slow to go into reverse-then "slams" in

[MAC55]

This baffles me as it does this intermittently, On my 96 XLT 4.0L auto 4wd after the tranny is warmed up and only intermittently, when I put it into reverse there is nothing for maybe 5 seconds then it goes in very hard. If I give it gas it goes in faster but really slams in harder. Like I said it doesnt do this all the time,maybe one out of 20 times going into reverse. It doesnt make a difference if going from park to reverse or drive to reverse. The other times it shifts smoothly into reverse. This is my 2nd tranny and it has 130K on it.
Also the rest of the gears shift smoothly. The fluid level is correct and I change the fluid and filter every 12K. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[ragajungle]

it sounds like a valve body issue - or a low reverse apply servo issue. Maybe the next time you have the pan off you could drop the low rev apply servo cover and check the o-rings for scoring or breakage and the tip to see if it is chipped off. I would read up on Glacier's 5r55e valve body rebuild - long read but LOTS of good stuff in there - you'll find it in the stickies under the trans section

 

[MAC55]

Thanks much for the info. I'll check it out.