1993 Flareside, has all of the shudder symptoms. Planning on a complete change to Mercon V and a bottle of Lucas transmission fix tomorrow. But there is another issue that I'm not sure is related or not. When the truck is first started, it acts normally in reverse. Then you put it in drive and it does not start to roll forward. Within the first minute of driving this goes away and the truck begins rolling forward as it did in reverse. Is this related to the shudder issue?

Hunt4Fun

 

Just returned from the mechanic's. We checked the fluid again, and again, it look nice and red. Added a full bottle of Lucas transmission fix and decided we would try that for a couple hundred miles. On the way home, the farther I went, the better the truck performed. The shudder started on the interstate at 45 as I was on the entrance ramp. After 5-10 miles, I was running smooth at 65. Shifting was smooth. The Lucas stuff did great things for my 1990 tranny, and it has done it again.

 

even though i lucas trans fluid, in this case it was just a band aid and it will come off at the worst time.

you need to drain convertor, drain pan, replace filter, add new fluid, include 1 qt of lucas.

do it now or in the middle of winter, your choice.

good luck.

 

The rest of the story. quicklook2 was right, I did replace the filter and then do a complete fluid change at my mechanic's. He has a TransTech machine that allows the transmission to pull in the new fluid and pump out the old on its own.

That solved everything except after the truck had been driven for 30 minutes. Then the shudder and hard shift would randomly return. If you are thinking heat, you are right on the button. Installed a separate tranny cooler on Saturday and drove some serious miles today. No problems.

I can hear Rambo at the end of Rambo II "Mission..............Accomplished!!!!!!"

Thanks quicklook2.

Hunt4Fun

 

Just for the record the machine you speak of flushes the transmission and that is never recommended, at least not on older transmissions with unknown or no service record. What happens is it pushes/forces debris into spots that it would not normally get into. You may have dodged a bullet there.
I'm sure others will back me up on this...

 

The machine doesn't have any pressure. Once the coolant lines are connected, the truck has to be running before the fluid will begin to move.

 

glad you got her going.

i have heard good things about that machine.

hope you have many more happy miles with your truck.

 

Thanks again!

 

If that is the case...I stand corrected.
It sounded like a flusher to me and I even googled it and what I found also suggested that the machine flushed the transmission.
I guess I should have dug deeper

Glad it all worked out though.

 

Just did a little more digging, but perhaps the machine used on your truck was an older version.
This is one page I found,
http://www.bestbuyautoequipment.com/...vacmtt1100.htm
"High volume fluid pumps allow service to be completed in 10 minutes."
Sounds like a flusher to me.
Anyone else have any input on this machine.
Quicklook, what do you know about it.
I know mechanics that simply won't do a flush. Those in & out places will make you sign a waiver saying they will not be responsible for any damage to transmission if they do.

 

E4OD, at least the later versions, have a TC drain, that and the pan has to be removed to replace the filter anyway so no point in paying for a service like that IMO.

As long as the machine allows the trans pump to do the work, replacing the fluid at the same rate, or pumps the fluid through at the same rate (or slower) I don't see how it could hurt anything.
One that does so at a high rate under high volume/pressure? yea that might cause problems.
At the same time if the act of doing so left junk behind, stuff knocked loose by the flush that could cause problems in the future that a simple drain and fill wouldn't have, what if any purpose was it or good did it do?

I'd call that a incomplete job..........

That and the places I asked about that service all stated at the price (150 bucks) they did not provide and replace the filter, I had to to that before or after the flush, or both, my choice.