97 explorer 4.0l lost reverse everything else fine

[Headscratcher]

Hey Guys, New to the forum and looking for help and inspiration. Daughter was driving(new driver) went to back out of parking spot and said it went about 5' and sounded like she hit something. After getting out to check she had no reverse. I think she shifted into reverse without giving it time to wind down a bit. I have been reading this forum till my eyes are about to bleed and it sounds like this is pretty common. I tried the engine brake test and I have none in manual 1st so I am concluding at this point it is a broken reverse band. I have been scrounging around with neighbors and friends to find everything I need to do the work and am ready to jack it up and crawl under for a look. I just got use of a floor jack today.

Here is just a series of questions. First the door tag says it was manufactured on 11-97 so would it be considered a 98? 2nd the tag says "D" under the TR and after looking it up in another thread I am still confused as to what type transmission is in the car. 3rd Money and time are a BIG factor in this whole operation. It is my daily driver and nothing else is wrong with the vehicle and I dont have a lot of money to throw into it so going against most of the advice I'm going to get,what is the minimum kits and parts i will need to replace the reverse band only?

I am very mechanically capable but have never taken on a transmission before. After watching several videos and reading many rebuild threads I think I can handle this without to much trouble even though I'm pretty nervous about it. I'm not going to tear into it without exploring all other options like removing the reverse servo and inspecting it and checking the band for tension and whatever else you all tell me I should do next.

I am going to thank you all in advance for your help. Anything you can tell me to help me out or boost my confidence will be greatly appreciated.

 

[JK080]

11/97 should be a 98 vehicle, there is a sticker under the hood that will state what year vehicle it is, also the 10th digit in the VIN is the year model. V is 97 and W is 98.

The trans should be the 5R55E.

You could just need the band if you don't tear any gaskets or damage o rings and seals along the way, it can be done but I would expect something. I would tear it down all the way to the band and make a list of the parts you will need and order accordingly. This is the only way to get just what you need. The low band is the first part installed into the case during a reassembly so this thing is going to have to be completely torn down.

If you wanted to pre order parts I would get just a gasket and seal kit, low band and filter. I would think that you would find other things that will need some attention or replacement, the other bands like to break too, sealing rings wear, servos get hard and can't seal, input sprag fails, just to name a few of the things I see.

 

[Headscratcher]

James
Thanks for the reply. I see 27 yrs experience and a shop owner... Wow. North Ga. I'm from East TN. I hope I don't have to drive down there with a box full of parts and a long face asking for help. ha

I actually had to drive the car today and you would never know anything was wrong with it unless you had to back up. I was reading one thread and the guy was saying that it was a Low/Reverse band so if it was broke it would not go into manual 1st. I have manual 1st. it doesn't seem to have any engine braking.

It was dark by the time I got it jacked up. My garage is packed so full of crap I am having to do everything outside. I still need to jack it up some more to get some better clearance for me to be able to move around underneath. That will be done tomorrow. I plan on pulling the pan and inspecting the reverse servo and maybe pull the valve body to check the gasket. If what he was saying about the manual 1st is true I will probably go ahead and rebuild the VB.

What do you think about the manual 1st meaning the band isn't broken and what rebuild kit do you recommend for the VB? Thanks in advance for the advice..
Bill

 

[JK080]

It will still have manual low with a broken low band, but it won't have engine braking. I would remove the pan and inspect the servo gasket, the servo itself and check the see if the band is broken. This can be done without removing the valve body.

I dont know of a rebuild kit just for the valve body other than a shift kit, I would replace the gaskets if you remove it.