Solenoid Block versus Servo Bore Problem - 2005 w/5R55S Tranny

[esclamada]

Did they put a brass sleeve to the servo bore to make it more bulletproof? http://www.servobore.com/kits/5rw.html

The other servo bore (o-ring) solution without removing the tranny is really more of a temporary solution (it does give you time to at least dispose the vehicle) It also required a lot of skill to ream it successfully.

Great job for the story and pictures. Now I'm convinced I need a scanguage to monitor my tranny temp.



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MY MOUNTY
http://www.facebook.com/diyfordexplorer?sk=photos

 

[LTCPipkin]

Yeah, the rebuild technician showed me a box of parts that they use for every 5R55W/S rebuild. Two of the parts were clearly the brass bore sleeves that your link shows. He also talked about his technique when drilling out the bore. Instead of drilling the new hole with a single bit, he uses a two-step process starting with a smaller bit, then moving to the final bit. If you read through the instruction section on your link, you'll see how drilling aluminum with a steel bit can be tricky. He follows those technique rules, but prefers to add his two size drill bit technique. His experience indicates he gets a better brass sleeve fit in the freshly drilled bores.

He also talked about why the TRANSGO Shift Kit is so important during the valve body rebuild. I've pasted the specification words I found online:

5R55N, 5R55S, 5R55W
1999-2008 Explorer, Mountaineer, 1999-2006 LINCOLN LS, ‘E” Jaguar, 2002-2005 Thunderbird, 2005-2009 Mustang.
Upgraded parts and data reduces: the need for a new pump and valve body. Fixes/Prevents: Won’t move-cold noise. Includes: Pump accumulator assy.; Lockup valve and pump alignment tool; EPC limits, TCC control.

I was so excited to have my transmission fixed, I completely forgot to ask if he did any PCM reprogramming...or if I needed to get to Ford to have it done. Will keep you posted.

Good luck guys...

Michael

 

[Mike_B_SVT]

So my question now would be this:

Do the various remanufactured transmissions come with the various fixes already installed? i.e. brass servo bore inserts, improved solenoid gaskets, etc.
And how do you find out if a remanufactured transmission comes with those fixes or not?

 

[djervin]

Well, just wanted to update this thread with my decision.... I purchased a rebuilt Moveras trans from Advanced. My and a couple of friends installed it this past weekend, as of driving it last night everything seems great! No flare in the shifting, I have overdrive again!, and it does not jump from idle to 3k rpms on the highway after you let off the gas and reapply the gas.... Please let me know if I can provide any knowledge for an install, I think we hit every bump during the install that we could. Lastly, I have a next to brand new (only a couple thousand miles) from Ford and can provide the receipt solenoid block up for grabs. I replaced it hope it would fix the problem, I paid over $300 for it. If someone thinks it will help them out just make an offer. Thanks for the info, Michael!

 

[SyberTiger]

Well, just wanted to update this thread with my decision.... I purchased a rebuilt Moveras trans from Advanced. My and a couple of friends installed it this past weekend, as of driving it last night everything seems great! No flare in the shifting, I have overdrive again!, and it does not jump from idle to 3k rpms on the highway after you let off the gas and reapply the gas.... Please let me know if I can provide any knowledge for an install, I think we hit every bump during the install that we could. Lastly, I have a next to brand new (only a couple thousand miles) from Ford and can provide the receipt solenoid block up for grabs. I replaced it hope it would fix the problem, I paid over $300 for it. If someone thinks it will help them out just make an offer. Thanks for the info, Michael!

I don't mean to hijack this thread but I am interested in hearing more about your experience searching for a remanufactured tranny. I was curious about the following:

1. What brands of remanufactured trannies did you consider?
2. Was there a reason why you chose a reman tranny over a local "rebuild"?
3. What did it cost you for the Moveras tranny?
4. How long did it take them to deliver it to your local AdvancedAuto?
5. What kind of warranty did they give you and how did that compare to what you found looking at other options?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Nogaroa4]

I don't mean to hijack this thread but I am interested in hearing more about your experience searching for a remanufactured tranny. I was curious about the following:

1. What brands of remanufactured trannies did you consider?
2. Was there a reason why you chose a reman tranny over a local "rebuild"?
3. What did it cost you for the Moveras tranny?
4. How long did it take them to deliver it to your local AdvancedAuto?
5. What kind of warranty did they give you and how did that compare to what you found looking at other options?

Thanks in advance!

I've been looking in to a rebuilt/reman. Transmission for about (2) weeks now. Here's what I've learned/researched;

Option 1 - Local Rebuilder - $1,400 to $2,200 - Decided against this, since I kept getting different stories from different rebuilders. I would like to get a rebuilt transmission from someone who works on these transmissions everyday.

Option 2 - Moveras (Through Adavance) - $1,519 - I was about to go with this option, due to the price and the 3 Year warranty Moveras offers. Then I did some research, including calling Moveras (which is somewhat difficult). After researching them on the Better Business Bureau website, I found that they have an "F" rating. There "F" rating is due to warranty issues. I also found this article searching online http://chevytruckworld.tenmagazines.com/ew/forums/topic.asp?id=210484

Option 3 - Rebuilt from Ford - $2,200 - I liked this option, but Ford only offers a 3 Year, 36,000 mile warranty which doesn't help much since I drive 36,000 miles a year.

Option 4 - Powersource Transmission - $2,139 - This is most likely the option I'm going to go with. When I call they are very knowledgeable. They also offer a 3 Year, 100,000 mile warranty. Their website also has a nice breakdown of all the new parts they install.

This is just what I learned the past couple weeks. If anyone has any additional rebuilders, please let me know as I haven't made up my mind yet.

 

[SyberTiger]

I've been looking in to a rebuilt/reman. Transmission for about (2) weeks now. Here's what I've learned/researched;

This is just what I learned the past couple weeks. If anyone has any additional rebuilders, please let me know as I haven't made up my mind yet.

Other tranny remanufacturers that I know about are ETE, Drive Power, and Jasper. I have a 55RRS tranny and the quote I got for the Jasper is $2,619. The ETE tranny is $2,145. Jasper seems to be at the absolute high end for pricing. They seem to have a pretty good reputation. I corresponded with the ETE "Customer Loyalty Representative" and got very quick and helpful responses from him. I like the idea of using an ETE reman tranny but the cost of a Moveras or Direct Power reman tranny for around $1,600 is obviously more appealing. Labor to install the tranny seems to run around $500 to $650 in these parts. Of course throw 6% sales tax on everything.

 

[Nogaroa4]

Other tranny remanufacturers that I know about are ETE, Drive Power, and Jasper. I have a 55RRS tranny and the quote I got for the Jasper is $2,619. The ETE tranny is $2,145. Jasper seems to be at the absolute high end for pricing. They seem to have a pretty good reputation. I corresponded with the ETE "Customer Loyalty Representative" and got very quick and helpful responses from him. I like the idea of using an ETE reman tranny but the cost of a Moveras or Direct Power reman tranny for around $1,600 is obviously more appealing. Labor to install the tranny seems to run around $500 to $650 in these parts. Of course throw 6% sales tax on everything.

I looked up ETE and Drive Power quickly. Drive Power has a "F" rating and ETE has an "A+" rating and is BBB Accredited. I'll probably call ETE tomorrow to talk to them and see what they say.

I've heard good and bad about Jasper, their transmisssion is just to much for me.

IMHO I feel that Drive Power and Moveras are good transmissions but they probably re-use parts that are within "tolerance".

While ETE, Power Source, and Jasper rebuild the transmission using new or remanufactured parts.

It seems like it's one of those you get what you pay for deals...

 

[djervin]

I went with Moveras without any research, honestly it was the cheapest and has a 3 year/ 75k mile warranty. I ended up getting it for $1,464 (after core return), plus Advanced was offering a $100 loading American Express card.... I do not like the idea of taking it to shops and have anything done, makes me feel vulnerable and gives them the opportunity to say that I need something which I may not. I have never been shy to hit something head on with some helping hands.... It took 4 days to get it after ordering it so the wait was not bad. As I mentioned, the install took a little bit, looking back on it now, we could get it done in a long 8 hours. We ran into every stupid little thing that you could imagine, some of it may be due to my truck having 184k miles on it and I too drive it around 30k miles a year. As of driving the truck last night it felt awesome! I am going to be driving it roughly 200 miles today so I will report back with either good or bad news. If anyone wants to shoot me a p.m. to discuss anything that is fine, or if the o.p. does not mind we can keep this thread alive for anyone that may come across it in the future.

 

[dkindle613]

Well I had 3rd completely gone in my '03 Ford explorer. After calling around to rebuild shops. I decieded to go with West Michigan Transmissions. I removed and reinstalled the transmission myself to save $600+. But i paid $1760 for a full rebuild. They replaced just about every single part in the transmission. Just got it installed and got about 100 miles on it so far. and all seems good. Ooh yea i got a 2 year unlimited mileage warranty.

 

[SyberTiger]

Well I had 3rd completely gone in my '03 Ford explorer. After calling around to rebuild shops. I decieded to go with West Michigan Transmissions. I removed and reinstalled the transmission myself to save $600+. But i paid $1760 for a full rebuild. They replaced just about every single part in the transmission. Just got it installed and got about 100 miles on it so far. and all seems good. Ooh yea i got a 2 year unlimited mileage warranty.

I'm not up to the task of doing a tranny replacement myself. Just don't have the place to do it. I wonder how the warranty deal works out when you install it yourself without using a "certified tranny expert". I guess you won't know until you have to make a claim.

 

[dkindle613]

Yea I had some quality help while doing it. And the transmsion shop I went to took the my truck back in for inspection and to make sure everything was good. And the transmission shop said everything looked good so the warranty will cover any damage within 2 years.. and one of the main reasons I took my truck there is because they seemed pretty knowledgeable about all the problems and fixes with this transmission. Oh and they had 3 other explorers in the parking lot to get the transmission rebuilt..

 

[mitch28]

Is there anything that can be done to a low mile trans, before it shows any signs of problems, to 'save' it to prevent future problems? Thanks.

 

[coghij1]

Is there anything that can be done to a low mile trans, before it shows any signs of problems, to 'save' it to prevent future problems? Thanks.

You could always try installing the O-ringed servos. It might help prevent the uneven bore wear. Besides that there isn't much else preventive work you can do besides dropping the pan, replacing the filter and adding in a few fresh quarts every 30k or so.

In my opinion, changing the filter and replacing 1/3 or so of the fluid is much more beneficial than just getting it flushed. The "crap" in the filter, on the magnet and sitting in the bottom of the pan needs taken out.

 

[D Hook]

The owner of the shop said that when he sees a burned up OD planetary, it suggests that I had an cooling problem. I can't remember my HOT lights or bells going off, but he said that wasn't necessary to burn up the tranny. So he began to investigate my cooling system and found that my fan clutch was GONE. So, he blames the fan clutch for allowing my tranny to overheat. Got a new fan clutch installed this morning.



Michael

Michael: Thanks for the exellent follow up on the transmission woes. Very helpful.

By chance, did he say what temps he was seeing in the transmission when he hooked up his scanner? I'm looking at investing in a Scangauge, which will give a readout of the tranny fluid temp but not sure what the "normal" temp range is.

Again, thanks for taking the time to post the follow up info.

 

[JoshC]

I wish I would have read this thread before today. My 04 had the delay in shifting from R to D and vise versa. Recently it started to take longer to shift while driving and when it did, it was very hard. I took it to Ford and rode with the tranny mechanic. He agreed it was the shift solenoid. While driving it, he also had the computer hooked to it and it put out no codes. Got a call yesterday that my shift solenoid I had provided did not fix the problem, and in fact made it worse. I picked it up last night with my trailer and it's now in my driveway. It will not stay in gear when I put it into R or D. I did not try putting it 1 or 2. I'm suppose to take it to a quality tranny shop about 30 min down the road today.

I hesitated responding in this tread since most of the discussions here included a PCM code. I still have no codes and I'm a bit lost now.

 

[fusseli]

I'm going down the "new tranny road" and I'm glad I saw this thread. I'll definitely be buying a reman and have a local shop put it in. Ford wants $4000 for a transmission replaced with reman Ford, should save a grand or so by not having them do it.

 

[JoshMcMadMac]

I'm going down the "new tranny road" and I'm glad I saw this thread. I'll definitely be buying a reman and have a local shop put it in. Ford wants $4000 for a transmission replaced with reman Ford, should save a grand or so by not having them do it.

You can save two grand by having it rebuilt by a knowledgeable 5R transmission guy, plus get all of the weak points addressed and make it bulletproof for the future.

 

[fusseli]

Not out in the middle of nowhere where I live

 

[JoshMcMadMac]

Not out in the middle of nowhere where I live

If you say so. I live in a small town and have two different places to choose from that are knowledgeable with the 5R transmissions.