problem..HELP PLEASE..

[WhiteO2XLT]

Hey everyone..Noob here..

I have a 2002 ford explorer XLT which I bought without knowing it had transmission problems..

At first it wasnt noticeable but its getting worse and worse I find..or more like it has a brain of its own..meaning it drives normal without giving any problems when it wants,which is rare, but mostly it gives problems..

so here it goes..

When shifting to a gear,lets say D..it doesnt engage right away..its as if its in Neutral,like if your on a slope it will slide..

I dont know whats the problem and its getting annoying especially now that Im in a tight budget..

when you put it into "D" and give it abit of gas then it jumps and shifts into the gear..like gives a jerk..if you get what I mean?

the other problem Ive noticed is that at times when driving at a steady speed on the highway it does abit of a movement like back and forth slightly..


I did try to take it to a few mechanics and all are not sure what it could be..

1 - says its going to cost like $1000+ but isnt certain what it could be so it could cost more.
2 - when I got there..it started to drive perfectly fine so he couldnt tell me what the problem might be..
3 - same thing..it started to drive fine and he told me when it starts giving problem then bring it to show it to him..

so now here I am asking you guys if anyone has experienced it and might have an idea of what it could be?

I own another car and work on it my self..mechanically Im pretty inclined and can work on almost anything..but if I know whats wrong with it..and a DIY helps alot..

so please if someone could help me out on this Id really really appreciate it..

Thanks alot guys..

 

[Tyler92]

Have you or anyone checked the fluid to see if it's low or in need of changing? I would start there.
How many miles on the truck? I think a lot of the transmission problems posted on here are simply due to neglect. The fluid must be changed at recommend intervals.

 

[northside]

My 02 xls lost power in the 3rd and then 5th gear. I had a hard time accelerating coming onto the highway . DANGEROUS. I took it to the shop and was told(2 estimates) that my trans was shot. I had to get a new trans and it cost me 2800. Right now the truck feels good, for how long?

 

[WhiteO2XLT]

Have you or anyone checked the fluid to see if it's low or in need of changing? I would start there.
How many miles on the truck? I think a lot of the transmission problems posted on here are simply due to neglect. The fluid must be changed at recommend intervals.

Yeh I think the fluid was checked while the car was at normal operating temperature. But Ill check again. Would changing the oil make a difference you think? Ill maybe change it today then..

My 02 xls lost power in the 3rd and then 5th gear. I had a hard time accelerating coming onto the highway . DANGEROUS. I took it to the shop and was told(2 estimates) that my trans was shot. I had to get a new trans and it cost me 2800. Right now the truck feels good, for how long?

Yeh thats what Im afraid of..that it might give up on me driving some place..

changing the tranny is kind of out of the question for me right now due to financial problem.

Is there maybe some kind of sensor?

also, when I had went to the mechanic..1 of them had said that he thinks that at times the oil doesnt circulate around where it should or something and thats when it gives problem and doenst shift..so thats why when at times when its circulating it drives fine..makes sense?

 

[WhiteO2XLT]

ok so a little problem..I tried checking to transmission oil but theres no guage..?tried checking it on the user manual..still it doesnt say anywhere about it..

took it to penzoil for them to take a look and then change the transmission oil..and they couldnt figure out either..ended up looking in google and said Ill have to take it to Ford??

is it true?? any way I could check it and do it myself then?

 

[zidjan]

Same problem here

Dang, I got the exactsame problem except that mine is a Mountaineer...have you ever found out what caused it? It's been doing this for 3 days but today, I lost power almost completely, I was lucky to reach home about a mile or two from my house I can only drive 20 miles perhour max while keeping the rpm to 3000 - 4000...I just had my trasnmission rebuilt 9 months ago....never buy US cars anymore...as much as I love US cars...they are robbing you blind.

 

[Tyler92]

ok so a little problem..I tried checking to transmission oil but theres no guage..?tried checking it on the user manual..still it doesnt say anywhere about it..

took it to penzoil for them to take a look and then change the transmission oil..and they couldnt figure out either..ended up looking in google and said Ill have to take it to Ford??

is it true?? any way I could check it and do it myself then?

2002 Explorers have what's called a maintenance free transmission model 5R55W. I don't know what this means but it's hardly maintenance free. The fluid should be changed at least every 50 to 60K miles. It does not have a dip stick but has a special plug in the pan for checking the level. If Pennzoil didn't know this, that is pretty scary and I would run away from there fast. A good transmission shop will have no problem checking or changing your fluid. Stay away from the Aamco's, and other franchise shops. Find an independently owned shop and you'll have better results.

 

[WhiteO2XLT]

2002 Explorers have what's called a maintenance free transmission model 5R55W. I don't know what this means but it's hardly maintenance free. The fluid should be changed at least every 50 to 60K miles. It does not have a dip stick but has a special plug in the pan for checking the level. If Pennzoil didn't know this, that is pretty scary and I would run away from there fast. A good transmission shop will have no problem checking or changing your fluid. Stay away from the Aamco's, and other franchise shops. Find an independently owned shop and you'll have better results.

thanks for the info man..I appreciate it! yeah it was shocking that penzoil didnt know..

as for the person above that posted..well I ended up giving it to the Ford for transmission oil change..gasket change ( oil was leaking so Im guessing low oil slowly slowly) and the filter..costed a good solid $215..whereas before they had said its $99 for the oil change..then they call me up saying the filter is in the oil pan blabla and its going to be 159$ and when I get there they tell me they had to change the gasket which was an extra $30..so yeah..I didnt react because I was just too anxious to see if there was any change!!

so finally..yes its perfectly fine now..shifting like butter..responsive..so Im VERY VERY happy

 

[rhs7]

Could have written your post myself...

Dude, when I read your original post, I had to double check that I did not write it myself. That is so weird!

I got the same symptoms on a 2002 XLT with 90k. Owners manual says change the tranny fluid at 90k. I guess they mean it!!

Thanks for the post, you saved me a lot of trouble.

 

[WhiteO2XLT]

ahaha glad I could help! I thought of posting it up that its fixed and is driving like it never happened! I hate threads when you see someone asking for help and when they fix it they dont write what caused it etc etc so maybe its going to help someone else you know?

its amazing how just an oil change fixed it whereas mechanics..especially this so called transmission specialist told me its going to cost 1000+

goodluck with urs!

Dude, when I read your original post, I had to double check that I did not write it myself. That is so weird!

I got the same symptoms on a 2002 XLT with 90k. Owners manual says change the tranny fluid at 90k. I guess they mean it!!

Thanks for the post, you saved me a lot of trouble.

 

[nascar_intimid]

that's what I was going to suggest....change the filter. good luck bud!

 

[Theo1994]

I have run into the same problem on a 1994. When you put it in gear you have to get it up to at least 1800 RPM's for it to kick into gear and start going.

I tried changing the filter and fluid, but it didn't make any changes at all.

Any other suggestions?

 

[WhiteO2XLT]

I have run into the same problem on a 1994. When you put it in gear you have to get it up to at least 1800 RPM's for it to kick into gear and start going.

I tried changing the filter and fluid, but it didn't make any changes at all.

Any other suggestions?

My brother had the older model like urs last year. His would do that and then the gears started to slip then 1 day suddenly it gave up on him and died.

It was the transmission flex plate. I'm prettysure you have the same problem as those models had problems with the flex plate.

 

[Kandii.Babii]

I got a 02 XLT too, bout 2 months ago we got stranded and had to get towed, transmission shop said just low on fluid and we were good til just now, same thing happened, except this time the O/D light kept flashing on and off just before it stoped pulling, and we were shifting REALLY hard, anybody have any idea whats going on?

I hate the sealed tranny thing, it makes it impossible for the owner to service it, and i end up stuck somewhere, it is ridiculus.

 

[fordbluefamily]

Its not impossible to service. Its actually pretty easy once you read about it

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=118654

and buy or make a hose/bottle to fill it up. It does promote neglect though because most owners wont even pop the hood to check unless something is wrong, let alone crawl under the thing.