Hello folks. First time poster although I have been reading these posts for years. So much helpful knowledge found in this great forum. Thank you in advance for any insight you can lend.

My 1997 (mfg 10/96 titled as 97) E150 4.6 work van is a great truck. Only 125K on the clock. It was used on naval base in CA until my uncle retired in 07 and brought it to PA. These days he barely puts 5K a year on it.

Trans code "U" which I believe is the 4R70W (AODE)?

Problem is the tranny has been hard shifting at about 30 mph (I assume this is 2nd into 3rd?) for quite some time, maybe 4 yrs. I have recently done some research on if this is the tranny itself. I realize it is ecc controlled and have heard about some issues related to a sensor or possibly a solenoid. Any guidance about that would be helpful.

It never has slipped out of gear and reverse is fine. 2 an 1 work fine also. The main issue is you start out from a stop all is great and at about 30 it seems to wind up the RPMS then finally shifts hard and then is fine again.

I want to correct the properly without rebuilding the entire unit as the kbb value is only about 1200 but otherwise this van is a horse. I can find another from a wreck or...
but if the replacement is going to have similar issues because the underlying issue is a sensor or computer problem that would be frustrating.

Another note, I do have a check engine light that is mysterious. I pulled the codes and it was misfire on cyl 3 so I replaced plugs and wires and afer resetting, thesame code came back. I intend to do the coil now to rectify, but the reason I bring that up is I was looking for one of the P0700 series codes but none are being sent.

I am at a loss and hope someone can shed some light.

Thank you

 

Any codes the PCM would throw related to the transmission can't be read by the typical hand-held scanner tools. Most likely you do have stored codes that aren't indicated to the driver, a more sophisticated scan/diagnostic tool like Snap On Solis etc is needed.

Regardless this needs to be addressed quickly as its more than likely more costly damage can be prevented.

As for the #3 cylinder misfire---if you know for certain its not the COP or the boot or the plug itself then the wiring harness connector to the COP needs to be checked. The locking tab can break off causing a complete or intermittent misfire. NAPA p/n# EC259 is a good choice for splice-in replacement.