Hey guys,

Got a problem with my m50d. I have a problem shifting into 2nd, I need to leave the clutch in longer and basicaly get rpms way down or speed to pretty much ease her in, otherwise she goes in rough, alot of times it does this anyways. All other gears aren't a problem regularly. Sure once or twice this one or that one will be do something similar. The only one that does it more frequently than it used to is 3rd, all though lately it has been fine. 2nd is still way worse than any of them, at times it very minorly grinds. 1st and Reverse are great, no problems. I changed the atf last fall. Put in Mercon V Valvoline. The tranny was low due to leaking plugs, I fixed them, it hasn't leaked since. This problem came a month or two after the filling, it wasn't before.

What should I do? Mechanic says drain and refill, could have bad atf. He says it sounds like synchros not working. If it still does it add an additive that is for reducing wear on clutch packs.

But, first I want to hear what you guys think! There is only 130,000 on this tranny and truck and it wasn't real low with fluid from the leaking of the plugs.

Later,
Paul

P.S.
Talked to the ford dealer parts to see if Mercon V is okay in m50d he said yes. He also said they don't make the parts for them anymore? So, M50d owners beware the parts are going to be harder to get, that is what he told me. I can't beleive it because so many m50ds are on the roads.

 

Not too sure as I have the bullet proof C-6 but it does sound like your syncro's are bad. I am sure someone with more experience will chime in with something to try. Good luck.

 

Would the rest go bad or only 2nd? I don't put too many miles on a year, should i just keep driving it or should I look for a new truck? How much are reman trannies? (I will keep checking for some) If its only 2nd I can just skip it.

Thanks!

Later,
Paul

 

From my experience the 2nd gear synchro is always the first to go. More specifically the teeth on the blocking gear are wearing down and it's not allowing the 2nd gear to spin up to speed as quickly and thus it "grinds" when going into second.

Personally I'd let it ride till it gets worse. Then just have the tranny dropped and get a rebuild kit and throw a new clutch in it. And companies DO still make parts for M5ODs, so it's not a problem.

 

Almost certainly a synchro problem and it's completely normal for one to go bad and the others be fine. I can't confirm that 2nd tends to go first on the m5od, but do know that it's not uncommon for certain style trannies to develop unique traits that set them apart.

Draining and replacing the fluid may make a difference. Some after experienced better results by switching to synthetics while others have reported the exact opposite. If changing the fluid doesn't help, I'd do the same thing as Moore558...drive it until it becomes unbearable. You'll have to drop the tranny and pull the internals to replace the one synchro. May as well do a rebuild while you're at it.

 

Thanks guys, the mechanic said the same thing, it was most definately the synchro. I will try changing the fluid. It is not unbearable now and hasn't gotten worse in the last 5ish months it has been happening. Tonight it drove just fine, you just have to learn to leave the clutch in and just wait a bit anad then its fine. I was figuring on just driving it till it goes. If the synchro does go can I still start in 2nd. I have never had a problem getting it into 2nd from idle, that would be great because in the snow, starting in 1st hardly works unless you have good tires.

Thanks and as usual great advice!!!

Later,
Paul

P.S. Thanks for clearing up the parts "issue". I have heard that 2nd gear is a problem on the m50d from several others, its not universal though, so maybe there were a few bad parts from Ford on certain years or something.

 

I would recomend always using a synthetic oil in a manual transmission. Reason, EP additives in regular mineral oil seem to attack the bronze, that syncro's are made of.
Also if you learn to shift in a way that helps match the rpms somewhat, your syncros will last for almost ever.
It seems 2nd in all manuals gets the most abuse.
A fluid change is not going to help on your transmission.

 

Do you guys think or have used a redline mtl in the m50d? It says its "safe" for manual trannies that call for ATF, but just checking on your input. Basicaly MTL sounds like what my mechanic was talking about with the additive, its allows the synchros to work better.

I know a drain and refill may not make a difference or even redline might not but, if I am going to drive it till it goes might as well get my money out of it. Just curious as to your thoughts on redline mtl.

Later,
Paul

 

The deal is it can do this for years before it gets worse. We have a 94 Ranger with a M5OD that grinds when you shift it into 2nd and sometimes into 3rd. It's been doing this for over 2 years now and hasn't really changed. Now we have changed the atf fluid every 30K but the grind has pretty much been there since we got it and hasn't gotten better/worse in the 2 years we've had it.

There's really not a whole lot more you can do as far as using a different fluid or an additive in my opinion. It's not that the synchronizer isn't spinning 2nd gear up to speed, its when the sleeve for the synchronizer slides over the blocking ring is when it grinds. It's grinding cause the teeth are worn off on the blocking ring is why it grinds and you can't do anything but replace it. Like I said earlier, I'd just ride with it for a while and wait for it to get worse or until you can afford to get it fixed if you'd like.

 

What he said. A fluid swap or even changing to different fluid may help the problem by making it less noticeable, but it's unlikely that it will make it disappear altogether. Plus changing the fluid a bit more regularly (every 15k or 30k opposed to every 60k) can possibly extend the life of the tranny simply because it's removing the shavings and flakes that are a result of the synchro grinding. So long as the grinding is minimal and the truck continues to be drivable without other problems, I'd just keep driving it. If you can get 2 more years out of it before having to rebuild, you're already ahead compared to if you were to do it today. Heck, if you get 3 more months, you're ahead.

 

Thanks chewie and moore. Thanks for the moral support mostly! I don't really use it that much, it is a DD but I am a poor college student and a fixable truck is alot cheaper than a car right now. Especially since we have no garages and the MN winter takes its toll. I will just keep driving it, especially with gas prices the way they are, I couldn't sell it for close to what I paid. I see trucks with 4x4 selling, what mine was at in october!!!!

As usual FTE is the best!!

Later,
Paul