no reverse rolls in neutral a4ld HELP!!!!

[93explorerguy]

hello i have a 93 explorer. here is my problem when in park it is still engaged in drive but the parking pawl keeps it from moving, when it is in neutral it rolls forwardlike in drive. when in reverse it rocks a bit forwardbut no reverse. wierd.... is this a manual valve problem? when i start up the vehicle in park in lurches a small amount forward. it also seems to be leaking fluid from the front bellhousing area.... now it started leaking bad and ran a couple quarts low.. then this no rev problem happened.. has anyone ran into anything like this??

 

[Glacier991]

the park pawl...is a mechanical connection. I am wondering if your shifter has come unconnected or something.... the rest does sound like an unconnected or misconnected manual valve. (someone once had a Z link come undone).. as for the leak leading up to his... none of it sounds especially good.... how many miles on it?

 

[93explorerguy]

it has 122k the weird thing is when i have it in park no foot on the brake.. i rev the engine and i cant even redline it... i mean it acts as if i am power braking it.. it luanches forward but wont move.. now if it is in neutral. it acts as if it is in drive. it will not roll in reverse... and when it is in reverse it will not move in reverse . like it does not have reverse.. very strange

 

[Glacier991]

Check your external linkage... if all looks ok.... drop the pan and check the linkage inside. I think you'll find a problem one place or the other. In fact my wild guess is that your Z (variously called S) link has come undone....

 

[93explorerguy]

do i need to remove the valve body? i have checked the external linkage and all seems well.. does this valve also control reverse? as well as it allows fluid for forward gears. that z clip maybe the trouble.. it has fallen or something

 

[Glacier991]

If it is the Z lever... I imagine you will find the clip in the pan.... I am assuming since it came out with the valve body in place (in in fact that IS what occurred) it can be replaced without removing the valve body.... so, pull then pan.... and let us know what you find. My money is on this being the problem... but hey, what do *I* know?

 

[Brain]

I'm agreeing w/ Glacier. It sounds like the z-link came undone while in a forward gear. This would mean that it is always in a forward gear (even when in N or R) and that reverse would never be engaged. When you said it wouldn't even go to redline, that is the same as doing a stall test. Be glad that it doesn't go to redline in this condition, or it would mean that a band or clutch was slipping and that the tranny would need to be rebuilt. Do fix the z-link before you run it anymore, or you risk burning up clutch packs that might be only partially activated. If you can't find the clip that holds on the link in the pan, it might have gotten sucked up into the filter...but it is there somewhere (or at least it should have been).

 

[93explorerguy]

well guys no such luck the z link is attached and moves the manual valve just fine.. it has a lil play but i assume thats normal.. there was a few valves in the valve body seemed to be stuck so i cleaned um and no very free.. also tryed flushing fluid and new filter... same result will not go in reverse and acts like stuck in drive.. i have not driven down road yet.. but what the heck else could be the prob????

 

[Glacier991]

Wow... I am stumped.... I have to conclude the valve body is completely gunked up. I am at a loss to explain this problem if all the spools are doing what they should be doing and the manual valve is too... Maybe Brain, OperaHouse, CJBarron or others (too numerous to mention and I hope not to slight them by not mentioning their names) might have ideas.... I'd pull the valve body and rebuild it stem to stern.... add the Sonnax Boost Valve mod too...and the manual valve one.... otherwise.. I am clueless. I was 90% certain it was the Z link. HELP?

 

[Brain]

I was pretty certain about it too....well, I do have a link to a technical bulletin that is for a no-reverse condition (a plug behind the kickdown valve being out of position/leaking), but it doesn't really describe the forward engagement. Here's that link (better when it comes from the horse's mouth w/ pictures)...but check the second link before you pull the pan again (kill 2 birds w/ one stone):
http://www.alldatadiy.com/alldata/A.../56351048/34853741/34850750/42063452/42469263

This is what I thought was the problem...z-link and rooster-comb position. It still might be the problem, but just being out of adjustment instead of unhooked alltogether:
http://www.alldatadiy.com/alldata/A.../56351048/34853741/34850750/42063452/42469224

But that said/shown, the first thing I'd try is to unhook the shifting cable (bottom one) at the tranny (just pry it off, it is a ball connection), and try shifting it by hand. This will make sure it is not a shoft cable that is out of adjustment. When you shift it by hand this way, you can feel when it drops into each position. Have a helper stand on the brakes w/ the parking brake on so you don't get squished.

Now, even if you get the shifting into revese/binding in park condition fixed, you still have the front leak issue. There are only a couple of things that can cause it, and the most common one is the front pump seal leaking (where the torque converter goes through the back of the bellhousing). Another possibility is welds that have gone bad on the torque converter (but this barely ever happens). I'm afraid that this seal has a bad history (mine only made it 85K miles), and it requires pulling the tranny out to fix it, which means lots of labor for a little cheap part (the seal is only about $8 if bought separately). I wish I could offer a bubble-gum/stop-leak fix for you, but I can't. Much of that stop-leak stuff messes things up worse as it hardens on contact w/ air.

If you want to see that front seal, it is the first picture here (the orange one):
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=117793#usercptools

 

[elkhunter]

Dump in a can of Sea Foam and drive it for awhile. I have seen that stuff work wonders by cleaning out valve bodies and other places like engines and fuel tanks. Make sure to get the transmission type.

 

[918stanley]

93explorerguy

I know this post is pretty old. but did you ever resolve this issue ?

I have a 93 explorer also and I am having the exact symptoms as you posted. today I will be dropping the pan to have a look at the Z-Link

 

[918stanley]

well, no joy with the Z-Link. It looks like it was moving just fine and the clip is still in place. I will try the sea foam next. However the transmission fluid that I removed was as black as motor oil but thinner like transmission fluid. I did not reuse it.

 

[MeatMan]

responding to reverse, neutral, park lurching

I am currently dealing with this problem at the moment, and I'm glad that others have experienced these symptoms in the past so I am not alone in my fight.
Here is what I see to be the problem: In looking at the converter engagement charts on the a4ld service manual (ATSG). I noticed that there is only one clutch that is engaged at one position. The rear one way clutch at the rear of the transmission. This clutch is only engaged when in first gear (od drive, drive, and 1st.) All other times this clutch is not engaged. I took her out on the road and got her into the higher gears, 2nd, 3rd, OD, I noticed when I put her in neutral here that neutral was free! Now all I have to figure out is what valve is causing this clutch to engage in neutral, reverse, park.

 

[Elessar65]

You are doing the right thing in looking at the apply charts to diagnose the problem. Hopefully the issue is the valve body and can be easily fixed (easier than rebuilding the trans anyways). I would find the valve(s) that may be sticking, then drop the VB and take a look. Could be a couple different things, gummed up valves, could be something is letting fluid into a passage it shouldn't be getting to, or vise-versa. Separator plate leaking or check ball stuck. Its hard to say without looking at hydraulic diagrams and apply charts.

 

[cklinejr]

My 94 EB just started doing this. Can reverse out of the driveway, and when i put it in neutral I about drove into the garage door.

When in reverse it will not rev for crap.

Is the shifter cable obvious? does anyone have a photo?
Is there any adjustment to it?

If its not that and not the Z link, what else could it be? have you guys fixed yours?