1999 F250 V10 extended cab long bed ~100,000miles.
I've got a transmission problem.
It engages in all positions except reverse (sometimes it will). It only uses 1st and 2nd gear and rarely will use 3rd gear. It revs way beyond normal when I stomp on the gas while driving.

Background:
This truck got flooded in a desert wash. The truck was nose up and the flood level reached the top of the tailgate in the back and the bottom of the seats in the cab for at least 2 hours. I waded out and unhooked the battery after a couple hours. The next day we pulled it to higher ground and it sat there for 1 week. We came back the next weekend and drained the engine oil, flushed the transmission, and pumped some gas out of the tank to make sure there wasn't water in there. We then drove it home (30 miles) and it operated like normal. Since then it's been sitting while I serviced the drivetrain and cleaned out the flood debris.

Yesterday I drove it up the mountain highway about 30min/15miles with a 2000lb trailer and about 1000lbs of people and gear. We turned off on a very bumpy dirt road and drove slowly looking for firewood after about 1/2 mile we stopped and noticed that there was trans fluid dripping off the front of the trans bell-housing onto the exhaust. At the worst point it was just barely enough fluid to make a solid stream. Since we were there I drove another 1/8 mile and we let the truck sit for about 20 minutes and then got in and drove back home. We coasted with the engine off at 35mph for about half the drive home when I noticed that it seemed like the torque convertor was not fully engaging (the engine would rev when I pushed on the gas). Since I recently flushed the transmission fluid I checked the fluid level several times before and during this whole thing. It has consistently read between the dots that are below the hash marks.

This morning I found the vent tube and unhooked the rubber hose and made sure it was clear by blowing through it. Then I drove it around about a total of 5 miles in 2 trips and found the above stated problems.

After this I disconnected the return line from the trans coolers and measured the flow for 15 sec and captured more than 1 quart.

Any ideas what's wrong? I live 3 hours from my preferred auto shop so I prefer to fix problems myself when I can to avoid the pain of driving 6 hours.

 

Could it be caused by a plugged filter?

 

If the filter is plugged the trans is toast.

The first thing to do is to read the codes. I recommend Forscan which can be downloaded at www.forscan.org. Their page also shows how to select an OBDII port adapter. I bought mine from Amazon for less than $30.

 

Thank you for the info on what reader to use. I'll do that as soon as I can.

 

I downloaded the demo version of forscan for Android and used it with my ELM327 Bluetooth OBDII adapter.
It pulled up info for the following with some error codes:
OBDII
PCM P1000 (OBD systems readiness test not complete)
ECS B1869 (Lamp airbag warning indicator circuit failure)
GEM There are 5 codes here. P1867 might be pertinent (Trasnmission transfer case contact plate general circuit failure)
ABS

The 4 wheel drive was working fine yesterday. Could P1867 be related to the transmission problems?
Did my adapter manage to read where the transmission codes would be? If not I'll buy one of the suggested adapters.

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my posts Mark

 

I used the demo Android version of Forscan and my generic Bluetooth OBDII adapter and found the following:

It pulled up info for the following modules with some DTC's
OBDII no codes
PCM P1000 (OBD systems readiness test not complete)
ECS B1869 (Lamp air bag warning indicator circuit...)
GEM B1450 (Wiper switch...), B1318 (Battery V level too low), B1352 (Ignition key in circuit fault), B1483 (Brake ON/OFF Switch circuit failure), P1867 (Transmission Transfer Case Contact Plate General Circuit Failure).
ABS no codes

Are any of these codes pertinent? What is the Transmission transfer case contact plate?
Was my equipment able to read codes from the pertinent place? If not I'll buy one of the suggested units to work with forscan.

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my post Mark

The trans fluid looks like a bright red without metal shavings.

 

Sorry that was a duplicate post. I thought it hadn't posted.

 

There are no transmission codes listed there. The transfer case code won't cause a transmission problem.

The brake ON/OFF Switch circuit failure code may cause no torque converter lockup.

 

I'm realizing that I don't know much about automatic transmissions because I've never dug into one.
I'm looking for a diagnosing guide to learn more so I can at least ask informed questions here on the forum.
Is this the right book?

"ATSG Ford 4r100 Techtran Manual
Automatic Transmission Service Group"

 

If it slips in reverse and 3rd gear you will have a problem with the direct clutch, most likey this has happened due to the water intrusion the transmission had.

I have not had any success flushing water out of a transmission and it survive any length of time, the water causes all kinds of problems with the components inside the transmission and once water has been in there is just a matter of time before problems start to show up.