Please Help! Auto trans won't engage drive

[PRSpilot]

Hi guys, this is my first post in these forums.

I just bought a used '93 ford explorer from a private seller 2 weeks ago. I began to notice that it would take an extra second or two for the transmission to catch on to first gear when coming out of park or reverse. When I start the car and put it into drive, it takes a while for the clutch to engage. I will hold the gas down slightly and the engine will just rev up with out going into gear and finally a few seconds later the gear will catch and everything will work fine. Just today i tried to leave home and the gear just wouldn't kick into drive. I sat in the drive way for 10 mins in drive, overdrive, 1st and second gears and none of them would catch.

Does anybody have any ideas on whats wrong. I would have to have to replace the whole transmission. This is my first car and I bought it with my hard earned money. Strange thing is reverse works perfectly. Once the car gets into drive it functions flawlessly even when coming to a complete stop. its just coming out of park or reverse, it wont go back into drive! any kind of help would be great. Thanks!

 

[IZwack]

Hi -- first things first -- check to make sure there is enough transmission fluid.

 

[PRSpilot]

yep we checked it. it in the crosshatched area. there is enough. i was hoping it would be something simple like that.

 

[Abom]

When you were driving it (and it worked in Drive), did you feel any slipping or anything strange about the shifts ?

 

[luvdeea]

Jeez! Everybody seems to have the same issue. I have exactely the same problem as you, and the same sympthoms. I plan on doing a complete rebuild, as i opened the pan and it was FILLED with metal particles and carbon deposits + the ttansmission fluid smelled like hell - i meant BURNT TRANS FLUID. I think you will find the same in your pan (eve though i hope it's a different issue for you). I have the 4R55E tranny, and plan on posting a diary soon. Unfortunately, i am gone this week, so until week-end no time to continue the remove operation.
Good luck.

 

[PRSpilot]

will i had it towed to AAMCO Transmissions in Prescott Valley. Im a student and sadly I know nothing about cars or how to fix them. I am not sure how much it is going to cost to get it fixed. I paid 2000 for the car. Seemed like a decent deal until this happened...

Thanks for the replies though guys. I'll keep ya posted on how things go.

 

[PRSpilot]

When you were driving it (and it worked in Drive), did you feel any slipping or anything strange about the shifts ?

No i didn't notice anything abnormal when driving it. Once its in drive, it seemed to work fine. oh and when I put it into reverse it is kind of rough. It jolts a little...

 

[luvdeea]

I think it will be quite expensive, because you may be needing some parts changed, except for the overhaul kit. But if you paid 2000 for the car, i guess it may be worth.
Good luck although. And please let me know what the dealer told you.
ThX

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum! Tell them that you want the broken parts back. You could post pictures of it here. If they find metal parts in the pan, then it means that hard parts have broken. That is expensive to fix. The A4LD transmission is generally not a soft rebuild kind of transmission. Luvdeea, if you make a diary on the 4R55E, and submit it to Rick, he will give you an elite membership if he likes the article, and Glacier991 could make it a sticky in the transmission section. I have a question for you. What are the differences in the 4R44E, and 4R55E, transmissions? I was also wondering about the 5R44E, and 5R55E.

 

[luvdeea]

hello BrooklynBay.
I haven t actually seen both 4r55 and 4r44, so i can t tell you the difference. the dealer i went to, for spare parts, said that the parts for the are alike... I know that the 4r series have 4 gears, and 5r series have 5. Also %r seems to be the last generation, and was introduced since '97.
When i come back in town, i will continue my work and hope to come up with some pictures, after i clean the removed parts.
I had some trouble accessing the upper bolts from the bellhousing, as the transmission won't lower after removing the middle supprot bar. Also unscrewing the torque convertot bolts through the starter motor hole was quite nasty.
Thanks for the support. Hope to do a good article, even though i'm not a transmission expert. I promise i ll do my best :d
Thanks

 

[PRSpilot]

well ive got bad news. I took it to AAMCO Transmissions and they said it is gonna cost 2500 dollars to rebuild.

They said ive got a failed foward clutch which took out 4 other hard parts with it. I cant remember what they said but one of the items was the torque transfer thing which costed 379. They are replacing a bunch of other things and are giving a 12 month, 12,000 mile warranty.

Man im totally down. First car and it breaks down the 2nd week i have it. I don't even know where Im gonna get the funding for this.

I got it from a private seller. Im going to try and get a hold of him again tonight. I feel totally ripped off. Im going to see if I can get any of my money back. Live and learn I guess. Shouldn't have jumped into this deal so quickly. Thanks for the help guys.

 

[IZwack]

Depending on your experience, you COULD do a transmission swap yourself -- a rebuilt transmission typically costs ~$1k shipped to your doorstep.

EDIT -- yarp, just read "sadly I know nothing about cars or how to fix them"

 

[BrooklynBay]

Get a transmission for $400 from somebody in the parts for sale section, and install it yourself. You could rebuild your old one yourself after you get a little more experience.

 

[luvdeea]

Told you it's gonna be expensive. I expect quite the same amount for my rebuild. However my torque converter worked ok. I gues my valve body caused the tranny to kill herself
Good luck in getting money back.