1994 F250 7.3IDI with the e4od. The truck will move for 150-200 feet then the trans stops, no forward or reverse movement whatso ever. Fluid full etc. Shut truck off and restart, truck again will go for another 200 feet then stop. What could cause this issue? It is on my dad's truck and I am trying to help him fix it. Does this sound like a VSS probelm. When the truck does move there is no slippage or trans malfuntion light. I checked the fuses for the trans contol fuse 17 i think, checked connectors and wires going to transmission. I pulled codes using test light, codes were 23,29,65 and 74. KOEO and KOER. Thank you for your help!!!

Edit the trans fluid temp during the chaos was 85deg F.

 

23: did you hold the throttle pedal to the floor for the duration of code retrival? if not that is why 23 came up.

29: 4th gear switch

65: i could not find anything on that

74: taction control circuit voltage low.

 

which codes are which though.
some of those are probably KOER and you didn't tap the brakes or cycle the od switch,or like stated while KOEO,didn't hold WOT.
focus on on the VSS code (29) for now.but i sure haven't heard of a failed one giving such drastic symptoms.holy crap.
is the speedo working at all or is it just dead? (if it doesn't even work,then i guess im not very surprised.)
manually shift into 2nd,will the truck keep driving? same with reverse? can keep backing up all day long?

 

No, manually shifting to 2nd will not make truck move either. Didnt really pay attention to the speedo, we didnt make it out of the driveway. (my dads drive way is 1/4 mile long into the woods!!!) We did clean the vss, but no major debris on it from the diffy and the plug was clean too. The truck is acting like someone just jerks the driveshaft out of it, shut off and restart, volia, she runs like a new one, tires spinning and everything, then nothing. On the codes, i didnt cycle the throttle or the o/d button or brakes, etc. Just read the codes.

 

How did you read codes with a test light? Im needing to read codes myself.

 

DesertStorm, it doesn't sound good.how many miles on the truck and trans?

side note,
see why testing for power @ pin #1 is your next step rmalottwtes30.

 

170k on truck and trans. Gonna get a vss and give it a try tomorrow, its a 13 dollar part and 2 min to change it. We will see where it goes from there, unless someone else has a idea. I'd hate to see my dad spend a ton of cash on a rebuild or at a trans shop and find out the whole problem is the ecm or something like that. Truck is going from driving fine a couple of days ago to not even making it out of the driveway after sitting a couple days kinda baffles me!!!

 

unless there is something electrical keeping the trans from working in 2nd gear i guess?
i suppose what id do right now just in case,would be to unplug the computer,manually shift to 1,2,and reverse to see what happens.
this doesn't cost anything,and will take just a min.fyi,its a 10 mm bolt on the harness.
if the trans doesn't remain in 2nd gear then,then you know for sure the problem is not electrical (i don't think you even need to run this test though.i think you should always have the gears mentioned above,regardless.but i don't know.id do it to ease my mind anyway before swapping the trans lol.)


brain storming,
by David85 saying you should have those particular gears without 12v power,im reading that hes saying,those gears are not electronically controlled. it's the question of "always?" im not sure about,and why id unplug the brain just in case and try it.but fairly certain you should always have these gears when shifted manually into their positions,regardless of the trans electrical state,and if not,then your have an actual mechanical problem.if by requiring no power,then this means the MLPS is no longer in question when manually selecting these gears either,which all point to a mechanical failure...why does it drive again for a ways,when you shut it down,and restart it though.......what causes this.time to search.may get lucky and find just a part to keep her going again until the trucks rusted out/beyond worth fixing/driving.cus after all,you say it wasn't slipping or anything.

so assume for now (unless someone else can in fact say it can still be electrical) it's mechanical.
so what cause a trans to work fine,then all the sudden stop working.yet still be able to shut down,start back up,and then drive for a ways again until it quits.
front pump on her way out perhaps? hmmm.
you may want to take her in to a shop,and explain it wasn't slipping,nor any signs of converter shutter,and what its doing now.they can test pressures etc and narrow things down.

edit,nah a front pump goes,and she still works right, until the fluid gets so hot she burns herself up.
what if its just something in the valve body.too bad you couldn't borrow another valve body to try.hmmm.
just have to think without slipping or converter shutter,it has to be something simple.i sure hope it is, and you don't require a full rebuild.doesn't seem likely to me without those symptoms.

again,just brain storming here.wait for some reliable advice before doing anything drastic.

 

Will try that too, thanks for your help!

 

Round 2... Truck moved under its own power tonight. Did not show same symptoms as before. Trans worked in all gears for 30 min or so. Went ahead and replaced vss, before any further testing. After toying around a bit started noticeing rattling from the torque converter area. Sounded like a rock in a coffee can. Shut off truck and unplugged electrical connections to trans for kicks and giggles, noise in tc area got alot louder. Maybe broken vanes in tc or pump crapping out?


edit... trans pan temp after 30 min run time was 125 deg F. Fluid still a nice bright red, no odor, and at proper level in park running at above said temp.
And no band slippage detected, in 2nd gear will still roast tires without much throttle input.

 

now it sounds like you found something.that sure sounds like a classic converter failure.
when i thought mine may have been going out
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...code-62-a.html

i would have replaced her with a racerx
http://racerxusa.com//index.php?cPath=82
most likely with the X4TC.

however,loose flexplate nuts or a cracked flexplate can make this same noise.

 

E4OD trans are sure a pita. So much can act up on them, looks like its time to start throwing some $$$$$ at it.

 

hahaha.yeah i guess your right.they can be.but what transmission (and, or clutch) can't be a pita @ 170k miles?
the converter is the auto's "clutch". those with manuals don't get away without clutch replacement before 170k miles (if they do,it's likely been babied/drivin like a car -lots of interstate miles.)
iv never had a clutch in a manual last that long.........iv never had a manual trans last that long for that matter lol (but iv never had a HD manual either.light truck manuals.) point is; they ALL brake.been there with the clutch replacements too.that's no picnic either.
it is most likely time to pull her and have a look at the flexplate/converter.after you check for loose converter nuts.

 

Thats true. But the complicated electronics of it is really what bothers me, so many "little" electronic issues can cause these trans to go crazy. Even if the tc is replaced the bands and other internals are not far behind. So $2k or more is going to be spent very soon on the trans. Then when my dad hooks up his 7000 pound camper to it, next spring? What then? Im trying to talk him into a ZF5 conversion. Manual trans should last until the engine dies. A clutch here or there is no biggie. Gonna spend a chunk of cash right now either way. Thats the way the ball bounces.

And F250 thanks for all your help and responses.

 

I hate to break it to you, but this was probably never an electrical issue to begin with. Your torque converter exploded. But at 170k miles, thats more than paid for itself by now. If you avoid cranking the engine over again before pulling the transmission, you may get away without too much internal damage spreading to the rest of the unit. Although if you are simply replacing it with a rebuilt unit or a 5 speed thats not an issue.

The converter is not hydraulically isolated from the rest of the transmission so any metal shrapnel that tore loose from inside the converter can get pumped through the transmission. Larger pieces won't move much but smaller ones will.

Be sure to thoroughly flush (or even replace) the transmission cooler and put an inline magnetic filter on the return line before getting the new transmission hooked up. Most warranties will require this anyway.

I sometimes wonder if I would have gone with a ZF instead but honestly I don't think my knee could have taken it. I found the stock 5 speed to have a pretty heavy clutch.

Sorry about the bad news