2005 reverse hesitation

[tk1251k]

My 05 explorer has been hesitating going into reverse when warmed up. Not all the time but it slams in when it finally does go in gear. It has 65,000 miles on it. I have read about the tsb on the o5 trans. Customer satisfaction program 04b22. 5r55s/e & 5r44e transmission. Has anyone had this problem. It states about an additive added to tranny. Also are there any pics of changing the fluid on these closed units. I hate not having a dipstick btw. The trans . works fine otherwisw. thanks

 

[David Marquez]

Mine just started doing the exact same thing. I've got 83K on my transmission and at ~60K I have the transmission fluid flushed. I didn't add any additives at that time. I'm gonna scour the forum to see who else has this problem and what the fix is. I've heard that the valve body may need replacing.

 

[daveleeander]

In the 02's and 03's that was typical valve body problem. The body is easy to replace. You can pick one up for a couple hundred dollars.

D

 

[SyberTiger]

I experienced this problem with my 2002 Explorer. I think the problem started when it had about 85K miles on it. It is one of a couple of problems I experience with my tranny. I've always thought the solution was a complete rebuild and I'm getting to the point where I'm seriously considering what my options are. I now have about 120K miles on the tranny.

One thing I've noticed about the "reverse clunk" problem is that it is primarily exhibited if I try to put the vehicle in reverse without first waiting for the RPMs to drop down to normal idle RPM. Specifically, if I start the engine and quickly put it in reverse it usually "clunks" hard into reverse. If I wait 30 seconds or more for the idle to drop down to 850 RPM (or whatever the idle RPM is supposed to be) it typically does not "clunk" although not a guarantee.

 

[daveleeander]

You've gotten twice the milage most have without having the OEM valve bank go out. That, along with wheel bearings are the two worst problems you'll have if you take care of it right. THe wheel bearings are an ongoing thing, no matter who you have put them in. The valve block replacement is a one time deal.
It appears the servo valve replacment is also something popping up. Mine just started acting that way at around 261k miles.

 

[kayak willy]

i just had the trranny replaced i had the same problem of it slaming into reverse they said it was the flow valve .so they repalced the tranny 3500.00.thank god for extendad warrenty

 

[Dave_H]

Had the same issue from day 1 with my 2004 explorer. Ford finally recalled it and put the additive a few months after we bought it, which helped. Since then, when the transmission starts getting rough again, we have taken it in to a small shop that knows transmissions and we get it flushed and changed out for fresh full synthetic. This transmisssion has always been subpar, but changing fluid and getting it done right has kept our transmission in good shape. I think to do it right they use a pump to circulate through a strong detergent-based additive to get all the crud out and then we get it topped off with full synthetic. Up to 133k miles now, and we just go easy on the transmission and keep taking care of it.

 

[turborich]

Had the same issue from day 1 with my 2004 explorer. Ford finally recalled it and put the additive a few months after we bought it, which helped. Since then, when the transmission starts getting rough again, we have taken it in to a small shop that knows transmissions and we get it flushed and changed out for fresh full synthetic. This transmisssion has always been subpar, but changing fluid and getting it done right has kept our transmission in good shape. I think to do it right they use a pump to circulate through a strong detergent-based additive to get all the crud out and then we get it topped off with full synthetic. Up to 133k miles now, and we just go easy on the transmission and keep taking care of it.

Flushing a high mileage transmission is the worse thing that you can do. It just opens up a can of worms. I would strongly recommend only doing a pan drop & only replacing what comes out during this (about 4-5 quarts)

BTW, your Explorer came with Synthetic trans fluid from the factory (Mercon V)

 

[Dave_H]

Turborich, yes Mercon V is would we keep changing with...Question, if you flush and fill regularly, is it still a bad idea as you get up into the high miles or do you recommend stopping the flush part after a certain number of miles? Probably have not done this since under 100K.

Also, I read this today outside of this forum:"* Transmission fluid - either change the fluid every 25,000 or 30,000 miles, or NEVER CHANGE IT. Don't let it go too long. If you do, the transmission gets use to the particle buildup in its inner workings. If you then try to flush it out, the trainee starts to fail relatively quickly, leading to a new transmission in about 6 months. So change constantly every 25 to 30k or leave it alone. Also, if you can, get a full flush, not a partial flush. The partial flush leaves a whole lot of dirty fluid and particles in the system. You want a full flush."

 

[neilpridenz]

Also had this exact problem...

My 2004 4.0 XLT suffers the same problem. About every 3rd or 4th time I engage reverse there is a hesitation then it slams into reverse, sometimes rocking the vehicle it is so harsh.

Ford did issue technical bulletin on this - as a preventative measure an additive had to be added to some transmissions which had had an incorrect fluid fill at the factory. Unfortunately the additive will not fix a trans which is not showing this problem, it is preventative only.

I took mine to get the fluid and filter changed and the valve body gasket changed as a preventative measure. Unfortunatley it did not seem to fix the problem, but anecdotally I felt it was smoother for a few weeks with the new fluid (Mercon V) in it. Problem has returned but probably not as severe.

My thought is it is likely to be a sticky valve in the valve body or similar. I dont intend to do anything more as my transmission guy was able to check the pan for debris and the condition of the fluid and was happy nothing really terrible was happening.

Good luck with finding a fix, please post your progress.

Neil.