I need a little help. I have a 1994 3.0L Ranger, 4X4 with automatic. It doesn't like to stay in top gear without a lot of downshifting. I know there's been discussion here about adjusting the TV rod or something to make the transmission hold in high gear but I can't seem to find it searching. Can someone point me to a discussion or give me the key search words?

Thanks.

 

Do things change for the better if you turn the OD, off???

 

Well, sure, you have two drive positions. I don't want to listen to all that racket after you move the shift lever. The rpm will jump from maybe 1700 to 2500 when you do that then up to about 3000 if it drop another gear.

There's no reason for the truck to downshift. I has plenty of power to pull in the top gear at 50-55 mph or so, even pulling a trailer. If I kick the speed up to 70 mph or so, there is no problem.

Is there an adjustment somewhere?

 

So are you saying it continues to down shift even if you've taken it out of overdrive????

If so, are you also having any problems with the ABS light coming on, or the speed-o acting out, or the cruise control acting up????

Have you messed with the computer program with a tuner, or added a performance chip, or tinkered with the throttle linkage, or made ANY kind of engine mods, or put oversized tires on the truck????

What I'm trying to determine is, whats causing the down shifting, so we can address that.

 

The truck is unmodified. It's done it since it was new. No ABS light. No speedo problem. Doesn't have cruise control.

If you drive the truck 50-55 mph, and you start crowing the throttle more that a little, it wants to downshift. It's probably designed that way. I think it's irritating and I want to change it. The problem gets worse when I pull a small, enclosed motorcylce trailer.

The transmission seems to shift okay but sometimes it's a little lazy about getting into the final shift. I don't know whether that's converter lockup or OD.

Is there an adjustment?

 

OK, so your real complaint is that it's down shifting a lot while towing in OD????

If it shifts out of OD excessively while in hilly terrain, we are to take it out of OD (overdrive) to prevent exessive heat & wear on the torque converter, tranny & fluid.

Our owners manual doesn't recommend that we tow in OD if it's causing excessive up & down shifting.

I do tow in OD with my 4.0L 4X2, but I'm VERY selective about where I do it. You have the pushrod 3.0L, with the extra weight of 4X4 to lug around, so your 3.0L is just running out of oomph when towing & thats to be expected, if it doesn't have the tow package differential gearing.

So what differential ratio does it have & have you increased the size of your tires????

When I'm towing in the mountains or steep foot hills, I'm out of OD!!!!

Seeing as how our tranny is computer controlled, I believe the only way to safely make a difference, is in changing it's programmed shift points & that should be done by someone that REALLY knows what he's doing, as forcing the engine & tranny to LUG while towing is a sure way to cook both.

You might contact Dug, at Bamma Chips & talk with him about your towing conditions & how the truck is equipped, as it is said he really knows Fords & could likely form up a chip with a towing program that you could flip a switch too, when towing, that would likely make a difference for you.

If you'll do a sight search, you'll likely turn up a link to Bamma.
If Wendall is reading this I'll bet he has a link, as he & Dug did some performance tunes for Wendalls Ranger that he raved about.

More thoughts for pondering.

 

[quote=pawpaw;6732688]OK, so your real complaint is that it's down shifting a lot while towing in OD????


My real complaint is it's downshifting too much whether I'm towing or not. When all the fluids get warm and it's been rolling awhile, the problem lessens as expected. The faster you go, the problem lessens.



If it shifts out of OD excessively while in hilly terrain, we are to take it out of OD (overdrive) to prevent exessive heat & wear on the torque converter, tranny & fluid.


It downshifts if there is a slight grade unless I lift the throttle. Doesn't have to be hilly.



Our owners manual doesn't recommend that we tow in OD if it's causing excessive up & down shifting.

I don't know if that last "jerk" or shift is OD or converter lockup. Whatever it is (I suspect it's conveter lockup/unlock) it seems to slip a lot when it's in that range, whatever it is. I don't see anything in the owner's manual about trailer towing with that transmission.


I do tow in OD with my 4.0L 4X2, but I'm VERY selective about where I do it. You have the pushrod 3.0L, with the extra weight of 4X4 to lug around, so your 3.0L is just running out of oomph when towing & thats to be expected, if it doesn't have the tow package differential gearing.


I know a 4.0L has a lot more power. I know the extra weight and drag of a 4X4 is a factor. The engine hasn't run out of power when it downshifts. It just does it. Probably supposed to but I don't like it and I want to change it.


So what differential ratio does it have & have you increased the size of your tires????

Whatever was standard. I think 3.73.


When I'm towing in the mountains or steep foot hills, I'm out of OD!!!!


There are none around here.



Seeing as how our tranny is computer controlled, I believe the only way to safely make a difference, is in changing it's programmed shift points & that should be done by someone that REALLY knows what he's doing, as forcing the engine & tranny to LUG while towing is a sure way to cook both.

You might contact Dug, at Bamma Chips & talk with him about your towing conditions & how the truck is equipped, as it is said he really knows Fords & could likely form up a chip with a towing program that you could flip a switch too, when towing, that would likely make a difference for you.

If you'll do a sight search, you'll likely turn up a link to Bamma.
If Wendall is reading this I'll bet he has a link, as he & Dug did some performance tunes for Wendalls Ranger that he raved about.



I think maybe I have a different transmission than you. Maybe not. I was under the impression there was a mechanical adjustment I could make. I guess not. Thanks.

 

Ok, so it's been doing this since new & it's downshifting excessively at 50-55 even when your not towing & on fairly level ground.

So maybe consider running this puppy by your Dealer, or maybe a good tranny shop you trust, that knows Fords & tell them the story, maybe take them for a demonstration drive & have them scan the drivetrain computer for any trouble codes to see if anything turns up & get their take on things.

Have you checked the tranny modulator, to see if it's diaphragm is leaking???? You can pull it's intake manafold vacuum line connection & if it's wet inside with tranny fluid, it's leaking & needs to be replaced.

Have you done a full tranny fluid pump out & filter change lately & are you using the specified Mercon fluid????

These computer controlled, electronically operated trannies are much different than the old mechanically operated trannies, so if we change one thing, it'll upset something else, so when changes are made, the person doing it must understand the whole system & how it interacts, to get good results.

If for instance you've changed tire or wheels to a larger diameter size, it'll effectively affect the final drive ratio, which will confound the computer & upset the shift points, unless it's program is changed.

If the wrong tranny fluid has been used, that has the wrong friction properties, the tranny won't like that.

Yup our engines, trannies & differential ratios are a little different, but both are computer controlled.

Anyway, I'd consider getting the tranny computer scanned for trouble codes & have a look at the modulators vacuum line connection to see if it's leaking & have someone give you good input on what's going on with the torque converter slip.

It shouldn't be down shifting excessively on fairly flat terrain with no tow load on it & the torque converter lockup shouldn't be slipping .

Sounds like you probably have more than one thing going on here, that should be checked out by a tranny guru.

 

Seems to me you have a sensor problem. The OD is activated electronically, based upon throttle position, and MAF signals, combined with speed information. If any one of those signals is incorrect, the computer will respond by disabling OD even if not CEL is set.

When my MAF started to go, but before it finally set code to find what the problem was, mine would hunt in and out of OD. Also, as Pawpaw mentioned, vacuum leaks can also confuse the MAF signal and cause misfires. Is you go over 60% throttle, the computer will trigger a downshift. If your TPS is starting to wear out, and its signal becomes erratic, the computer will think you are too heavy on the throttle and trigger a downshift. And as PAWpaw said, the speed sensor measures your current speed and if its signal is becoming erratic, it can tell the computer you are not moving, or not moving quickly enough, and trigger a downshift.

There is also a possibility that the solenoid itself has become erratic, or that the transmission has internal cross leaks that are causing a loss of pressure. This is a serious condition, and if ignored, can damage more components of the transmission by either generating too much heat, or by starving other components of fluid.

 

If I have a sensor problem, I should have a failure code(s) stored? I haven't scanned the thing lately. I can do it again. You may be on to something here.

One more related question. I'm hesitant to call this a "shift" but humor me. When the transmission drops down the first time, is that unlocking the converter or is it dropping out of overdrive with the converter still locked? What is the next dropdown?

I got this truck when it had 14K miles on it. At that time, it had been hit in the front end. Bumper, grill, both fenders and hood. Didn't damage the fender inners or rad support. I can't see any collision damage to the MAF area. There's no vacuum leaks. None I can find, anyway.

It now has either 40K or 50K on it.

 

Pulling the engine computer codes is a good idea, but you'll need to borrow a special scantool to get all of any set tranny codes, or a tranny shop or the Dealer to do it.

Are you saying the tranny has 40-50 K miles on it & hasn't had the filter replaced, or a FULL tranny fluid pump out???? If so it's past due!!!!

BearRiver is right, the computer uses many sensor inputs to decide what to tell the tranny to do & if one or two are borderline or bad, it can get confused about what to do, sorta like pawpaw sometimes. lol

 

News to me. I didn't know you had to have a special scanner to get transmission codes. You understand, I thought there was something I could adjust to help my problem. Looks like it might be more involved.

BearRiver may be on the right track. As far as I'm concerned, the engine in this truck has never run right. It has a surge to it under acceleration. Doesn't have a whole lot of power. Every once in a great while, it'll start spark knocking for no reason. Every once in a great while the check engine light will come on. Then go off at some point and stay off for a month or two. It gets 20 mpg pretty consistently. Doesn't vary 1/2 mpg from tank/tank unless I'm pulling a trailer or some extaordinary duty.

The only thing I have to compare to this truck is an '89 Ranger, 2.9, 4X4, manual transmission and a '93 Explorer 4.0, maual transmission, 4X4. Both of those trucks I bought new and would run circles around this one and got 2-3 mpg more doing it. I pulled a 3000 lb boat through the Blue Ridge Mountains with both of them a number of times with NO problem/NO strain.

 

With my vehicle, I had in intermittent light. But the code kept clearing itself before I could find out what it was. I finally was able to pull over while the light was still and get the codes, there were 4 MAF related codes. But the light only came on occasionally, and just before it did, I would get surging and the trans would drop out of OD. Once the MAf was replaced, the problem went away. But getting a code to stay on long enough to figure it out was the problem.

 

Thanks, I'll look into the MAF.

 

I took the MAF off and cleaned it with solvent. The truck seems to be running better. I've taken a couple of short test drives and it seems to run smoother and holds in top gear much better.

I took a voltage reading on the sensor before I cleaned it and it checked within range of the value posted on Auto Zones site.

I'm taking the truck/trailer to Florida tommorrow. I guess I'll find out if I made an improvement.

Thanks.