Overdrive light flashing

[Slick]

Ok, last night i was driving around, and i realized my X wouldnt shift unless i let off the gas. I was trying to find out what was going on, so i'd accelerate slowly and it would go fine, but then i'd floor it and it would just feel like it was in neutral and the RPMs would fly up. This does not look good. Anyone know what is going on??

 

[jimbo74]

sounds like the torque convertor may be going bad....

 

[Slick]

How would I check the torque converter? How much are they to replace??

 

[jimbo74]

i dont know..... they are an integral part of the tranny though... like what a clkutch is to a stick..... when the clutch starts to fail the tranny doesnt engage quickly and the engine revs high before it catches... it may also be just as simple a a failed vacumn modulator, or a broken kickdown switch....

 

[Slick]

Are there any ways to check this things out? Or should i just take it in to ford? I dont wanna get ripped off as i am usually short in$$

 

[leebo]

moved this to the "Under The Hood" forum, you'll get a better idea on the problem there.

 

[Slick]

Thanks leebo, right now i kinda hope my tranny is totally gone because i found out it is about 800 miles under the warranty, so i could get a brand new transmition, which i would love to have!

 

[JoshC]

Hey man, mine did the same thing on sunday night. I was low on fluid and i changed my fluid and filter and it helped it some but mine slips when it is in overdrive and like you said when you get on it, it doesn't act right. I replaced my converter back in feburary when i had the tranny rebuilt, i put it in myself, and i am not looking forward to doing it again, let us know what you find out and i will too.

Happy trailes!

 

[S. Allen]

been there....not good!

Our 95 4x4 had this OD OFF flashing thighy...it ran me about 1800 dollars in a tranny rebuild. This was at 112,000 miles!

When Ford figures out how to build a decent automatic tranny and a front end that will stay aligned, they'll rule the truck world.

Ask anyone who knows transmissions and they'll tell you that the all electronic Explorer auto tranny is truly an awful beast and the "weakest link" on this automobile.

Think I am making this up? Well, I have been through this with two Explorers and one Ranger...same problems. My Explorer is a 95 and I hear about 98, 99 and newer Exploeres with the SAME OLD troubles.

Ford KNOWS about this and cares nothing about building a better tranny for thier customers. They'd rather continue building the same schlock tranny and make money on replacing then when they crap out, than make a better product.

Look on the complaint board on NHTSA's web site...one after another...the complaints about the "OD OFF" flashing/tranny rebuilds reads like a broken record. Several were rebuilt only after 60,000 miles. Ford tough? I doubt it! Sorry, but a vehicle of this cost should have a tranny that goes much further than 60-120K.

You're really lucky, though if yours crapped out while you still have warranty.

If it weren't for the front-end and the tranny, my 95 would be a great SUV, but it will be replaced by a Toyota 4 Runner in the next year...sorry...I just cannot go another vehicle with the same damn problems of two models ago and the low resale value!

-SA

 

[leebo]

800 under warranty!! Lucky You. Mine went at about 200 over warranty. DOH!!

I'd take it right into Ford and let them worry about it. I'd guess it's either low on fluid, or a toasted tranny. Lets hope it's toast. I know.... lets take it off-roading first to make sure we finish it off. LOL.

Congrats on being under warranty. Wish I was. Would of saved me $1800

 

[JoshC]

Man i guess i was pretty lucky when i had mine rebuilt cause it only cost me about 550. I took it out and put it in my self, i would have saved 150 if i knew what i was doing before i got the shaft ****eyed in the converter and had to buy a new one!

Happy trailes!

 

[DocVijay]

Get it looked at now!

Sounds exactly what happed to my X. It was the torque converter. Well, it was that and a bunch of other stuff, too. If it weren't for the extended warranty, it would have cost me around $2600 or so. Plus, it all happened at 38,000 miles.

 

[Slick]

Took it in today, they said it was skipping 2nd and 3rd gears, went from 1st to 4th, its covered under warranty, i'll let u guys know what happens when i get it back

 

[Tekeman]

Slick- two words NEUTRAL DROP. Kinda make sure it gets replaced under warrenty then. J/K don't know if they would be able to tell it was abused.

Leebo - I would have made a sh#tfit scene at the dealer with a trashed tranny and only over 200 mi. There should have been some proration at the worst.
I had a Mitsubishi that stripped some teeth on the timing belt and I was within 100 mi of 60,000. they claimed if I had gone over we would have split the cost somehow. It was their bad engineering.