Tranny Troubles

[Phantom-309]

Well, Im having tranny troubles, and Im not talking about the ones you have in Thailand,

A few days ago, I shifted into drive, truck was warm, all I got was a rev when I hit the pedal. Now, throughout today, most of the time when Im shifting into drive, no matter if I slowly move the selector down or just slam it into drive, it will not engage. Reverse works great, and if I leave it in drive for 10-30 seconds, it will engage and purr like theres nothing wrong. Linkage on the side of the tranny looks good, as well as underneath the dash. Any suggestions, ideas or more info needed? Truck is a 94 IDI w/ turbo, 250xxx miles, all gauges and fluids look fine

 

[OLDBULL8]

Did you check the fluid level?
Is the tach working?
What guages are you referring too?
When in Neutral, does the lines line up on the tranny to indicate Neutral position??
When it does work, does it upshift 1 2 3 OD?
Has it ever had the filter changed? 2WD takes the short filter, 4X4 takes the deep filter.
Has the pan been changed to a deep pan?

 

[Phantom-309]

Did you check the fluid level? Yes, fluid level is good, smell is normal
Is the tach working? Tach is working great, no change in RPM's
What guages are you referring too? Gauges are all stock gauges, no tranny temp gauge, but there is no smell coming from it
When in Neutral, does the lines line up on the tranny to indicate Neutral position?? Orange peg indicates correct gear everytime
When it does work, does it upshift 1 2 3 OD? When driving, it shifts smoothly, I have not tried to manually shift it from 1-OD
Has it ever had the filter changed? 2WD takes the short filter, 4X4 takes the deep filter. I dont believe so, that is on my to do list for this month
Has the pan been changed to a deep pan? No it has not

.

I also figured out last night that if I will idle the truck at about 12-1500 RPM's, it will engage and take off just fine. Then again, sometimes it will engage as soon as I shift into D and take off.

 

[OLDBULL8]

There is a pressure check port, drivers side just ahead of the shift lever, install a pressure gage in there at least 500PSI. Block all wheels except one rear, jack up that one, start her up check pressure. you should have around 250 PSI on the gage, manually run it thru the gears checking pressure in each gear, pressure should remain the same. A big drop in pressure would indicate leaking seals and possibly a bad pump. If you get that, throw in some Lucas tranny fix, that swells the seals, but you should have an overhaul then.
Any oil leaking out the flexplate dust cover?

 

[trackspeeder]

Like OLDBULL said. Do a pressure test.

The tranny (not the Thailand tranny) could have loose or leaking feed bolts.

 

[Phantom-309]

Talked to a shop today, they said that it was almost certainly (dont you love that phrase?) the main clutch going out, and to rebuild a E4OD would run anywhere from $2000-$3000. I only paid 2200 for the truck, so it looks like its time for a donor transmission and a for sale sign so that I can start looking for that new truck. So now, what transmissions are compatible with my truck?

 

[flareside_thun]

A Zf 5 speed.

 

[Phantom-309]

A Zf 5 speed.

Dont have the time or money for the conversion to standard...But thanks

 

[Phantom-309]

Now it has some new symptoms...Yesterday, besides not engaging when shifted into drive, it ran about 400 rpms higher than normal at cruising speeds, until going up a hill, then it would drop back to normal RPMS. I stopped by Oreillys and they said that it was giving 3 codes for the throttle position sensor. Would a bad TPS cause it to run high at cruising speeds, or just at startup and neutral?

Also, the ABS light started coming on, and when it does, my tailights are turning on without me pulling the switch...Now, Im no genius with electrical, but that would indicate a short somewhere to me, not something involving the transmission.

In other news, the truck is now for sale, as is. This is the last straw that I needed in order to start looking for a crew cab

 

[trackspeeder]

A bad or out of adjustment TPS will make the tranny do some weird stuff. Delayed shifts, converter unlocking at speed or the usual symptoms.

Delayed forward engagement is another issue.

 

[Phantom-309]

Awesome...Where would that little ****** be located at, under the dash or under the hood.

 

[icanfixall]

The tps is located on the drivers side of the injection pump. With the key of engine off the center green wire must show between .96 to 1.2 volts at the idle setting. Open the throttle full and see what the voltage is. Probably around 3.9 volts. That fine but never allow the voltage to reach 5 volts. Thats when the computer drops out the signal and the trans shift very harsh and usually only gives you 2nd and reverse. Its called limp home mode and its just to get you off the road or a short drive to the dealer. Never drive it around for long drives. It kills the trans.

 

[Phantom-309]

Found it, Thanks. Im picking up a new TPS at AutoZone in the morning, I figure after 250,000 miles, $28 is a good investment. Im really hoping that this also solves the drive engaging problem Im having, which would mean not buying a new transmission

 

[icanfixall]

The recommendations on changing the tps is usually 50,000 to 75,000 miles. Cheap insurance is what it really is. Watch how the switch unwinds from the throttle link. Just make sure the new one is positioned on the blade correctly. You will see some dirt or rust on the plastic tps linkage connecter. Have a flexible magnet just incase you drop a screw or small bolt. I sometimes place a rag behind the injection pump so if something drops into the pan under the intake manifold it wont end up way at the rear of the pan... Thats no nice place to try to find something..

 

[Phantom-309]

Replaced the TPS today, dont have a multimeter to check voltage right now, will do that tomorrow. I shifted into and out of drive, seems to be working fine!

However, it is still running at 300-500 rpms high while driving, but here is the weird part...If I turn on my right turn signal, the engine runs at the correct RPM'S. Right turn signal will not blink, just stays lit up. Left signal works fine, ABS light is still on...I have checked all fuses, they are good, not sure about the relay's (how to check them/test them). Im fixin to head out and do some more shifting, but this "electrical short" (for lack of more knowledge) is starting to bug me.