How to: 5R55E Rebuild DIY Diary

[Dylanc]

Sorry to hijack this thread but since it is active i figured it would be better to ask here before making a new post. I am also rebuilding my 5r55e and I have almost got it torn apart but I can not for the life of me get the reverse planetary assembly out. I took the snap ring off and have tried pulling it but it will only move a 1/32 of an inch. my reverse band is broken and there is some scoring inside the case so I'm thinking there might be some debris in there holding it up? Thank ya'll for your time and expertise!

 

[gsbarry]

Just so we're on the same page - it sounds like you have removed the reverse planetary gear, followed by the snap ring on the output shaft, which leave the reverse drum and sprag remaining.

Once the snap ring is off, you should be able to remove the output shaft out of the tail of the case. See if it comes out, maybe give it a light tap with a hammer and something to protect the end from damage. If the shaft comes out, that may free the drum. The othe possibility I can think of is the reverse sprag is jammed up on the race at the end of the case. If it seems like that is the case, try rotating the reverse drum clockwise as you attempt to remove it.

 

[gsbarry]

Back to the boost valve, I checked the Sonnax instructions (I have the modified valve) and there is no mention of the holes in the sleeve being oriented in any particular direction. The valve end of course must be oriented towards the nested springs.

 

[Dylanc]

The reverse planetary gears are the ones that are no coming out, their retaining ring is out but they will only move about 1/32 after alot of trouble. thanks for the help man!

 

[HiSpeedDirt]

Back to the boost valve, I check the Sonnax instructions (I have the modified valve) and there is no mention of the holes in the sleeve being oriented in any particular direction. The valve end of course must be oriented towards the nested springs.

In my VB the boost sleeve holes was orientated horizontally at 3 o'clock, if you look toward the bore side.

 

[transman304]

No orientation on holes in boost valve. The spring being left out is part of a standard rebuild.

 

[gsbarry]

Excellent, thanks for the info Brad! Any info on the absent cooler limit spring (part #35)? I also noticed there is a missing pin, which should be retaining the plug (part #44) between the coast clutch valve (#45) and the converter clutch springs (#42,43). I can't imagine why the pin would be removed when the plug is still there.

 

[gsbarry]

@ Dylanc:

I'm guessing this is what you are looking at then:

And guessing the retaining ring that you removed is the red line. The planetary gear nests into the the reverse drum. The planetary gear has to come out before the reverse drum. The arrows above point to tabs on the outside of the planetary gear that fit into indentions in the reverse drum (arrows below):

You can either try to get a hold of the tabs on the outside edge of the planetary gear, or try to grab the inside edge. Once the planetary gear is out, this exposes the small snap ring on the output shaft. Once that is removed, the ring gear can be removed followed by the reverse drum.

 

[transman304]

7. TCC Modification

Remove the smallest spring from the cooler bypass valve bore. is spring can be pulled out from the lower side of the casting, through the slot next to the filter inlet.

Part of the zip kit instructions for Sonnax kit. Go to Sonnax web site lots of valuable tips, tricks and information.

 

[gsbarry]

Thanks again Brad. I have to agree, the instructions to the Sonnax zip kit (VB overhaul kit) provide a lot of very useful information. Don't know why I didn't think of that before. Looks like I need to source an L pin (or something similar I can stick in there), but the missing springs are intentional mods.

A little more info - I contacted Central VB's and they confirmed removal of the two springs, and why they are removed:

#18 is removed for a better, more firm (quick) engagement in "drive."
#35 is removed for a better, more firm lock-up.

 

[Dylanc]

Thanks Barry, I was suggested to put down some wood blocks and drop the case down to free the planetary gear assembly. I did that and after the 3rd hit it fell out. further inspection revealed that the lugs that held the assembly were torn up and holding the assembly in the reverse drum.

 

[gsbarry]

I observed that the end plug (part #17) for the forward engagement bore has no o-rings and fits quite loosely in the bore. Can anyone confirm this is by design? It's the only end plug that fits like that.

 

[transman304]

That is by design. Look at the plate as you will see 2 ports for the valve and if you lay it on the vb there is no exhaust for the fluid that gets by the forward engagement valve. The loose plug is the exhaust.

 

[gsbarry]

I finally got a chance to do some work again this weekend. I've got the trans pretty much buttoned up now. Here is a simple way to check the front-of-case endplay:

You must disassemble the pump to check endplay in this fashion (there are some other ways with special tools). The manual of course describes this procedure with a special tool, the "gauge bar" and micrometer, but this accomplishes the same thing. We are resting a flat metal edge (framing square) against the case-to-bell gasket surface (inner edge, not outer lip) and measuring the clearance with feeler gauges between the pump stator and the straight edge. Measure opposite sides and average. Clearance is 0.18mm-0.7mm. Here is the manual's tool:

If the average clearance is within spec, you're good to go. If it is too tight, you need to get a thinner plastic pump washer - this sits on the underside of the pump stator. Having noticed that my prior washer was a bit melted, I ordered a thinner one ahead of time - and it was needed. Clearance too wide, thicker washer.

Once that is set, pull the pump back out then align and install it in the bell. A note here on the alignment tool. I struggled with the plastic alignment tool getting stuck on my old pump.
This is as far as it would go without extra force:

Thinking that the plastic tool was just imprecise, I ordered the metal tool (at least the end part, P/N T74P-77103-D), then I also found a cheap plastic tool replacement.
Here they are side by side:

I next found that the metal tool would not fully seat on my old pump... hmmm...

the scoring on the pump stator shaft must be the problem. So I ordered a replacement pump. With the replacement, I found that the metal collar was actually a bit sloppy on the shaft, while my new plastic tool fit like a glove. (Side note: the "D" metal collar alignment tool I have is the largest of four (A-D) selectable size collars - presumably the B or C size would have fit snugly, but the whole set is a bit expensive) Moral of the story - the W/N/S plastic pump alignment tool fits quite well on an E pump, and is cheap. If it doesn't slide on by hand, don't force it, there is damage to your pump and it must be replaced. The plastic tool also served as a driver to install the the front main seal, if you don't have anything else the right size laying around.

 

[JK080]

Don't forget the gasket will add some clearance.

 

[gsbarry]

That's a good point. I'm not too sure if the spec listed in the ATSG manual takes the gasket thickness into account already. At any rate, I was on the low end of the scale, so the extra clearance from the gasket won't hurt this build.

Thinking about the scoring a bit more on the old pump, it does beg the question, what exactly caused the scoring in the first place? The pump stator shaft is swallowed by the snout of the torque converter. Are there bearings in the TC in this area that could fail? Or could it be a sign of an imbalanced TC? Both? Or something else?

 

[gsbarry]

Well I got it all put back together, and everything seems to be working well. On the very first startup I did get the O/D Off light flashing, which concerned me quite a bit. However, at the time I also had failing battery, so it's possible it was a phantom code. I have put a decent amount of miles on it since, and have not had the OD light come back on since the initial startup. I did connect to Forscan, which picked up P1837 (Transmission Transfer Case Rear Shaft Speed Sensor Circuit Failure) and B1352 (Ignition Key-In Circuit Failure). I cant say for sure if 1837 refers to the output shaft sensor on the trans, the speedo sensor on the t-case, or one of the hall sensors on the t-case. I did replace one of the t-case hall sensors during the rebuild - however that previously caused the 4WD lights to flash. At any rate, the OD light has not returned. The key-in circuit is not a prob - I recall taping over the contacts a while back due to constant chime failure.

The trans temp gauge provides excellent peace of mind. Operating temps seem to fluctuate between 140 and 150 depending on shifting frequency/speed. I have noticed a whistling noise at idle, kind of sounds like a vacuum leak, but it sounds like it's coming from the trans, can't say for sure yet. This symptom existed prior to the current rebuild. Not a huge deal, but kind of a head scratcher.

Many thanks to Brad and JK for their help - you guys made this process much easier.

 

[Z.Hrowal]

Hello all, i'm new to the forum here and actually made an account specifically for this post. I know this thread is a few years old but have a couple questions regarding a 5r55e rebuild thats going to be taking place soon. The only thing currently wrong with the transmission is that the Input Speed Sensor (the one bolted to the center support) is failing. While i have the transmission removed and mostly taken apart I'd like to replace a few parts to hopefully help prevent a catastrophic failure in the near future. The plan is to replace the sensor, clutch steels/frictions, bands, servo pistons, OD sprag, seals, and any bearings or washers that appear to be worn or damaged. I'll also be installing the EPC TSB, a Sonnax zip kit, new epc solenoid, additional cooler, and an external filter. The two parts that i'm having trouble deciding if i want to replace or not are the torque converter and the low/reverse sprag. Is it possible to remove the rear sprag from the reverse drum for replacement? And if so, how difficult is it to remove/install. I've heard these transmissions have quite a few OD sprag failures, but i'm not sure about the rear sprag. As for the torque converter, i'm on the fence because the transmission hasn't seen a catastrophic failure and therefore has no contamination of the fluid. I know its usually something that should be replaced when doing a rebuild, but isn't that usually due to foreign debris in the fluid, therefore contaminating the converter? How often do torque converters fail and is there any reason to replace this one if there's nothing wrong with it? Also, i had not planned on taking the pump apart seeing as i dont have the special tool required to align it and have heard that using the torque converter can be a big no-no. Is that decision a mistake? Everything works fine and theres no reason to take it apart to clean it out, so i'm hoping to be able to get by with replacing the input shaft seal and calling it good

 

[JK080]

Welcome to the forum!
I wouldn't worry about the low reverse sprag they dont have a high failure rate like the input sprag (OD) has but I would replace the converter, they are the reason this transmission has some of its more common issues.
You could get away with leaving the pump alone if the transmission is in good shape or if you dont feel comfortable getting it back together without the tool. I use loctite on the front seal to help keep it in place, they are known to blow out.

The only time I can remember dealing with a code for the turbine shaft sensor (TSS) the tone ring on the OD planet was broke off, these sensors are not a common issue so keep that in mind when disassembling the transmission.

Good luck on your repair keep us updated!

 

[Z.Hrowal]

Welcome to the forum!
I wouldn't worry about the low reverse sprag they dont have a high failure rate like the input sprag (OD) has but I would replace the converter, they are the reason this transmission has some of its more common issues.
You could get away with leaving the pump alone if the transmission is in good shape or if you dont feel comfortable getting it back together without the tool. I use loctite on the front seal to help keep it in place, they are known to blow out.

The only time I can remember dealing with a code for the turbine shaft sensor (TSS) the tone ring on the OD planet was broke off, these sensors are not a common issue so keep that in mind when disassembling the transmission.

Good luck on your repair keep us updated!

Thank you for that response, that helps a ton! I will definitely go ahead and order a new torque converter.
As for the sensor, i don't believe the tone ring would be broken off because when i check the sensor input on my scanner it works periodically. Or i should say it works most of the time but cuts out periodically, getting worse when the transmission gets warm, then when the sensor starts cutting out, the torque converter wont lock up and the transmission REALLY starts to get warm. I greatly appreciate the help and will definitely post back with any questions and an update on how things go. Everything on the truck is already disconnected and transfer case removed so the transmission will be coming out for teardown first thing tomorrow morning. This is my first time tearing into an automatic so fingers crossed it all goes well