5R55E Problem Appreciate any Help

[quasarsky]

i wonder if you have a band broken, since you reach a failed shift point at 30-40 mph.

 

[CAG8R]

I am pulling the pan today, so I should have a better idea of what is going on. I will most likely pull the TC as well.

 

[CAG8R]

Well, I now have the pan off and the valve body out. Unfortunately, I did not find much wrong. All of the solenoids ohm out within specification. There were no metal shavings in the pan, just some black sludge collected on the magnet. There were no shavings in the valve body passage way EPC screen filter or on the solenoid screens themselves. I had the four check ball version and could find no signs of wear or tear at all except for one item. The very tip of the low/reverse band servo piston was chipped off. Maybe this chip is stuck somewhere. I have many pictures, but have not figured out how to post them yet. I have not had time to deal with the transfer case yet. After downloading and reading through the FSM, it appears that you need quite a few specialty tools to tear apart the transfer case. I might be better off having this one rebuilt, if I can find a reputable shop.

 

[CAG8R]

Upon further breakdown of the valve body, and I mean everything. I found to items/valve assemblies that were sticking. The FSM said everything should come right out after cleaning and drying. The following two items were the only pieces that would not come out. The first one was the plug-valve retainer (7) and EPC boost valve (8). I had one hell of a time removing these two pieces. Actually, the valve was probably OK, but the plug was nicked up pretty bad. Most likely from someone installing the retainer incorrectly. I probably ruined the valve body removing it. I should have left it where it was. The second hard to remove item was the plug-valve retainer (52) and the valve for the 2-3 up shift (53). Same scenario, but this one was much easier to remove, and I don't think the bore was damaged. It would not fall right out like the others though. The numbers in parenthesis are from the FSM assembly drawing for the valve body. I downloaded it from this site. It is very helpful if you don't have this document, I highly recommend it. Does anyone think that the two items I found sticking had anything to do with the transmission not shifting? From what I can tell, there is nothing wrong with the bands. I will perform the adjustment proceedure before putting this back together.

 

[BrooklynBay]

The following 3 diagrams are taken from Glacier991's photo gallery:

 

[CAG8R]

BB:

Thanks for posting the parts assembly. I don't know how to do this. Do you have an opinion on what is causing my problem?

 

[BrooklynBay]

Have you reinstalled the rebuilt valve body? If so, are you still having the same shifting issues? Did you replace, or clean any solenoids while rebuilding the valve body? As far as posting pictures, they are only links. Look at the link in the photo gallery, and right click where it says copy. After doing this, right click where it says paste.

 

[CAG8R]

Have to reinstalled the rebuilt valve body? If so, are you still having the same shifting issues? Did you replace, or clean any solenoids while rebuilding the valve body? As far as posting pictures, they are only links. Look at the link in the photo gallery, and right click where it says copy. After doing this, right click where it says paste.

No, I have not reinstalled the valve body yet. I am going to buy one from Glacier, when he is finished. Although I think I could do it myself now, it is not as big a deal that I once thought. However, the bore for the EPC boost valve is questionable at best. Can you ream/hone these bores once they are scratched or is the whole casting junk at that point? All of my solenoids looked as if they were new and they all ohmed out perfectly. I simply cleaned them and placed them in zip lock bags. I am going to replace the EPC anyway.

 

[BrooklynBay]

I think there is a way to install replacement bore sleeves, but it will require special tools which are expensive.

 

[Bent Bolt]

Well I think you found your problem. I will say that the diagram and text are a bit wrong ,I think. It's a picture and text for a 4R44E which has only 4 gears as opposed to a 5R55E which of course has 5 gears. If you look at the text, there is no 4-5 shift valve. I'll have to have a look later to confirm.

Anyway that sticky valve you found is for the 3-4 shift which controls the direct clutch. Did you ever lose reverse???

 

[BrooklynBay]

Glacier991 had these diagrams listed under 5R55 in the photo gallery. Is there a difference in the 5R VB other than the reference in the above text?

 

[BrooklynBay]

#27, and #28 in the above text refer to 5th. Here is another diagram from Glacier991's photo gallery:

 

[CAG8R]

Well I think you found your problem. I will say that the diagram and text are a bit wrong ,I think. It's a picture and text for a 4R44E which has only 4 gears as opposed to a 5R55E which of course has 5 gears. If you look at the text, there is no 4-5 shift valve. I'll have to have a look later to confirm.

Anyway that sticky valve you found is for the 3-4 shift which controls the direct clutch. Did you ever lose reverse???

Yes, I lost all motion in all gears, after hearing the loud noise while driving in O/D down the freeway. This is when I could not get the shift lever back into park with the engine running. Both times after getting towed the shifter would go back into park and all gears worked including reverse, however I could not get it to shift higher than 3'rd gear. I have a couple good closeups of the "chipped" reverse piston, but I have not figured out how to post yet. I am not so sure that I found my problem or caused my problem. The actual valves were sliding just fine, but I wanted to remove them anyway for some stupid reason. The items referred to as plugs, that are pinned in place were to two culprits for scoring my valve body housing. I think whomever installed them in the first placed, "dinged" them installing the retaining pins. Anyway, I ordered a supposedly "good" valve body off of E-bay yesterday. Hopefully, between the two units, I can make one good one. How about the transfer case, that is still a thorn in my side? How difficult is it to tear it apart and check to make sure everything is in order? Does it requre alot of special tools as the FSM calls out? I have been reading several TSB's on the GEM controller. What is the chance that this is bad and not telling the transmission to shift? If it is bad it does not store codes, which mine appears to have this symptom.

 

[CAG8R]

Well, I figured out how to post pictures. You have to become an Elite member first. Anyway, here are the two pictures of the piston tip. I wonder where those metal pieces are? Will this part come in a total rebuild kit? Can I order it seperately?

 

[BrooklynBay]

The PCM is for the transmission, and the GEM is for the transfer case.

 

[CAG8R]

They say a picture is worth a 1,000 words and I agree. He is a couple pictures of something I found interesting when I first jacked up the vehicle. The passenger side is wet, with what appears to be tranny fluid. The drivers side is dry. This was not like this the last time I changed the oil just a couple months ago. Does something jump out that I am missing? I could not find the source of the leak. I also posted a couple picks of the pan after removal. Don't think you can tell much from these, but you never know.

 

[BrooklynBay]

The servo piston is chipped in the first set of pictures. They sell them separately at WWW.TransmissionPartsUSA.Com. It's a good idea to save the pictures in the photo gallery, so if somebody (or yourself) ever want to do a search for a picture of a damaged servo to put into one of their threads, it would be easier to find. They would have to link the picture into their thread by doing this:

.

 

[CAG8R]

The servo piston is chipped in the first set of pictures. They sell them separately at WWW.TransmissionPartsUSA.Com. It's a good idea to save the pictures in the photo gallery, so if somebody (or yourself) ever want to do a search for a picture of a damaged servo to put into one of their threads, it would be easier to find. They would have to link the picture into their thread by doing this:

.

How do I save the pictures in the photo gallery? I am sure it is posted somewhere, but I am at work now and don't have time to search for it. Thanks for the information on the servo piston. Does this sort of thing happen often? A person from a tranny shop told me that the intermediate and O/D servos go out often due to heat from the proximity of the catalytic converter. Is this true?

 

[BrooklynBay]

This is true about the heat from the catalytic converter. Which servo is the one in the picture? I don't have a full view, but from what I could see, it looks like the low/reverse servo in the bottom of the transmission. Click onto the link for the photo gallery on the upper right hand side of the page. When you are in the photo gallery, it will give you an option to upload photos, and determine which category they go into.

 

[paisleysdaddy]

Wow, I was going through this same thing just as you were. I've had the same problem with my 02 just over last week. My intermediate band ended up being busted, as stated in the TSB from ford for the P0733 DTC, and I also had DTC P0745 for the selenoid pack. Anyhow, instead of performing the steps for the bulletin, we ended up having to replace the entire trans, which is a hefty cost, just as you noted earlier. It still gets me as to why my mechanic didn't do the repair steps as opposed to the replacement. I suppose doing this all yourself saves quite a bit of money. After all is said and done, the cost through a mechanic is probably close to what I paid for the replacement.