I have a 2008 Ford Explorer V6 4.0L with 5R55S transmission. Vehicle is a middle east spec car,

purchased in Dubai.

1) Most of the time shifts from 2nd to 3rd happen with a bump. I can't here any related noise,

like clunk etc. Not sure if a flare is visible in the tachometer, but from what I can see and

hear engine rpm does not increase, it falls during the shift without spiking.
2) If accelerating, let off the gas at around 2000-2200 rpm and start coasting, then transmission

still does the upshift. Upshift usually happens when engine is at around 1600-1800rpm and

falling. This happens with a slight bump in my back, not as hard as 2nd to 3rd shift, but still

feel-able. This is true for both 2nd to 3rd and 3rd to 4th upshifts.
3) Engaging reverse from D happens with a very noticeable bump. I can hear the bump, but it is

not a clunking sound (not hollow). Holding down the brake pedal more firmly makes the bump less

noticeable, but it's still there. If engage the R from D right after the vehicle stops, then most

of the time there is not bump, it goes smoothly.

I am not very hard on the gas pedal, shifts usually happen in the range of 2100-2300 rpm. If

accelerate harder, then virtually all shifts are noticeable. It feels as if the transmission

disengages the gear, car starts braking for a moment, then engages the next gear with a bump. I

am not sure on the braking feeling, might be confusing sudden loss of the acceleration with

braking, it might just be coasting at that moment.

Changed the oil and filter a month ago. Oil is Valvoline MaxLife ATF Multipurpose ATF (has Mercon

V spec). Vehicle was refilled with engine on and transmission on P, cycled through other gears

(D, 3,2,1, R; no actual wheel rotation). Old oil was in good condition. This issue was there before the oil change.

I have read about the flare issue and that most of the time this is solved by changing the

solenoid block, or the EPC valve. But I am not seeing a flare in my case. Wonder if anybody could

offer some advise on this?

 

This describes my 2008 explorer problem exactly. The one thing not exactly listed is the lengthy time for the transmission to engage from reverse to forward. At the shift from 2nd to third my engine will accelerate to 3000 rpm as if the transmission is disengaged then hard shift into gear. My explorer is an XLT 4x4 and 115,000 miles. This started at about 98,000 and has seemed to get worse. Changed fluid and cleaned filter etc. Do not want spend a fortune fixing this problem. Help would be appreciated. I have been told the fluid level might be low but how to I check? The error code for solenoid has shown up twice.
dwd44

 

I'll jump in on this as well. 2008 Mountaineer does the same thunk going into reverse that you describe. We notice it going from P to R. Wife (her car) also notices another jolt between 20-30 mph during in town driving. Full throttle acceleration doesn't jolt.

I've read about changing the fluid and/or the solenoid pack, but I'd love to hear what other people have experienced. Car has about 71k on it. We bought it used so no idea what it's prior history is. I may change the fluid/filter just so I know for sure when it was done last.

 

On my 2008 Explorer (with 120K miles) sometimes it jerks hard on 3-4 & 4-5 up shifts with light throttle. Also, occassionlly after a 4-5 upshift, I can feel the jerk of a upshift, but the engine rpm doesn't change till a few seconds later. I had the trans fluid and filter changed at about 115K miles.
On another website, I read that this might be caused by a blown valve body gasket. Can anyone confirm this?

 

I just finished a full repair of a 5R55S Transmission (Explorer) I have the same problem with very little reverse. I feel the problem is in the Reverse Servo can't find much information on that item. It can also be a problem with the way the reverse band is controlled. Had a 2000 Explorer doing the same thing it was low of oil. The last thing that come into play is the Direct Clutch it will effect gears 1,4 and 5 the most however it is in the center of the transmission so power has to pass through this area to get out the rear end. The oil for the Forward Clutch comes past the Direct Clutch so the long and short of this is one of about 6 seals in this area starts leaking and the power out the rear end gets strange. By the way where is the help looks like we are all in the same boat! OK Try again