02 Explorer 4WD Drivetrain Fun

[mrbigsexy]

Hello again all,

I just got my truck back after getting a mechanic to replace the block and all other components. He did alot of whining and complaining about the extra work, but nonetheless the switch from a late 90's Explorer block to '02 was a success, just took some messing around. The mechanic thinks that the 4wd mode may be stuck in 4 Low because of the flashing O/D at 40MPH, but the truck is able to turn in tight circles with no problems at all. When I put the truck in NEUTRAL, and fully depress the brake, I am able to pick 4 Hi, or 4 Low with no problems. The lights illuminate on the dashboard and the 4 Low button flashes and glows steady when it is ready.

So I have hopefully just one last fun problem before this truck can be considered driveable after owning it for 2 years and never having driven it and that is a drivetrain / powertrain issue (unrelated to the engine).

The truck starts and drives but seems sluggish to take off. The revs may go up like the transmission is slipping a little, but it eventually shifts around 4K to 2nd gear and off we go. That's when the howling noise becomes noticeable, above speeds of 15 or 20. Above 30MPH the howling noise becomes very loud and piercing. At 40MPH the O/D light will flash, and the "Check transmission" message will appear which will only be abated by turning off and restarting the truck.

The truck does not have to be in drive to produce this howling noise that seems synchronized to the speed. When we first towed the truck back to the house, it was towed in neutral, and still produced this noise! Which leads me to believe that it has to be either the transmission, differentials, or *could be* the CV joints but the boots looked fine to me.

Tomorrow I will check and fill fluids in transmission and differentials, and hopefully it will fix it. The check engine light came on on the last drive (only 3rd or 4th time since it has been working) so I will pull the codes tomorrow and post here. If anyone has any ideas about specifically what has (or is) gone wrong please let me know and give me some idea how to go about testing it. The diagnostic flow chart given in the Ford Motor Company software is so long and covers things I'd rather not bother with.

Many thanks ahead of time!

 

[Donystoy]

Not sure from your note if the problem was there before you had the vehicle towed home. Secondly I always thought that if towing these vehicles that you had to use a flat bed or use a dolly so that none of the wheels are turning. It actually states in the manual that damage may occur if towed otherwise. Not sure what the present problem could be.

 

[mrbigsexy]

I checked the codes, only one stored code came up "Lean on Bank 2" or something like that. One pending code came up as "Low Solenoid Pressure Control" P0775. Does anyone know if that has anything to do with the problem?

That noise has always been there as far as I know of. As long as the truck moves, it whines according to speed.

I had all four tires off the ground today and has the engine running at idle in automatic 4x4, but the sound was not apparent. Only the front left tire was spinning very fast, the front right tire was off but the rotor seems to be stuck, and the rear tires were not moving at all. Does this indicate anything?