OK, this story is true, it happenned about 5 years ago. I just want to know the facts of the SUPPOSED cause since I own a truck with an E40D now. It's about a PowerStroke story but more so about the E40D so it's relevent.

About 5 years ago my Dad, Uncle and two of their buddies were spring bear hunting (as opposed to hunting bear, you know nekked) in the Snake River canyons.
They went to a pretty popular viewing area where you can see really well, great view.
Anyway they get there and there are two semi-truck wreckers there tied off to trees pulling something up from over the edge. There was a guy standing around so they went over to talk to him. It seems he had trouble with his truck staying in park so he took it to the dealer and had "something" fixed under warranty.
He parked the truck (mid-late '90s model) away from the edge and walked over to take a look, left truck running in park. After a couple of minutes he heard tires rolling so he turned around and his own truck was heading right for him. He moved out of the way and his truck rolled right over the side. It flipped up-side-down and slid down the slope tail gate first until it hit a tree and stopped. He said his wife was back in camp and luckily wasn't sitting in the cab at the time.

Any of you guys, especially Ford employees, ever heard of this. He said it was some kind of recall or TSB but who knows.
I DO know one thing: I'm glad I'm not the last guy that worked on that truck!

 

This was on the Snake River canyon?? if so, some people need to know that this canyon is both steep and deep,, Like a 23 mllion to 24 million foot drop...
(well it seems like it)

 

I have heard of it, mostly happens when the driver throws the shifter in park without making sure he's completely stopped and screw up the parking pawl. I do know of a guy once that parked on a fairly steep incline with a heavy trailer behind him, he didn't use the parking brake and all of a sudden the truck started rolling down the hill, he was lucky, able to jump in and stop truck. Heard later the parking pawl and gear where pretty chewed up.

 

There isn't really that much that holds an auto trans in park. A person could tear the parking pawl out pretty easily.

Parking break cables can snap also. I try to turn my steer tires to help from the freak thing getting me.

At least the guy was unhurt.

 

i was with ford when the e4od appeared and one of the things ford pointed out was the massive park gear and pawl it was rated at some ungodly amount of weight on a 40 degree incline
i have never seen one fail
and yes there was a recal on the 89 models for a snap ring that could break on the output shaft the shaft was redesigned and the snap ring eliminated for 1990
i did see several of those that did have teh snap ring break but they didnt lose park but damaged some splines and caused a no engagement issue but still had park
the guy on the mountain either didnt place it completely in park or had linkage adjustment problem
and i have also seen a few after the same accident only to determine it wasnt placed properly in park

 

The park gear in the E4OD is massive. Its probably the strongest part in the whole transmission. I heard of the TSBs that transtech mentioned, but I also read that the casting in the extension housing was modified to have a boss protruding out that held the park gear in place if the snap ring failed. Don't remember the year of the change. Older versions had nothing there, so if the snap ring on the output shaft failed for some reason, the park gear could slide backward and out of the reach of the locking prawl.

I still like the E4OD, but it was always a work in progress. Could still be for all I know.

 

I wanted everybody's input/experience but mostly hoped you'd reply with the "real" story bein' a Ford trans. guy.
Something was obviously wrong as he was experiencing this problem before and took it in FOR that problem.
I'd hate to be the guy who missed the cause. I'd hate to be the guy that owns the dealership too.
Technically I'll bet if you read your owner's manual it says to shut-off the engine and set the parking brake. Wonder if it made any difference in court, if it went that far. The guy probably got a new truck instead.
My '97 wants to go into reverse instead of park, you definitaly have to get it "into" park. If the motor is running I make sure it stays put before I get out.

 

Yeah it is, I won't go on that hunt. I'd rather get mauled by a bear than hunt them there. My 57 year old Dad and his buddies have pretty well had their fill too I think. They keep finding excuses not to put in for tags anymore.
The first year they rode in on the mail services jet boat with twin 400 HP Cummins on it, camped on the bank and hunted UP from there. They said the boat ride was the coolest part. I guess those guys can really pilot a boat. Reverse "wheelies", jump sand bars, all kinds of fun.

The down side was they think people are lying about how the Snake River got its name. It's because that is the predominant form of wildlife not because of how crooked it is.
One of the boat pilots told them he found one that had swallowed a full-grow Rock Chuck (marmot, like a Ground Hog) he said it looked like it had swallowed a basket ball and it was plenty big enough to get the job done. Another good reason for me not to go, I HATE SNAKES! If they're poisonous and that big I REALLY HATE THEM!

 

Is that the snake river that goes throught grand teton national park. I have a Picture hanging on the wall of it. (the only picture I have hanging on the wall) Dodge/cummins, sounds like your dads like mine. Him and his dad always went up to the mountins either for riding motorcycles, hicking or hunting every year. So now we go up every year. They go to some crazy places. Theres one trail that at the end you look off a cliff, stright down, no trees just rock for like 2,000 feet. You throw rocks over this cliff its amazing how far the go. I have a picture of this cliff and will post it when I get back. You can see for miles and miles. Unbelivable.

All I know on my e40d is when I back up or pull ford against a curb, I have to roll back a tad then put it in park.. Otherwise when I try to take it out, It feels like Im going to break the shifter of the colum.

A few years ago, there was an accident in the paper where the mother had her car out in the driveway that was on an incline. Her kids were playing around the car and somehow it came out or was knocked out of park and rolled over one of the kids killing him/her. I don't know if it kill 1 or 2 kids, not sure. They tried to say park failed but I think it was knocked out by on of them inside the car. Park brake!!!

As for park brakes, I use them on every incline. Expecially when we go to the mountins. Id hate to see it roll away just cause I didn't take 1 more second to set it. And like above, It is posted most owners manuals that you need to use the park brake. It almost a habbit for me to set it.

A little off but its kinda funny at work. Very seldome we get a call that a feeder driver (semi driver) forgets to pull his little park brake ***** before exiting. (you know, make the pppsssshhhhhhh air sound) One of them ended up in the lagoon. They just pulled it out cleaned off the floor and the inside, washed it down, and now its in my fleet to maintain. The last guy that forgot to set the park brake shut the door when he realised his set was moving. Then he tried to get the keys back out to unlock the door to set the brake but too late, hit another truck. (i figured it would have been easier to just jump up and pull the red gladhand off, oh well) So it should be kinda a habbit to set the brake.

 

david85 , it was and still is impossible for the park gear to slide back out of reach of the park pawl due to the shaft design , the boss was only used on the recall extension housing no production units as i stated earlier i did see several that the snap ring broke on and there was no park issue just a damaged output shaft that disengaged the output hub
dodge cummins
if it had jumped out of park it would have engaged reverse
there is no real story to tell as you mentioned what i said is the truth about the park mechanisim and the powerstroke models have modular steering columns and shift cables plus the shift interlock system i,d bet if you ask your dad the guy was the only person present when the accident occurred

 

Yep he was.

It's starting to sound like one of those "my Glock just went off by itself" stories.
I can garauntee you if a Glock fired SOMEBODY pulled the trigger!
Nobody wants to admit to a cataklismic mistake.