Tranny Dead!

[VOATMJ1]

My tranny took a dump on my coming home from a trip. It started slipping in 4th and 5th gears so bad that I did not think I would get home and reverse is all but gone.

Is it unusal for a tranny to go with only 61,000 miles on the clock??? I had it servicesd at 30,000 miles, and again just two months ago. What the hell!

 

[Ray Lobato]

We all pretty much think that the tranny is the weakest link on the Exolorer.
Mine went out at about 97,000, and I have heard of them going out around the same mileage as yours. The rest should last you for almost forever.
Make sure that they replace everything, and it should last you for 100K.

 

[BrooklynBay]

Did you check your fluid level? Slippage could occur if you are low on fluid. If your EPC pressure is low, you will also have a lot of slippage. Do you have a flashing OD light, or a CEL?

 

[BrooklynBay]

Did you try to adjust your bands, or use a transmission gauge to test how much pressure you have? Servos that apply bands are known to rot from the heat of the exhaust that is close to it. There is a heat shield that is supposed to be in front of them. If it is in good condition, it should be adequate to prevent excess heat from the exhaust from entering into the servo's covers.

 

[VOATMJ1]

I stopped at three Ford dealerships on the way home, and all three checked the fluid. It was fresh and at the top, as I had just had the tranny serviced two months ago, including a new filter. There was no warning, one minute it was shifting smooth, and the next...all hell broke loose. There was no CEL or flashing O/D flashing. It got me home---barely!

The tranny shop pulled the pan and said that there was a crap load of metal shavings on the bottom of the pan. They still hooked up and ran a check on the tranny, but no codes was showing up either on the truck or the tranny, which fits, as the CEL or the O/D was not flashing. I just got a bad tranny from the factory when I bought it new.

The tranny shop, (which believe it or not was recommended by my local Ford dealer on the side), rebuilds their tranny's using ALL new parts, and they also rebuild their own torque converters. They claim that their rebuilds are twice the strength of Fords. (What is what my local Ford dealership said). It comes with a 5 year 50,000 mile warranty...total cost $2,600.00. I'm pissed! I got rid of a Bronco II that had 150,000 miles on it, and never had a moments problem with the tranny. Then I buy a new Explorer that only had 5 miles on the clock, and 61,000 later the tranny goes!

 

[BrooklynBay]

Metal shavings are a sign of hard parts grinding together, or thrust washers flaking apart. A lot of those were replaced by torrington bearings in the newer models like yours. It might have clogged up the valve body. I had metal shavings all over the place inside of my transmission, and had no drive, or reverse. When I opened it up, I saw that the front pump gears exploded. This happened to me about 85 miles away from home on a Sunday! I had to get towed home, but it cost me a lot of money.