At this point would changing trans fluid just be waste of money

[Triggerracing]

Bought an 01 Sport Trac. I guess the guy unhooked the battery and drove the vehicle right before I test drove it because trans didn't have any issues and o/d light wasn't flashing. Within a day the light started flashing and when I first drove it in the morning it had the second to third flare if it shifted above 2300 rpms. It would only flare the first time I drove it in the morning, after that it was fine the rest of the day as long as it had been driven recently, so I could live with that. Fluid was ok, had a slight smell to it, but I did plan on changing it. But before I got around to it, after a few weeks of on intermittent driving, more problems arose. Reverse has gone out and the only way it will move forward is if I manually shift with the o/d button off. It will go into od when I get above 2500 rpms. But now the trans fluid has that sweet toasty smell. My question is would changing the fluid improve anything or is a rebuild about the only thing to do? 167000 miles with 4.0L

 

[1992fordgreen]

Sounds to me like your trans needs a rebuild and that guy unloaded the truck on you just in time, knowingly. Reverse would be the sungear, or the band, and with all of those problems combined, it'd be better just to rebuild the thing.