bandlow
Active Member
- Joined
- July 25, 2001
- Messages
- 53
- Reaction score
- 0
- City, State
- Englewood, CO
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- '95 XLT 4.0L 4WD
'95 Explorer XLT, 4.0L, AT, 4R55E, 4WD BW 44-05,118,000 trouble free miles. Excellent maintenance (do it myself); last transmission flush at 90,000.
At aproximately mile 1000 of an 1100 mile trip to visit mom in Florida. At 70mph steady cruise, the 4WD and 4WD LOW lights both came on steady. Hmmmm... not good. Checked switch firmly in 2WD, no abnormal sounds or change in power. Just as I was beginning to pull over, the lights went out. Since I was close and it was working, I kept going until a convenience store that was within walking distance. (When your mom is 81, a six pack helps.) I couldn't resist engaging the 4WD in the parking lot to check engagement and the lights. Everything seemed normal. After returning to 2WD, I put it in reverse. Reverse didn't engage and the sound could only be described as metal in pain. (Somewhere between a screech and a howl with no engagement or movement. Uh-Oh. I couldn't pinpoint the location - had to stop the pain. Good possibility that is was the transfer case area.)
I went back to neutral and let it roll back out of the parking space. Engaged DRIVE and went the last mile with no problem.
This morning I checked all fluid levels - including the transfer case - and all were normal. Everything looked good underneath and under the hood. I drove it three times today and it worked fine. Tomorrow I'll disconnect the battery to reset the computers.
My plan is to drive it locally the next three days and if it works, chance the 1100 miles back to Texas on Saturday. If it acts up here, I'll rent a U-Haul trailer and take it home for some TLC. (Opera House: I'm watching your progress. You're my hero. I want to do a rebuild too. I just wanted it to die closer to home.) That's also the plan if it dumps on the road. Unfortunately, all my diagnostic equipment and most tools are in Texas - after all it was an incredibly reliable vehicle.
Questions for any takers:
Should I electrically disable the the shift motor and/or the speed sensors in case it is attempting to engage 4WD Low with the switch in 2WD or will this just confuse the PCM/GEM computers? (I just want to get it home and make it right later.)
Has anyone had this before? (Thread search didn't come up with anything.)
What would you do? (Sorry, no points for "take it to the Ford dealer".)
Anyone want to set up a pool on how far I make it? I'll supply progress reports from my overnight stop or the "Bates Motel" nearest my breakdown site.
Thanks in advance,
Rich
At aproximately mile 1000 of an 1100 mile trip to visit mom in Florida. At 70mph steady cruise, the 4WD and 4WD LOW lights both came on steady. Hmmmm... not good. Checked switch firmly in 2WD, no abnormal sounds or change in power. Just as I was beginning to pull over, the lights went out. Since I was close and it was working, I kept going until a convenience store that was within walking distance. (When your mom is 81, a six pack helps.) I couldn't resist engaging the 4WD in the parking lot to check engagement and the lights. Everything seemed normal. After returning to 2WD, I put it in reverse. Reverse didn't engage and the sound could only be described as metal in pain. (Somewhere between a screech and a howl with no engagement or movement. Uh-Oh. I couldn't pinpoint the location - had to stop the pain. Good possibility that is was the transfer case area.)
I went back to neutral and let it roll back out of the parking space. Engaged DRIVE and went the last mile with no problem.
This morning I checked all fluid levels - including the transfer case - and all were normal. Everything looked good underneath and under the hood. I drove it three times today and it worked fine. Tomorrow I'll disconnect the battery to reset the computers.
My plan is to drive it locally the next three days and if it works, chance the 1100 miles back to Texas on Saturday. If it acts up here, I'll rent a U-Haul trailer and take it home for some TLC. (Opera House: I'm watching your progress. You're my hero. I want to do a rebuild too. I just wanted it to die closer to home.) That's also the plan if it dumps on the road. Unfortunately, all my diagnostic equipment and most tools are in Texas - after all it was an incredibly reliable vehicle.
Questions for any takers:
Should I electrically disable the the shift motor and/or the speed sensors in case it is attempting to engage 4WD Low with the switch in 2WD or will this just confuse the PCM/GEM computers? (I just want to get it home and make it right later.)
Has anyone had this before? (Thread search didn't come up with anything.)
What would you do? (Sorry, no points for "take it to the Ford dealer".)
Anyone want to set up a pool on how far I make it? I'll supply progress reports from my overnight stop or the "Bates Motel" nearest my breakdown site.
Thanks in advance,
Rich