98 trans.

[jac-con]

I have posted twice but I cant seem to find where i posted my message. I will try once more. i have a 98 EB 2 wd automatic with a new engine. The car ran fine for a year when i began to experience a slight surge in the trans.when slowing to a stop. Then after awhile the car began to die at a stop or when braking at a stoplight.It would restart and go for a week without incident. Now the condition is much worse. The car would restart but die as soon as I put it in gear.. I took the car to where i had the engine installed and the diagnostic was a torque convertor. I did not get the codes. Anyhow i took the car back as I did not want to pay the 1900.00 bill for a remanufactured trans as that is the only option I had with this shop. Oh I have 100,000 miles on the trans. I guess this is normal for a ford tranny after reading several posts on this website. I found a shop that said there are several things that could be related to the new engine install. He said there could be sensors -solenoids -wiring that could have been affected when the engine was installed. I guess he may be correct but the car ran so great i guess I am letdown somewhat. I want to dump the explorer but it is in super condition I somewhat would like to keep it around for 20 years .ha-ha.No seriously I just cant bear to have spent all of that money on this car and now give up . i would appreciate any suggestion or tips on how to use any chewing gum to fix my explorer. I know this was a little too long of a post but here is a capsule of my problem. It dies when stopping at a light. When cold it runs ok and then it begins to die at the stoplight and will not stay running. Oh yeah the mechanic said it was a qt low on fluid. I have not driven since then as i dont want to stranded.

 

[Glacier991]

The main suspect in this mystery is the Torque Converter CLutch (TCC) Solenoid. If it is NOT allowing disengagement of the clutch, it would be like trying to start a manual transmission car in gear. Your symptoms are classic TCC stuck in the engaged condition symptoms. I'd do some research and once you are confident you know which solenoid is the TCC start checking for electricl issues, then if none then replace it... it is a DIY task.

 

[jac-con]

where do I find the solenoid. I mean do I need to pull the tranny? Should I just change ouy anyways? How do I check if the solenoids are bad .

 

[Glacier991]

Brain has a picture of that solenoid body, maybe he can post it and point out the TCC solenoid. SHould it need replacing you can just drop the pan and replace the solenoid by removing the valve body. But as I mentioned above, I strongly suspect the TCC solenoid.... here's my best advice in an all entronic transmission:

Like I said, I believe you have an issue with the TCC clutch being inappropriately applied. That is controlled by a solenoid is commanded by the computer based on certain given inputs the computer receives. If one of those inputs was bad it could cause the computer to give a bad command (speed sensor is high on the list). If the wiring to the solenoid was damaged in some way that could also do it. Or (my guess) if the solenoid is bad, THAT would definitely do it.

FORD Dealers all are required to have a transmission tester. It plugs into the transmission in place of the computer. That that you can test the solenoid resistance and operation. It is a HUGE help in diagnosing electronically controlled transmissions. While for the most part I am not a fan of dealerships, armed with this you should be able to call up a FORD dealer and tell them you want them to hook up the ROTUNDA TRANSMISSION TESTER (007-0085) and check out your concerns about the computer vs TCC solenoid issue. They CAN give you a quote for this over the phone. ALL you are asking at this point is for a test. A known task in terms of scope of work and time required. Nothing has to be disassembled (other than plugging the tester in where the computer normally plugs in.) Let me know what you find out.

I would guess at the outside a charge for labor (time) at 1-1/2 hours. Probably $100.

If you just want to take the gamble on being right, you can just replace the TCC solenoid. If my preliminary diagnosis is right, you may have a 1 in 3 chance of having done the right thing. Actually better to know, rather than throw parts at it.... your call.

 

[jac-con]

I truly appreciate this info. Excuse all the posts I made as I had a hard time navigating in this website.. Anyhow I think I will replace the tcc solenoid without going to ford for a dianostic. You mentioned a wire to the soleniod. is it inside of the pan or is there a wire extenal of the pan. I had a new engine installed so I wonder if something is amiss. it has been over a year since the engine was installed so I dont know if there was a wiring problem it would probably shown up before now. Do you agree.. Also what do you feel about me replacing both solenoids since I have the pan off.??

 

[Glacier991]

At the least I'd want you to clean the shift solenoids, replacement is your call... If you have not done so, please read the relevant portions (better yet skim all of it) of the "My A4LD Rebuild Diary" in the Useful threads forum... it shows you the wiring for the A4LD, the solenoids, and their replacement and cleaning, and while this is for the A4LD and yours is a 5R55 the basic idea is the same... then look at Brains "Project Frankentranny" in the same forum... he has some relevant valve body discussion with pics for your transmission there. Between the two you will be well prepared to drop the pan, valve body and do the replacement. If Brain sees this post maybe he can join in with some 5R55 valve body pics for you.

 

[jac-con]

Thanks again Glacier. I am a real tentative soul to try any work on cars. It has been over 10 years since I did anty thing major. The last thing I call major was replacing the rack in my wifes bimmer and after that i paid soneone else

 

[Glacier991]

Well only you can decide what you want to take on. If you don't want to tackle it, you have my best advice above.

 

[Brain]

Here's a link to the solenoids for your tranny:
http://www.bulkpart.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=MDITP&Category_Code=4R44Esw

For checking them, you can apply 12-13V across the two contacts, but be sure to shoot a fluid (I used aerosol brake cleaner) threough them (through the tip) to make sure it is coming out the right ports. I had one where it tested fine electrically and even had the right ports opening....for the first ten-fifteen seconds and then it started to go bad. I guess what I'm saying is there isn't a real easy way of being sure that the solenoids are good, but you can tell if they are definitely bad.

Here's a pic of the valve body as seen from the bottom (as you would see it after dropping the pan and removing the filter) - ignore the red mark:

Four on the driver's side and two on the other. There are only three types of solenoids: The "TCC inhibit" is shown at the top left, the next two over are "shift" valves, and then the "EPC" solenoid. The bottom two are "shift" valves as well. If I remember correctly, the one sown at the bottom left also is involved with the converter clutch, so I would definitely check that one out as well.

Here's a picture of the plug that connects all of the soleniods (and the input speed sensor):

On the inside of the pan, that plug is connected to the solenoids using pull-off connectors (here's the four on the drive's side):

Here's the two on the passenger's side:

You don't even have to remove the valve body to pull these out and change them out (like you did in earlier models like the A4LD). There are a few machine screws that hold brackets in place, and on the driver's side, the bracket clips around one extra part where you can get it off after you remove the bolts that hold it on.

Here's what the tip of the EPC solenoid looks like:

The TCC inhibit solenoid is supposed to keep the clutch from being applied in certain situations, and since yours is stuck 'ON' I can't be sure this is your problem. How many miles are on the transmission (new engine, but older tranny)? Sometimes it can just be the torque converter failing (which is still cheaper than replacing the trans). A new TC will cost between $100-150 bucks....or you can go high performance and pay a couple hundred, or used and see what you can haggle down to.....

Either way, I would still probably drop the pan and remove the solenoids and check that they made a "click" sound when 12V (from a car battery) is applied. If they all did, and there were over 90K miles on the tranny, I would seriously consider a new torque converter.