I am gonna buy a 1990 F-250 on Monday. It has a 5.8 that runs great, but the trans slips. I have taken it on the road and you cannot take off from a dead stop in D. But if you shift into D from 1 or 2 then it is fine.

What may be causing this?


Thanks!

 

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My dads old 91 F250 used to do this. it was fun lol, rebuild maybe?

 

Will it last a long time the way it is? Or is it almost done with?

 

You can get 10 years or 10 minutes running it like that.....it just depends on the current condition of the transmission, and when it decides "I've had enough" there's really no way to sit there and say "You've got 47 miles left on it"

of course my first thought of the E4OD is
I had a 94 XLT 2wd with the E4OD, I went though 3 of them before I gave it to charities, I'm having problems with my friends 4R55E in his explorer and my M5OD-R2 in my 94 4WD XLT.

Some E4OD's are great, but I'd trust an AODE before I'd trust an E4OD.
if your gonna get it re-built, research the company that will do it unless your doing it yourself.

and if your gonna replace it, DO NOT, and I mean dear GOD do not get a Junk Yard part......spend the money (and get a warranty) to save the homicidal thoughts it will cause.

E4OD Applications:

* 1990–1996 Ford Bronco
* 1989–1998 Ford E-Series
* 1997–1998 Ford Expedition
* 1989–1998 Ford F-Series

 

You didnt say if it was high mileage or not--. Depends upon what you are going to do with it. My .02 is that I would check the MLPS on the side of the tranny first, thats where the shifter linkage connects to the tranny, its the black plastic looking thing and its part of the tranny at the shifter input to the tranny. Its electrical inside, and unlike the old C6's etc, there is no shaft that operates a detent in another shaft inside, that shifts the valve body pistons. The E4OD is controlled by a solenoid pak on the valve body. Now, you may already know all this stuff, not trying to insult you . The MLPS can get dirty inside and will cause all sorts of problems. You might also check to see if somewhere down the line, someone pinched the wiring harness at the tranny. That happened to one person on this board. Check the harnesses and connectors from the tranny up to the PCM. I am not sure about the 90's , but other years of E4OD (my 93) the harness comes up to 2 connectors on the drivers fenderwell just below the Master cylinder.

I would try all the cheep stuff first, and depending if its a "beater/hay hauler" you may get by for a long time. Otherwise, if it has to be dependable, you will need someone to look at it.

 

It has 176,000 on it. Okay i will start by checking all those things. And no, i dont know anything about these transmissions.

Im just gonna use it for a winter beater.

 

I know that not everyone likes the E4OD. I really like mine, put a shift kit in it at ~45K and had to replace the torque conv at 125K because of a common problem with slippage. I am pretty rough on mine. If yours is OEM and never been touched, then the lock-up may be slipping, but for a beater is fine if you dont tow or pull much or long--. If the converter has not been changed out, it most certainly is worn out. That means it wont hold in lockup, and will always slip like a C6 would, for example. That generates a lot of heat, so you cant tow for any distance at all before the fluid will puke out the front seal----I know about that 1st hand. Maybe, if you arent sure if the fluid has ever been changed you might at least change it and replace the filter.

I dont know how much a MLPS costs, but if the fluids appear to have been changed, maybe its worth a few bux. The MLPS is adjusted about like the old floor shift levers are, aligned with a drill bit through an alignment hole. Anyway, as long as you realize what its weaknesses are, you might just get a lot of good use out of that thing. Do what a lot of folks dont, drive with your brain, not with a heavy foot!!

 

Sounds like a torque converter problem to me- that's usually the first thing I check when a transmission starts slipping.

It's either that or the seals are leaking.

Either way, you'll have to drop it. BUT- to avoid that mess, check any sensors that could be affecting shifting, including the computer. Speaking of which, have you pulled any codes?

 

I thought TQ CONV, but after reading that its O.K. when you go manual to 1 or 2, that kinda tells me that when in D, the tranny is not going to 1 first. That also sounds a lot like "limp home" mode because in that mode, the thing does act very much like slipping, and the engine runs very rough. I would expect the TC to function even if the lock up clutches inside it are completely worn out----still would function with normal stall speed, but would never lock up without stall slippage.

With this much mileage, no telling what is wrong. Depends on if the previous owners did anything at all to it. Possibly its up for sale because of a combination of small things causing limp home mode and the previous owner was told by some shop that it would require big bux to fix. My .02 is that this thing may work for a beater by checking for a few cheaper problems and could well last till the doors rust off (OOPs forgot this isnt a chebby). I have fixed several trannys of mine that were $600--$700 bux repairs by pulling the pan, removing the valve body and giving it a WD40 "bath" seems the WD40 cut the slime and build up very well.

I keep going back to my 93 5.8 that went into limp home because the FPR was (still is----roundtuit problem) faulty and would not supply fuel when the vacuum hose to the FPR was supposed to lower pressure at idle. I removed that hose and plugged it-----it runs great, and that was months ago--damn near a year---time flys!! Point is that some small problems affect the operation of the tranny through the PCM. I think its worthwhile to really check the small stuff--including any codes, and maybe it will work for you---anyway LOL