2005 F-150 5.4L RWD

I purchased this truck about 2 years ago, with about 70k miles. Previous owner had transmission work done, but I'm not sure if it was a rebuild, new, or refurbished. About 8 months ago I experienced hesitation, and frequent stalling when coming to a stop. Pulled the engine codes, and they said it was throttle body related. I thoroughly cleaned the throttle body assembly inside, with the battery disconnected, went through the idle re-learn process, and it drove fine for a few days. Took it into the shop, and they did a tune up and replaced several plugs and coils. Since then, it's run great.

A couple of weeks ago, a whining/buzzing noise was coming from the engine compartment, getting much louder as RPMs increased. Got the oil changed a week ago (it was overdue), and the tech at the quick lube shop said the noise was from the drive pulley(s), and that they should be replaced.

Today, I was waiting for the parking lot at work to open, sitting in park. I quickly switched to Drive, and the trans didn't seem to engage (Auto Trans). The engine revved, I let off the gas, and it then engaged and I scooted into a parking spot. After work, on the way home, there were similar issues at the beginning of the drive, mainly when slowing down/stopping/down-shifting. Most of the drive was on hwy, and I managed to get by okay going around 60 mph, with some spikes in RPM's occasionally when I would accelerate (no Tach, so I'm going by sound). Half way home on the high way, the O/D Off light starting quickly blinking, and the odometer screen read "TRANS FAULT". I managed to make it off of the highway, and stopped at the first red light, where the engine stalled. Turned it back on, put it in gear, and it drove fine for about 5-10 minutes on back roads, with no lights/notices. The last 2 miles home I experienced a lot of slipping, and high revs. When I backed into my parking spot, there was noticeable leaking... Trans fluid was leaking fairly quickly. I hadn't noticed any trans fluid leaking before today... I went out to run the engine and take a short trip to warm up the fluid to get a reading, but it wouldn't engage in Forward or Reverse at all. Pulled the dipstick out, while "cold", and there was nothing... I'm assuming that it's drained drastically, and is extremely low or gone.

As others here have posted, I don't want to take it to a dealership/tranny shop for obvious reasons. I'm hoping that somebody may be able to help me diagnose the source of the leak, and a potential solution. I took a quick video from underneath (where I could reach) to show the amount, and general location, of ATF. I'm going to try to embed the video in this thread, but if it doesn't work, please watch here:
I would greatly appreciate any advice, wisdom, suggestions, or anything at all... Definitely can't afford a replacement, and would likely have to trade in my truck, which I definitely don't want to do. Thank you all in advance!

 

Is that coming from where the trans and engine mate? If so, looks like you'll be most likely needing the trans pulled and rebuilt. You can always look for a used trans, the trans isn't super hard to pull, just a long process with a couple hard to reach bolts.

 

If you remove the trans and replace it, you'll still have the same problem you do now. I doubt there is anything wrong with the transmission itself, and I don't think it is the transmission leaking.

There is transmission fluid in front of the transmission, right? The only way it can get there is if a cooler line or the cooler itself is leaking. You'll need to clean off all that oil, put more in the trans, start it, and see where the leak is.

 

Thanks Mark. I was thinking that it wasn't necessarily a bad transmission, since it happened so suddenly. I had not seen any trans fluid before yesterday, so I didn't understand how it could've drained so quickly.

Since it's Saturday afternoon, I can't really take it in anywhere until Monday anyways, but would you suggest taking it to a dealership or transmission shop, or trying to diagnose it myself? I don't have a lift or jack, so is it something I could identify from underneath on my back, or from above in the engine compartment?

I don't know much about transmissions at all... I have a bit of automotive knowledge, but am not a mechanic. If the cooler/cooler line is leaking, would it leak if I were to add fluid and run the vehicle, or would I need to drive it?

If it's something that I could potentially fix, that's great. Otherwise, I'm trying to weigh my options... I'm hoping that if I add fluid, I could make it to a dealership, but I'm not positive. Do you suggest that I just go ahead and add some fluid, see if I can drive it around the block, and then try to identify the source of the leak? Are there any other pictures/videos that I could upload that would help?

Thank you again. I really appreciate it!

 

I just spent some time under there, and am somewhat more confused than I was before (if that's possible). There was some fluid on the bottom of the pan, but not an excessive amount, compared to other areas. The oil pan actually had a decent amount on the bottom of it as well. The cooler lines didn't seem to be leaking, or have fluid around them, at the transmission end, which is what I expected.

Most of the fluid seems to be around the cooler line that comes out of the driver's side of the cooler. The cooler itself, and the area around it were dry, and doesn't seem to be the culprit. I cleaned up as much of the fluid as I could, and am going to get some from the store to put in and trial.

It seemed that the place with the most fluid was the cooler line that connects to the driver's side of the cooler, down towards the wheel well. There is a rubber hose that connects two metal tubes, and it seems that the metal pieces that crimp the tubes together could definitely be leaking... I just don't understand why there is so much fluid, and why it is so spread out among the different places.

Here's a video of the tube that I'm referring to:

 

I would NOT drive it at all until this is fixed. Often the trans won't be hurt if it runs out of fluid quickly. But it can be destroyed, so don't drive it. I recommend a good independent shop. A tow truck would be the best way to get it there. That's WAY cheaper than a new transmission.

I think that video probably shows where the leak is. Now to find it.

 

Thanks Mark! I really appreciate the help and advice. I went to two stores and wasn't able to find a suitable amount of compatible fluid anyways, so I'm definitely going to leave it in the hands of a mechanic. I'm very thankful for your advice, because I would've probably added fluid and attempted to drive it to a shop. Tow truck it is!

Thanks again. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

 

This exact same scenario just occurred to me with my 2005 F-150 XLT 4.6L Supercab. If i.may ask, what happened after you took your truck to the mechanic?

 

Don't hold your breath waiting for him to reply. He hasn't posted on this site in almost two years.

 

Since this happens all the time, and since the OP did not seem to get the relationship between a bad trans leak and slippage, perhaps this will help the next one who looks for help. The most common cause of auto trans leaks that suddenly result in slippage is the oil cooler lines that go to the radiator and back. When the fluid gets too low, the trans starts slipping. At that point you should not drive it until its fixed and the trans refilled.
One thing you can do is to put some ATF in it so you can drive it to a shop if its not too far. Just be careful to use enough but not overfill. Another source of transmission leaks is the Vacuum Modulator Valve where so-equipped.

 

Ford last used a vacuum modulator in the 1996 C6. And there were not many C6 equipped trucks built that year. None of them were F-150s.