My 94 explorer tranny is acting up. Majorly... I was leaving for college one day and was going through town and stopped at a stop light... as I left I got down on it a little, and it hit 4500 rpm in first and never shifted, i wound it up till it was bouncing of the limiter, and it still wouldn't shift. I let off the gas and let the rpms drop down and the tranny shifted into 3rd gear. Its like second gear isn't even there. I talked to a few people and they said the a4ld has problems breaking the anchors on the 2nd gear band... I dunno. auto trannys aren't my thing. Also, that is a a4ld right?

 

I have seen a few bands break, but the most common cause is the Intermediate (2nd) gear servo hardening and also in some cases the govorner sticking. try manually shifting the trans the next time it does it and if it shifts that way but not automatically then i would look at the govorner. Also see if it shifts after it warms up but not when it is cold. If it does then it is more than likely the servo

 

How's the fluid level?

 

Sometimes you will find a little piece in the pan called a strut. You can check it by putting it in manual 2 and see of it feels solid. When you break a band it will often take a chunk out of the servo rubber. Seal bottoms out on the body which is not flat. The rubber servos tend to be pretty reliable. www.bulkpart.com only sells used ones! Might want to change your vacuum modulator if it was shifting higher before that incident.

 

Alright i took the tranny out last night, and took the pump and bellhousing off tonight, the front band looks a little worn, but not broken. i could look thought a hole right above the valvebody and see the strut for the rear band, and it looks like its at an angle, like the band slipped forward. i dunno if thats normal or not. also, when i took the vac modulater line off, fluid ran out. now i know its not supposed to do thant, but would that cause it not to go in second. if I put the tranny in man. 2nd, it still starts off in first.

 

Nasty77f150
I have a 94 Limited and it slipped from 2nd to third. When I dropped my tranny pan one of the clutch band adjuster was sitting there. It was a good thing it didn’t do any damage when it came off. Yes you have a A4LD tranny and my advise while you have it down go ahead and rebuild it yourself....you’ve got this far!!!
The tranny kit, clutch bands and fluid will run you about $250.00. You can get books at the library or info from the NET and plenty of help here if you get snagged. Good Luck!
Brian

 

It shouldn't start out in first if you are in manual 2. The torque converter does have to work extra hard but you start out in second. The vacuum modulator with fluid in it will delay the shift from 1 > 2. Shifting at a higher RPM can cause the band to snap from higher torque. You should have dropped the pan first to inspect the band strut. Hope you didn't unbolt the pump! You can get a manual from www.bulkpart.com for $16 and basic rebuild kit and/or band for $30. This doesn't include clutches. VM is $12.

 

The vacuum modulator is what allows the tranny to upshift and the governor allows it to downshift. It's kinda like a tug-o-war going on in the valve body. They both operate the throttle valve by allowing fluid to pass to one side or the other to tell it which way to shift.

The modulator works off vacuum and the governor off of centrifugal force. As engine RPM increases, vacuum in the intake DECREASES. This causes the modulator to start closing off fluid to the throttle valve. Fluid from the governor side then shifts the valve to cause an upshift. So it's all controlled by vacuum and RPM.

You said you "got down onto it" meaning you floored it!. That's OK but what that does is use a cable (usually connected to the throttle) to manually DOWNSHIFT the tranny, i.e. passing gear!!! It's actually called the kick down cable. If this cable is kinked, broken or out of adjustment, then it can cause the problem you have. This is because the damaged cable is binding and not allowing the unit to shift out of gear. The combination of hi RPMs, speed and fluid pressure eventually could and normally do free up the binding.

My question is does it happen to you a lot or was this the only time? Is the tranny hot or cold? Does it have a loooooong delay engaging , especially first thing in the morning? A leaky modulator (as you apparently have) will cause fluid to be drawn into the engine intake and your fluid level will drop. A tell-tail sign of this is white smoke coming from the tailpipe. Low fluid will almost always cause non-engagement or late shifts.

OK, I'v babbled long enough. Just thought I'd add my two cents (err, dollars?) in. Thanks for listening.

Carl

 

I found what the problem was. the second gear band strut was almost all the way broke off. the reason it felt like it was going into first gear instead of manual second is the band was jst applying enough to make it feel it was in first. the band was obviously burnt, so was the drum. I did take the pump off, but i think its right.

 

If you remove the pump from the bellhousing, you will need to use an alignment tool ($60-100) when it is installed again. Otherwise you will burn up the bushings.

 

Alright i fixed the problem (first tranny rebuild)... So far have about 35 miles on it. it shifts great. I did have a problem with reverse not engaging, but all that was was the kickdown retaining clip not in the right slot (DOH) but its right now.