Okay guys *long post warning*,

Sorry for being a bit ignorant here but had some troubles with the truck tonight and I knew I could turn to you guys to make some sense of this. For starters: I think I have a 4 Speed overdrive in a 1989 F-150 w/302. My column reads: (P R N OD D 1)

So after work tonight I'm driving home on the highway and it feels like the truck is holding itself back when I take my foot off the gas. (Like it's not dropping it's gear or something?) So I ease off a bit and go a bit slower because this is nothing like anything that has happened before. (Mind you lately after I start up it usually falls out of gear for a second or two upon acceleration but then it's totally fine after that.)

So I turn onto my street and all of a sudden I hear a really loud squealling noise so I pull over and let the car idle a bit. I noticed that when I did this the battery light seemed to come on and dim a bit and then go back off but the truck is still whistling dixie. So I shut off the truck and pop the hood. Do a few checks: 1) Serpentine belt seems tight and good (It's fairly new) 2) Check the Oil?

So then with the hood up I turn on the engine and check to see where the noise is coming from it appeared to be coming from the alternator. (I know it sounds bad but I'm really not sure if it's the alternator as I'm fairly new at this but it was on the left hand side and it has a fan on the front with a shroud.)

The noise seems to die down a little bit but it's still pretty loud and I debated about leaving the car on the side of the road but I didn't want it to get towed or anything so I just basically creeped home.

When I got home I could smell some sort of burning smell inside the cab and under the hood coming from that general area. Maybe a bad alternator now?

And that may be confusing my issue with my transmission because I had to go out in the driveway to move my truck out of the way and it won't go in reverse. When I put it in N it seems to go forward. (Perhaps this is my OD that I was missing on the highway???) So I had to put the transfer case in neutral and let it roll down the driveway and then I put it in N to creep back up the driveway.

I know this is a long post but if you guys could shed any light on this that would be great. And I couldn't do it tonight because it was dark outside but I will check the transmission fluid in the morning. (Should be good though, was just recently flushed out and had the filter replaced... And that seemed to be the beginning of my tranny troubles but that's another story...)

As I said though, any light that can be shed would be greatly appreciated and I'll let you guys know on the tranny fluid level in the morning.

Cheers and thank you so much for your patience.

 

I never had an alternator do that but I guess it is possible.

What I have had do this and it sits right under the alternator is the AIR Pump. It will lock up.

What is happening is that your rpms are low with this load on the engine and you belt is getting hot.

Your seals are about gone in your AOD Transmission and with the lower rpm your transmission oil pressure is lower than normal. I would guess that you have low oil pressure in the transmission with the engine running right.

 

Sounds like you need to check your tranny's shift linkage and adjust it. Have someone help you, the procedure is outlined in the Haynes manual. Basically, you put the shift lever in OD and hold it against the stop (downward pressure). At the same time, under the vehicle, you loosen the adjustment mechanism (cable or rod), and move the lever all the way to the rear, then forward two detents (it should now be in OD), then tighten the adjustment mechanism with the helper still holding the shifter against the stop.

Jason

 

If the seals are gone as subford suggested is this something I should drive to my local transmission shop or should I get it towed there?

Dan

 

I wouldn't get too hasty on the seals being gone just yet. Even if the tranny is toast, it shouldn't drive in neutral. It really sounds like your linkage is out of adjustment. Try that first, it's really quite easy. THEN you might go to a tranny shop if you're still having trouble. When seals are shot, you would typically lose a gear somewhere, like reverse or OD, or you just plain wouldn't go anywhere in any gear.

Jason

 

Oh, yeah, as far as the alternator goes, that sounds like it could be the bearings in it. They can sometimes momentarily seize, which causes the pulley to lock up and the belt to slip over it, making the squealing noise. At that point, you lose charging and your battery light will come on.

Jason

 

Okay thanks so much for your replies guys...

I just went out in the daylight there and took a look under the hood. I've got a build up of rubber on the air pump right below the alternator so it looks like that has locked up completely... I turned the truck on for a brief second and it wasn't spinning at all...

So I'll check the linkage thing and see if I can fix that but what should I do about this lock up? I'll probably need a new serp belt to go along with it? Is the air pump problem a fairly easy DIY or what would you guys suggest?

Again, thanks so much.

 

Yes the air pump will go out but as I said I have never seen an alternator do it.
Yes you can do it yourself, the hardest part is replacing the serp belt.
You can get an Air Pump at a salvage yard or parts store. Once the Air Pump is replaced the transmission will go back to the way it was working before the pump went out.

 

In a quick search around the forums for the air pump locking up I see that quite a few people have by passed their air pump all together. Is this something I should consider? My air supply going in right before the cat has already fallen off a while ago. (I've got it holding in there with a couple of brackets I've mocked up.) So which part do I plug up in order to get this to work properly?

 

My dad and I were just adjusting the linkage but it seems to be properlly set but still no reverse.. and No neutral.

I loose then nut and pull it down all the way to the bottom and then put it up 2 spots?

 

So in Nuetral, the truck moves forward, and in reverse, it feels like the transmission it fighting itself?

Had the same problem with my E4OD. The springs in the forward clutch pack let go, and it was locked in forward ALL the time. I even had the sylenoid block out of it with NO fluid, and it still moved.

Put it in park and try to rev it up. If it doesn't rev up, then your forward clutches are probably locked up.

If thats the case, the AOD transmission is cheaper to rebuild than my E4OD is, so thank the Lord on that one.

 

When I rev the engine in park it quickly dies back down to idle. (Mind you I've by passed my air pump and I've got a belt on there that I think is a bit too small. (On the auto tensioner it's basically right at the threashold)

Sound like the similar problem handyman or should I wait until tomorrow and get a better fitting serp belt?

 

But how high does it rev up? If the forward clutches are locked up, in park or reverse, it wont rev up much past 1800 RPM. Don't do this for too long, as it will burn up the torque converter.

 

When I'd pop the gas it'd go up to about 3000 I think... But as I said, it just dies right down?

But this could be because of the high tension in the belt that's too short too right?

I've got to leave town for a bit (wish I could bring my truck with me) but when I come back I'll get a better fitting belt and see if I can get the trans working with another method. If not, is it safe to drive the truck about 3 or 4 miles to the closest transmission shop?

Thanks.

 

Some times as in my 83 with an AOD the pointer does not always point to the right place, so count the clicks so that you know what gear you are in for sure.