sorry ahead of time on the confusing story. 2001 ford excursion 7.3l diesel.

so i tried to go to work today but the truck said no. it started out fine then out of no where it felt as if someone slammed on the back brakes engine still revved up like normal just didn't want to go. speed dropped to 20mph then i heard a clunk. after that it was fine until it hit 20 mph again. it did the same thing again. so i got mad at it thinking the trans went out gave it the beans and it shifts into all gears but did not feel like it had power. i did pull over and check the fluid looked a little orange. when got back in the truck i did notice the od off light blinking?? drove the truck home was shifting fine but hear this awesome sounded like a hand grenade rattling around underneath. when i got home notice fluid coming from the bell housing(out of the bottom).

suggestions

 

Start by pulling the code that was stored (the blinking OD indicates that a transmission code was stored).

 

Sounds like maybe your torque converter blew out

 

The factory torque converter is not a very good one. They fail and send small particles into the trans. Most of the time folks will swap out the shifting solenoid. That will fix the problem but was not the cause. Changing fluid/filters often does help as well. still not the cause. The vanes and particulate is the problem. If your looking to fix it for the long haul look into a billet type torque converter. Last I looked you could get one for around $500 on E-bay. I learned all this info from my trans builder. Picking his brain as he was rebuilding my race trans again from my fairlane. I guess our trans didn't matter if it was behind a diesel or a gas, had the same issues. But the diesel was more prone as he said. He said he makes a ton of money every winter it snows a lot cause they come through his shop a lot. Good luck.

 

I think I forgot to mention also

For about 2 month sometimes it would not go in drive right away you would have to give it a little gas to get it in gear. Also going up a big hill 65mph it would feel like it was shaking shuttering a little.

 

Can you explain this? I don't understand what you mean.

 

The shuddering would be the impeller blades breaking/broke off. And that causes the imbalance you would feel at highway speed shuddering(I know cause mine is eating its second convertor, previous owner replaced it with another stock convertor from JY). Get a good convertor and flush(this would be the only time I would suggest a trans flush) should be ok. The having to apply rpm to make the trans work was chips hanging a valve open at some point/place in the trans bleeding off pressure. This is really how this trans goes bad and gets a bad rap. When its loosing pressure it burns the clutches, and sluggish to no shifting, then slams into a gear when the particulate clears(subject to repeat). Everyone puts in shift kits and new valve body's when the real problem all along is the convertor. All the band aids in the world will not fix the trash going through the trans causing the real initial problem. If in doubt pull your pan and look. Pull your in line filter cut open look at the junk in there. It will be metal galore.

Here is a video of a similar valve configuration that happens in your trans to put pressure on your clutches and shift your gears. Imagine metal shavings in that spool valve it gets gummed up and cannot work.

 

Thanks for the advice. I do not have time to get into it yet hopefully soon I will. I would assume remanufactured torque converters are out of the question? We just bought a house don't have a lot of money right now to throw around.

 

well, Even though it may be the TC, it has pushed lots of metal pieces thru the trans. You have a leak from the front pump bushing. I had a TC go bad right after i rebuilt mine this spring. I mean, like I had 150miles on the new trans. and i used a new TC too. I had to take it all apart, clean everything, re-press a new front bushing because the metal from the TC ate the bushing in no time flat. The seal on the outside of the input shaft only keeps the small drips from getting out. The bushing keeps the high pressure fluid in the trans..

You will probably need to rebuild the trans. You will keep having shifting problems as long as the metal particles keep circulating insode and will accelerate wear on the valvebodies and solenoids. The particles also get stuck in the small clearances in the valvebodies and in the pump. If you don't take the time to clean or just rebuilt the trans, it WILL fail on you in short time..

If you want to see how bad your fluid is, get two clear glass cups. put new trans fluid in one, and drain a bit from your truck. Compare side by side. Utterly revealing.. want more, let the cup of the old fluid sit still for 4-5 days. carefullyand slowly pour out nearly all the fluid, Look in the bottom of the cup for a nice sparkly surprise...

Sorry for the bad news.....

 

Well I'm not going to replace the trans, just the tq converter. Just wanted to know about refurbished vs. new. A good cleaning can go a long ways for the trans standpoint.

 

You can clean the torque converter. The best way is to cut it open, take it apart, and clean everything. The second best, and it's a long way from best to second best, is a special torque converter flush machine. I've read about them, but I've never seen one in person.

Just running solvent and/or ATF through the converter is just a waste of money.

 

Alright so I got a little time today pulled the trans down. Took the torque convertor out just to see the damage. I put the shaft in and it is completely locked up. Drained all the fluid from the trans and converter both are dark red almost black.

So where I'm at now
I will be getting a new torque converter for sure. And possibly a rebuild kit for the trans. Not sure of what it look like inside yet. I have yet to see any chunks of metal so that is good I suppose.

 

I found an issue.

 

Yep, that's a problem alright

Good that you found it. Now to see what you do about it?

 

I think it's time for a rebuild. And a new torque converter.
1,2,4 and over drive all looked good but 3rd is gone. There is also a bearing that was trash so it may have caused the destruction there.

The torque converter is locked up solid so I'll have to replace that also.