Transmission has been acting up over the past few months. It's been shifting hard one day, then smooth as butter the next. I tried to pull codes, but it spit out nothing.

It shifts hardest from 1st to second, and gradually gets smoother as I move up in gears. I'm a little clueless about the cause.

I was thinking TPS, but don't know for sure. It's intermittant.

Ryan

Sounds like Valve Body is heading to the dark side.. I'd start by dropping the pan, cleaning up the internals, check the magnet for excessive wear metals and replace the valve body and filter..

Electronic controlled transmissions rely on so many things to make their shifts. You may even have a thermostat problem. Does it do it cold or hot? Are the shifts rough in the morning as opposed to mid day after a long drive? If you have a scanner of some sort to look at data, you can see if the tps is smooth through its entire travel.

and this is why I'm not a Ford Tech LOL.. I'm still stuck in the old days of Valve Bodies and springs being the problem ROFL

Aye Carumba

vince, I'm inclined to think it's an electrical problem, not a mechanical one.

When I put it in 2 and start in that gear, then put it in OD, it shifts smooth as can be. It's the strangest deal.

Ryan

try this

TSB
97-11-11 TRANSMISSION - 4R70W - ERRATIC OR PROLONGED 1-2 SHIFT
TRANSMISSION - AODE - ERRATIC OR PROLONGED 1-2 SHIFT

Publication Date: MAY 27, 1997

FORD: 1992-1997 CROWN VICTORIA
1994-1997 MUSTANG, THUNDERBIRD
LINCOLN-MERCURY: 1992-1997 GRAND MARQUIS, TOWN CAR
1993-1997 MARK VIII
1994-1997 COUGAR
LIGHT TRUCK: 1994-1997 ECONOLINE, F-150
1996-1997 EXPLORER
1997 EXPEDITION, MOUNTAINEER


ISSUE:
Some vehicles may exhibit an erratic or prolonged 1-2 shift. This may be caused by early Accumulator Seal wear which may occur during repeated 1-2, 2-1 shift cycling. The Accumulator side loads in the Case Accumulator Bore and causes the Case Bore to become scuffed. Bore scuffing leads to premature seal wear and eventual intermediate clutch pressure loss, which leads to the loss in 1-2 shift.

ACTION:
Replace the cast aluminum piston with the one-piece stamped steel piston with bonded lip seals and replace the top Accumulator Spring. These revised parts allow for increased durability. Refer to the following Service Procedure for details.

SERVICE PROCEDURE

NOTE: TRANSMISSION CASE REPLACEMENT IS NOT REQUIRED DUE TO 1-2 SHIFT ACCUMULATOR BORE SCUFFING. THE REVISED PISTON ASSEMBLY CAN BE USED WITH SCUFFED SEAL BORE.



With the vehicle on a hoist, remove the transmission pan and gasket. Using the Snap Ring Removal Tool, remove the 1-2 Accumulator Piston Retainer. At this time, the spring load will pop the cover and bottom Accumulator Spring out of the bore.
Remove the piston and top Accumulator Spring.
Replace the piston and top Accumulator Spring with the new bonded Piston (F7AZ-7F251-AA) and spring (refer to Figure 1 for applications). If not damaged, reinstall the bottom Accumulator Spring and cover.





Reinstall the retaining ring.
NOTE: DO NOT REUSE THE TRANSMISSION PAN GASKET IF IT IS DAMAGED.



Install the transmission pan and gasket.

PART NUMBER PART NAME
F7AZ-7F251-AA Piston/Seal Assembly
F3LY-7F284-A Accumulator Spring - Bottom
F4UZ-7F284-A Accumulator Spring - Bottom
F7AZ-7F284-BA Accumulator Spring - Bottom
F7AZ-7F284-AA Accumulator Spring - Top
F7AZ-7F284-CA Accumulator Spring - Top
F75Z-7F284-AA Accumulator Spring - Top
F75Z-7F284-BA Accumulator Spring - Top

I may have to make a trip to Sellers-Saxton sometime. That sounds like uknown territory for me.

Ryan

Warranty time on that one was .9. So its not a real hard one to do. I'll see if I can figure out how to send some pictures (I like pictures....they make me look smart).

I've done a transmission kit, so that's about as close as I've gotten to digging around in there. Honestly I know NOTHING about transmissions; manual or automatic.

Ryan

When you pull off the pan, look up, and you'll see a circular thing about 3" across. Thats the accumulator that they are talking about. There will be a retainer that holds it in. Pull it out, and the spring will pop it out, and tranny fluid will go everywhere. Dont get scared, you can do it!

not to cancel all of that TSB out or anything, but the shifting is rough in the other gears as well. it just gets less severe with each gear. And like I said, it's totally intermittent. Would that change anything?

Ryan

O'Rattlecan said:

not to cancel all of that TSB out or anything, but the shifting is rough in the other gears as well. it just gets less severe with each gear. And like I said, it's totally intermittent. Would that change anything?

Ryan

Click to expand...

You have different rpms and load request for the 1-2 shift, than for the 2-3 and 3-4.

blacksnapon said:

You have different rpms and load request for the 1-2 shift, than for the 2-3 and 3-4.

Click to expand...

So . . . would that change anything for him or still try this idea first?

Ryan I like to start with the basics. How old is the fluid/filter? What kind of fluid are you running? How's the color/smell?

fluid is relatively fresh... Maybe 10k since I did a transmission kit. When I was in there before I swapped out about 6 quarts, it seemed like the oil was fine.

Ryan

O'Rattlecan said:

fluid is relatively fresh... Maybe 10k since I did a transmission kit. When I was in there before I swapped out about 6 quarts, it seemed like the oil was fine.

Ryan

Click to expand...

6 quarts?! You didn't drain the torque converter. These trucks have drain plugs on the torque converter, can be accessed through the grommet on the bellhousing.

6 quarts is just a fraction of what you can change out. If you drop the pain and drain the TC you can drain 12-13 quarts easy! Sometimes more.

Pull the dipstick and rub the fluid between your fingers (make sure the truck isn't hot), make sure its got a nice pink hue and smell it for being burnt. Also, next time you take the truck for at least a 15-20 minute drive with some good shifting of the tranny (heat the fluid up to operating temp), park the truck and throw it in neutral, then check the fluid that way. I've found it's much easier to get an accurate reading with that method than anything else.

I've noticed that bad fluid is almost always the culprit with transmissions exhibiting strange symptoms and no codes. Did you change the filter too while you were in there?

O'Rattlecan said:

fluid is relatively fresh... Maybe 10k since I did a transmission kit. When I was in there before I swapped out about 6 quarts, it seemed like the oil was fine.

Ryan

Click to expand...

If that accumulator piston was intermittently sticking, that would change the amount of pressure for the shifts at odd times. Just for you to think about it.

blacksnapon said:

If that accumulator piston was intermittently sticking, that would change the amount of pressure for the shifts at odd times. Just for you to think about it.

Click to expand...

Now Vince I know that you're a much more qualified mechanic than me but...

That TSB notes problems with the 4r70w and the AODE... Although somewhat similar, those are different transmissions...

okay.

Yeah, I wasn't really trying to change the fluid when i was in there. I just wanted to put the new filter and seal in. I didn't know you could drain the torque converter though.

Ryan

O'Rattlecan said:

okay.

Yeah, I wasn't really trying to change the fluid when i was in there. I just wanted to put the new filter and seal in. I didn't know you could drain the torque converter though.

Ryan

Click to expand...

I know it's a no-no to post links to other Ford sites but this writeup is pretty good and it's what I used when I did my first fluid change:
http://www.ford-trucks.com/article/...F_Fluid_in_a_E4OD_and_4R100_transmission.html