Hello,

I have an 04 Eddie Bauer exped with about 115K miles on it and the 4 speed transmission. Recently it started shifting weird and the tranny fluid has a burnt smell and is brown. No lights have come on, though. I bought it about 10K miles ago and had the tranny fluid and filter changed when I got it. I have been using it to tow a pretty heavy travel trailer a lot lately, its about as heavy as it can pull (cant remember the weight but its under the max tow weight). I am going to take it into the shop, have them look at it and flush the fluid again, but I was wondering if there is anything else I should look for- has it just been pushed too hard, or is there an overheating issue? Anybody have any suggestions for probable causes? I dont really want to tear into the tranny myself but it would be nice to know more when I talk to the shop.

Any help is appreciated

Thanks!

Matt

 

Brown and burnt isn't a good sign. Do you tow in OD? Check your manual for towing suggestions. I think you have a 4r70e tranny.
You might double check your towing weights and guides to ensure you're not overloading it.
An additional cooler might help but sounds like it's already been run pretty hard and might need to be opened up.

 

Brown and burnt fluid after only 10K miles means the tranny is slipping.