Is this true about 4r55e tranny's??

[lrwjr1964]

I was checking my tranny fluid because of another problem and I saw that the fluid was way up on the dipstick. I mean way up on the dipstick!!!!! I called the tranny shop that did my fluid change and they said that with these tranny's, the 4r55e, that the specs call for over filling the tranny. I THIS TRUE?? I called Ford and they said NO WAY!!!!! That could kill my tranny. So has anyone else heard this from a tranny shop?

Also has anyone ever heard of this, it's in bold print:

4R44E / 4R55E
These transmission are rear wheel drive 4 speed automatics, that are all computer controlled. Common symptoms are overdrive light flashing, transmission shifting erratic, slipping or not shifting at all. External sensors on the vehicle like the throttle position sensor or vehicle speed sensor quite often go bad, causing these symptoms. If you screw the force motor in 1/2 turn the transmission has better shifts and engagements.I recommend that you always replace the boost valve when rebuilding any Ford transmission.
Always run a scanner first to see if a sensor is causing your problem.

What is the force motor and has anyone ever tried this? The website I got this from is: http://www.usatransdoctor.com/DomesticFORDselectandAnswers.htm#4R44E

Any input is surely welcome.

 

[Glacier991]

Let's start with the "overfill". I have never heard this and have no reason to believe it to be true. A slight overfill is not going to hurt anything, no overfill will "blow seals" but the foaming and fluid resistance is not healthy. My recommendation is drain the fluid to where the stick says it is full.

The "force motor" is the Electronic Pressure Solenoid (EPC). There is a little hex screw in the end of it. Everything I have seen, including something written by Jerry Wroblowski, a FORD engineer who designs their transmissions etc says "leave it alone". (Admittedly he was talking about the EPC on a 4R70W transmission, but that was good enough for me.) If you want snappier shifts, get a shift kit, don't just up the line pressures across the board (which is what you do when you fiddle with those screws).

That's my 2 cents.

 

[lrwjr1964]

Thank you for your input. The fluid level is about you can say 3" past the max fill line. I am gathering that is not what you would consider a slight over fill. Would the over fill affect the O/D? You responded to my other posr regarding this. When I drive the X after 3 min of warming up the O/D light flashes. Code said it was the coolant temp sensor. Replaced it and 2 days later same thing. If I reset the computer the X is fine because it's up to temp. Now if I go out tomorrow and let it warm up for a few min and start driving the O/D light will start flashing again. Now if I let it warm up for 15 min like I did today the O/D light won't come on. People are stumped. Someone suggested that I might check my altenator and battery since they are acting screwy also. Well actually the altenator is making an intermittent chirping sound until it warms up. The thing that scares me is that I check the battery with everything turned and it's putting out 11.67 and with the X running 14.4, but yet if I am at a stop light the ex acts like it is going to cut off and the volt meter will dip 1/4 way from low for a quick second and then jump back up to the middle. So someone told me that I might have a positive or negative cable that is corroded and causing the PCM to receive erratic signals. I have yet to check the cables. Do you have an opinion on any of this?

 

[Glacier991]

I cannot answer all of your questions, though I wish I could. let's start by draining the fluid and getting a proper fill. When you pull the pan to drain it (not a fun job) measure what you collect coming out. Put 3 quarts back in and start the engine, and be prepared to add between a quart and a quart and a half of new fluid to get it where it belongs. See how much comes out and compare. Once you have the fluid where it belongs reset things and let's go from there, ok? One thing at a time. Scientific method.

 

[lrwjr1964]

Ok. I will do that tomorrow. Thank you for your help. I will let you know my findings.

 

[Logiquol]

Had a shop overfill my transmission after a preventative drain and fill with a new filter put in. The gen II explorers have an overfill drain which will pump out excess fluid and in the process cause massive smoking as it drops onto the exhaust.... Due to the overfilling I believe it caused my transmission to get extremely hot. Hot enough to the point I had a very hard time checking the dipstick. It actually slipped twice when overfilled as well.

I immediately went and got a handpump from a local auto parts store and was able to suck about 1.5 quartz out of the dipstick tube. There was at least a a shots glass worth of ATF fluid on my garage floor and likely another half quart burned up during the test drive. Fortunately for me I only had one ~10 minute test drive when it was overfilled. For the past few weeks my transmission has been perfectly fine.

If it's slightly overfilled you are ok. If it's more than half a quart you need to immediately get it to the proper level. If in doubt, get it correct asap.

 

[410Fortune]

A transmission shop that can’t bring the trans to the correct fluid level has no business repairing transmissions.