somehow superpig lived through the winter and having to save the other trucks so i figure its time to see whats wrong with the e4OD before i throw a c6 in it instead.
so i have a strong first pretty rough shift into 2nd and a normal shift into 3rd (sometimes i have to lift but its a really high mileage trans) and then kinda stays there at 3k rpm to do 55 or 60 (sometimes it changes but its mostly terrain related like flat vs uphill) im pretty sure its supposed to shift into 4th or at least lock up the converter. im pretty sure it locks up during hard acceleration because the engine doesnt rev to the moon and has some get up and go for a completely shot 460.
my lights all work and it doesnt have a 3rd brake light and is instead a cab light so that may be part of my issue. is there any other tests i can do with a multimeter?

 

You need to read the codes.

 

What year truck? There are two easy ways to see if your converter is locking. One is to turn on your hazard lights when you suspect the converter is locked, or think it should be (for example under light load at 45mph it should be). Another is to gently press the brake pedal, while going 45mph under light load with your left foot, so that you can maintain speed and keep your right foot on the accelerator.
In either case, the rpms should jump up a couple hundred rpms with hazards and or brake gently pushed (just enough to active the brake lights, is all you need.)

This doesn't negate the fact that you'll still need to read codes, like Mark stated though, if you want to figure out what the issue could be.

 

this is kind of half the issue. there isnt any codes being set. as far as the 1991 f250 pcm is concerned everything is a-ok despite losing 2 cylinders at idle sometimes (did finally fix this. it was a module issue) yeah i tried that and its got no lockup in 3rd and no 4th gear. lockup in first and what i think is 2nd also has lockup. it really depends on whether or not 2nd can get it to 60 mph at 3k rpm with 4:10s and the factory 31 inch tall tires. i have gotten it to 80 once but it didnt shift and was sitting at 4k so i slowed down quickly to avoid messing it up.so i think it has 3rd.

 

If it won't shift to fourth gear, there are codes stored.

What is your truck? Year, model, and engine. What are you using to read codes?

 

1991 f250 xlt 7.5l.
a ancient beep/flash style code reader from sunpro. im assuming its sending the shift signal and its burned up 4th at this point since if i turn overdrive off it generally stays lower in rpm at 60 (especially when its doing work)

 

No codes at all or are you getting the system pass code? Speed density doesn’t have any ability to do a cylinder balance test. What module controls individual cylinders?

 

just system pass exactly as it should, again it thinks everything is fine which is pointing to a worn clutch pack which the whole transmission seems to agree with. the module doesnt control the cylinders it was just losing spark at idle on a few cylinders and after a motorcraft one was installed it was a-ok since it looked a little suspect (generally heat parts on grey plastic is bad) guess it was getting weak and ready to fail on me after 500,000 miles. hence why the transmission is probably worn to absolute trash,
i have heard a rv e4od is my cheapest strong option if i can find one with below 50k miles

 

If your trans went half a million miles, I would want another one exactly like it.
I've not heard RV's getting a stronger version of an E4OD than trucks. Besides, clutch disc material, which is what eventually wore out, would be the same anyway. You didn't break a hard part, you just wore it out. Half a million miles on any auto part, is a major win. How long was it supposed too last to be deemed strong enough? A full million? haha

 

The motor homes had a stronger OD Roller Clutch.

 

i mean im fine with how long it lasted but if you knew the truck was still mostly factory parts you would crap a brick lol.
litterally everything except for plugs, wires, brakes and filters, fluids were original or a dealer part (new hoses and thermostat, waterpump and thats it) its a tough truck that hit something before i got it hard enough to tweak the drivers door hinge mounts but yet still hauls and works even dying (the 460 is being problematic.. mostly the 1 mpg and having no power unless you drive it like a detroit, at valve float screaming for death)
as someone else mentioned the rv e4od has a stronger overdrive clutch which is what usually dies first in these when they are worked hard which is exactly whats gonna happen since its Gotta fill in for the 1 ton dually and 5 ton for a long time (a chevy c30 and a 50s international truck that broke 3rd and the 2 speed rear)
current complaint with the truck i guess is heavy oil use at full throttle or idle and the transmission overheats and pukes if i try to move 10k which it was rated for at some point. i do have a c6 truck i got for free just like this one because its 460 froze in winter

 

Looks like ATSG is claiming all '95+ E4OD's got an updated OD roller clutch kit. Am I missing where it's claiming RV's got the upgrade? It's even claiming all in bold. You guys may be correct. It's just the first I've heard of it, is all. Still, it's not yet known if the '91 spag assembly has failed after 500k miles anyway. What if the OD clutches are simply wore out? Could you even make the claim that a '95 E4OD will last more than the 500k miles the pre' '95 version did anyway?
Come on guys. Nothing lasts forever. 500k on anything is major win. I've never had anything last that long. Doubt I ever will.

 

its not the first trans that has done that. we had a gm 4t65e somehow live that long before my buddy blew it up driving it normally (go figure lol) ive had some 300k mile 4l60s and 1 th400 that lasted 400k according to service records i was given with the car. pretty impressive but its usually the trucks that last the longest in my experience which hurts my wallet immensely

 

ok so bad news. it doesn't have lockup in 3rd and fourth is gone and has been for awhile.
it also decided to lock the front diff in randomly at highway speeds so somehow it still works but i dont think gear oil is supposed to boil.... so that's probably completely junk now and the 4:10s are a little hard to find here so guess im rebuilding it

 

That’s not good. It seems more like a rebuild or replacement is needed.

The front axle randomly engaging could be bad the u-joints at the knuckles. I don’t see how it got enough to “boil” the gear oil. You could leave the hubs locked all year long and drive in 2wd if you want to.