Well since getting my basket-case of a 96 F250 sorted out from the previous owner or owners, I have fixed the misfire issue and a few little odds and ends. I am still getting a CEL with code 172,332 but I dont think they are related to my shifting issue.

When I got the truck home I dropped the trans pan, cleaned it and replaced the filter.There was a few little metal flakes but nothing I haven't seen in a 14 year old trans. The fluid was just an ugly shade of dark red but not burnt and smelled fine. I seem to have a very hard shift from 1-2 under 2,000 rpm regardless of outside temp. I have replaced all the parts triggering the codes that could possibly be related to the transmission. I installed a new TPS and VSS, that cleared the codes. Once the truck is up to temp and I take off at a normal rate the transmission shifts like butter through every gear! If I sit in traffic I feel like when it shifts I need to hold my coffee so it wont splash out!

I don't have any history about the truck other than I am the 6th owner! I believe at one time there was a 5th wheel hitch installed and it was used in farming or livestock transportation. I believe the plow wasn't on there until a few years ago where it spent time at an Excavating company and maybe plowed when it got slow. So its safe to say nothing has ever been done to this truck. At only 108,000 miles who knows.

I was told by a few transmission shops that is could be anything from a shift solenoid going bad to needing a complete re-build. Is there some truth to that? Is there any other things I may be overlooking? I just hate to start throwing parts at it without getting ideas. There is no blinking OD light and no trans codes stored or present. Thanks!

 

Is the speedometer reading steady? Needle not bouncing around?

 

Needle does not bounce around, holds steady and accurate at all speeds. I wound up cleaning and re-installing the original one because the aftermarket parts house one caused the erratic speedo. I have a replacement Motorcraft unit on the way just as a spare. I think the rough shift was always there but It was masked because I had a misfire on #8 so I never noticed it until I gave it a tune up.

 

That's exactly what I was going to suggest, a Motorcraft VSS. I had issues with an aftermarket one as well.

Sorry man... other than that I'm out of ideas.

 

I think tomorrow I will pull off all the plugs going to the trans and look for corroded pins or anything out of the ordinary. I have read alot about bronco guys changing the accumulator springs due to the hard shifts. It seems most trans shops don't take the time to listen and look into an issue. Half the time its "well lets pull it apart and see". With this truck being a plow truck I should check to see if maybe something came un-plugged when I changed the filter. I think I will look into changing the MPLS first, it seems again the bronco guys are having issues with them. I assume its pretty worn out being a mechanical part on a plow truck! Thanks for the help!

 

I've had the same experience with transmission shops. Most of them want to just sell a rebuild, or the we wont know until we take it apart method. While working in a manufacturer shop i saw that this isn't the approach they take, for them most problems were traceable via trouble shooting and they were able to repair almost all the transmission/ drivability problems.

Let us know what you find as you continue digging into this. I am also an E40D owner and have made my own journey at tracking all its little personality issues.

 

Just an update for everyone, got a new MLPS/neutral safety switch from Ford today along with a new VSS. I really have no change with the hard 1-2 shift under light throttle still. I also hate to say but it might need a re-build. I checked the date stamped on the filter and it had a 95 stamped in the plastic. Im guessing that it was the first time the pan was ever dropped given the low miles. My last task will be once I get a break in the early spring rain coming up, I will drop the pan again and make sure the filter is fully seated and not in the bottom of the pan. I also plan on checking the torque on the VB bolts while im down there. This truck was worked hard for a long time so Im not surprised that I have to deal with a possible transmission re-build. I think I am going to put an OEM motorcraft filter in the pan this time as well.

For anyone looking the Part #'s are as follows.

VSS- F85Z-9E731-AB

MLPS-F5TZ-7A247-B

 

I had the same problem with mine and after I scratched my head on this one I took it my local Ford dealer.They found a weak spring ( I think it was a servo not sure ) in the valve body that shifts from 1st to2nd.They replaced the spring and the hard shift went away.That was six years ago and it still shifts smooth.Just a thought

 

You may be on to something, I dug up this old TSB

TSB
97-11-11 TRANSMISSION - 4R70W - ERRATIC OR PROLONGED 1-2 SHIFT
TRANSMISSION - AODE - ERRATIC OR PROLONGED 1-2 SHIFT

Publication Date: MAY 27, 1997

FORD: 1992-1997 CROWN VICTORIA
1994-1997 MUSTANG, THUNDERBIRD
LINCOLN-MERCURY: 1992-1997 GRAND MARQUIS, TOWN CAR
1993-1997 MARK VIII
1994-1997 COUGAR
LIGHT TRUCK: 1994-1997 ECONOLINE, F-150
1996-1997 EXPLORER
1997 EXPEDITION, MOUNTAINEER


ISSUE:
Some vehicles may exhibit an erratic or prolonged 1-2 shift. This may be caused by early Accumulator Seal wear which may occur during repeated 1-2, 2-1 shift cycling. The Accumulator side loads in the Case Accumulator Bore and causes the Case Bore to become scuffed. Bore scuffing leads to premature seal wear and eventual intermediate clutch pressure loss, which leads to the loss in 1-2 shift.

ACTION:
Replace the cast aluminum piston with the one-piece stamped steel piston with bonded lip seals and replace the top Accumulator Spring. These revised parts allow for increased durability. Refer to the following Service Procedure for details.

SERVICE PROCEDURE

NOTE: TRANSMISSION CASE REPLACEMENT IS NOT REQUIRED DUE TO 1-2 SHIFT ACCUMULATOR BORE SCUFFING. THE REVISED PISTON ASSEMBLY CAN BE USED WITH SCUFFED SEAL BORE.



With the vehicle on a hoist, remove the transmission pan and gasket. Using the Snap Ring Removal Tool, remove the 1-2 Accumulator Piston Retainer. At this time, the spring load will pop the cover and bottom Accumulator Spring out of the bore.
Remove the piston and top Accumulator Spring.
Replace the piston and top Accumulator Spring with the new bonded Piston (F7AZ-7F251-AA) and spring (refer to Figure 1 for applications). If not damaged, reinstall the bottom Accumulator Spring and cover.





Reinstall the retaining ring.
NOTE: DO NOT REUSE THE TRANSMISSION PAN GASKET IF IT IS DAMAGED.



Install the transmission pan and gasket.

PART NUMBER PART NAME
F7AZ-7F251-AA Piston/Seal Assembly
F3LY-7F284-A Accumulator Spring - Bottom
F4UZ-7F284-A Accumulator Spring - Bottom
F7AZ-7F284-BA Accumulator Spring - Bottom
F7AZ-7F284-AA Accumulator Spring - Top
F7AZ-7F284-CA Accumulator Spring - Top
F75Z-7F284-AA Accumulator Spring - Top
F75Z-7F284-BA Accumulator Spring - Top

 

Thats something to look into if you have a 4R70W, which is the lighter duty transmission in the F series trucks. Going by the TSB they state F150's and your sig says F250, so I was guessing you had an E40D. The transmissions are totally different.

 

I figured Id give an update. I have been reading alot about aftermarket filters causing issues where the thinner ones will not seat right or fall into the pan. Today I called Ford and surprisingly they had a filter in stock. I dropped the pan and I got the pan down and the filter was in the pan not even doing anything!

Well I got everything back together and filled it up with new fluid. the shift issue is still there but its much less severe as it was. I have ruled it down to the accumulator body. I talked with a very knowledgeable transmission builder and he never once mentioned a re-build being needed. He believes either the 1-2 valve is sticking open allowing the full pressure shift. Since the valve is stuck open that's also why he believes the upshift when coasting is so hard.

Hopefully the weather will warm up soon so I can do the swap and finally put this issue behind me!

 

Those codes do not effect the transmission. With that many miles on it I would not spend to much money on just patching it up, its about time for a rebuild . I just went threw this last week.

Mine had 194k on it. dark fluid is the friction material off the clutches. some is normal over time but eventually there is no material left. My tranny had a slippage code so I pulled it and gave it to my trans guy. when he tore it down he found the snap ring had came off the drum and several other little things that added up. Mine was shifting the same way. The trans will up the pressure also if it sees excessive slip and it will bang gears.

 

I know the codes had nothing to do with my transmission. It was more of an observation really.

With 108,000 miles that is no where near a re-build. The fluid was dark because it was original and 18 years old. All the sensors where replaced because I had codes pertaining to those sensors. The only code left is 332 which I know has nothing to do with it. I have talked to many trans shops and builders. There's no metal or excess material on the magnet since I last changed the fluid.

I am just trying to cover my bases and I don't consider spending 200.00 in parts much money at all when compared to nursing along a transmission that will cost 1,500.00 In a 2,000.00 truck. Worst case is I have a good valve body in a shot trans.

These transmissions will take lots of abuse so I don't think it's time yet. In my eyes the truck isn't worth a trans with all the rust eating the truck away.

I didn't mean to come off as rude it just feels like I can never win against rust!

 

My bad, I was looking at your codes an thought that was the mileage haha. Yea you should have another 100k left in it. You can also check the solenoid packs resistance to see if they were in specs. Mine were really high but didi not throw a code for that