I have a 1994 F150 with a 302 and E4OD, it has 124,000 miles and here's the question;
When I'm driving at a steady speed 30-45 mph the truck lurches and the rpm goes up/ also a couple of times it has completely disengaged the engine from the tranny and then re-engages with a jerk(because the rpm's went up).
The fluid level is ok and doesn't smell, and the problem will occur at one time and then will disappear completely for months.
I think it's electrical, but don't have a clue where to start. Has anyone experienced this same problem and do you have a solution?

 

Have a transmission shop put a scanner on it. Many of them will do it for free. Even if it is not showing a check engine light, it will throw a code if its an electronic problem.

 

Thanks, I'll give that a try.I was hoping someone else had the same problem and would save me a trip there, also some of them will tell you it needs a rebuild and it will cost you $2000.

 

www.bryco.com for tech bullitains. Noticed there were a few for the E40D when I was looking for another transmission. You have to look under all three product lines. Other manufacturers also have tech notes such as www.atcdg.co and www.transtec.com most require a bit of digging to find them. ATSG manuals are available at www.bulkpart.com for $16 and they have a good diagnostic section. Transmissions are fun and easy to work on.

 

I had the same thing happen in my 94 250.
It is the Manual Lever Position Sensor. It is about a $60 part from Ford and is easy to change. It simply bolts to the driver side of the tranny and senses where the gearshift lever is. Just be sure to use the correct grommet for the wiring and it should take you about half an hour.

 

Thanks, I'll give that a try. Especially since a tranny shop wants major $ to check it out. I put it on a friends scanner and it won't register a fault because it is so intermitant. I am going to pull in inside this weekend and check all my electrical connections and if I don't find anything wrong then I'm going to start replacing components.

 

With a '94, you don't need a scantool to pull the codes. Just have a paperclip handy the next time it happens.

 

I had a problem with our church bus. We bought it with a "new" tranny in it. Only had 3,200 miles on it. Headed across the country and after 300 miles on the road we had it act up. Seemed to shift into neutral and then back in. Took about 30 miles of stops and starts to finally locate the problem. The electrical plug on the side of the tranny was loose. Might want to check that before buying the sensor.

 

Look at this site. www.sonnax.com Article No. T3-EL-601
This may help.

 

I tried to access it but cannot get that article to come up by that #, is it complex or can you give me the jest of the article in 25 words or less?

Thanks,

Ralph

 

This is the site address. It's a PDF file.
Good Luck. My transmission is still doing something similar.

www.sonnax.com/bulletins/tech/T3-EL-601.pdf

 

I'm about 99% sure that is is the transmission range sensor. As it starts to wear out it sends and occasional signal to the PCM that the shifter moved to neutral. The PCM then shifts the transmission, causing the disconnected feel.

Unfortunately this won't set a code for a long time. The PCM can't tell if you really moved the shifter or that the sensor is failing.

A new sensor should be less than $100 installed. It isn't hard to install if you want to do it yourself.

 

Mark

Check out my question at; 2000 4R70W transmission possesed.
Do you think that these two problems are the same? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Mark,

Thanks for the info, do you have any info on adjusting the selector switch after the initial install. I know it has to be set a certain way.

Thanks,

Ralph

 

Ther are alignment marks on the sensor. With the transmission in neutral align the marks and you're done.