E40D Flexplate replacement - shifting trouble

[sieg01]

I need some out of the box ideas to get forward with our gearbox trouble.

Directly after replacing the flexplate, letting the van down from the lift, starting and driving it the first time, new things appeared.

- The sound of the 7.3idi N/A was different than 4.5 hours before. It sounded like a gasser.
- The first gear didn't pull (or was there even the first gear? )
- Some gear was missing.
- Manual lever at the steering wheel was moving hard/stiff

After driving about 500km things changed a bit:
- sound feels like a Diesel now again.
- Manual lever at the steering wheel feels fine again
- in D position, there are only 2 gears. One (probably second gear) and Overdrive (steps in about 45-50 km/h - the van has a 3.54 differential).
- in position 1 and 2: both gears are the same. In these 2 positions I can get the van moving.

What we did:
for/during flexplate replacement:
- unplugging both electric connectors @ the gearbox
- disconnected the gear oil cooler lines
- disconnected the manual lever shift cable from the manual control lever shaft (MCLS) @ the gearbox
- drained about 5 liters of transmission fluid

Afterwards we undid all these tasks and I cleaned both electric connectors/plugs with WD40.
(The van had sometimes OverDrive problems in wet weather conditions.)

What we checked/did since the flexplate replacement.
- we drove to ensure, that no air is in the oil lines
- transmission oil level with running warm engine is fine
- we cleaned and greased the manual lever shift cable connector at the MCLS.
- we cleaned the electric connectors several times to make sure, no WD40 is left
- we checked that all the pins inside the connectors are in place
- we removed the MLPS and cleaned it. (It was about time, because there was rust on the Manual Control Lever Shaft axle. )
- we also checked if the oil cooler lines were wrongly reconnected but based on their lengths, they shouldn't allow a wrong connection. (but I didn't try that yet).

All these things didn't make a change.
So we thought that the MLPS is defect and measured its resistance.
Here the link to the neighbor forum with data sheet : https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1584524-mlps-neutral-safety-switch-e40d.html#post18706038

We measured on our sensor:
P : 4.2 k ohm
R : 1.452 k ohm
N : 0.738 k ohm
D : 0.404 k ohm
2 : 0.213 k ohm
1 : 0.0894 k ohm

All these figures indicate, that the MLPS should not be broken.
Manual lever is also moving nice today.
All lights (rear, brake, indicators) are on when needed/required. No strange thing there.

What else could cause the gearbox to miss some gear?

Any idea is appreciated - even weird ones, as the box is 30 years young and anything may/could happen...

 

[tbowker]

IMHO, @XOLATEM would be the one you want to have chime in on this.

 

[XOLATEM]

Hello Sieg from Finland, This is 'X' from Virginia...

It is morning here (Virginia) and I must get to work but I will address the one thing that stands out for me that could help you until I have time to read your post thoroughly...

It sounds like the transmission is not getting the correct signals from the vehicle...and I suspect a couple of things...

The main electrical connector that has a metal shield in front of it...it sounds like the connection is not fully making contact with integrity.

If I were there...I would disconnect and examine both ends carefully...you might need a mirror for the case side...there is an elongated o-ring seal that can become dislodged and prevent you from seating the connector completely.

Remove all of the WD-40...clean out anything that might cause electrical problems...

Use an air nozzle and blow out any residue in both sides of the connection and use a mirror and a small hook tool to put the o-ring seal back where it belongs.

Look carefully at the connections...the male and female ends...the female ends can become spread too wide to make adequate connection...there is a method for fixing that but we will get back to that later if needed...

Use dielectric grease on the harness end (smear it across the terminals) and carefully place it straight down into the case receptacle...seat it completely.

Check your ECM or TCM fuse in the fuse panel and make sure it is not blown.

Which MLPS sensor do you have...? The first version was troublesome...the second version was better, but the wiring harness required re-configuring to install the updated sensor...

It is recommended to always use the newer MLPS sensor and adjust it correctly with respect to its position on the transmission case.

You adjust it in the NEUTRAL position...IIRC...

When I checked the MLPS sensor I would test voltages--with the key in RUN position. (You must back probe the contacts) What I usually found was a starting point of approximately .70 of a volt and each successive position would add approx. another .70 of a volt until you reached approx. 4.5 volts DC

That is all I can do at the moment without more data and/or pictures...I have to go to work...

Wishing you success in your endeavors...

Take care,

'X'

 

[u2slow]

Fwiw, the last e4od I worked on... Changed flexplate, input seal, drained the TC also, and changed the filter. It shifted better/quicker than before once we were done.

I'm wondering if your work stirred up some sediment or debris in there and something is sticking.

 

[sieg01]

Hello Sieg from Finland, This is 'X' from Virginia...

It is morning here (Virginia) and I must get to work but I will address the one thing that stands out for me that could help you until I have time to read your post thoroughly...

Thanks for taking time for this thread.

It sounds like the transmission is not getting the correct signals from the vehicle...and I suspect a couple of things...

Thought the same.
Shouldn't be mechanical...

The main electrical connector that has a metal shield in front of it...it sounds like the connection is not fully making contact with integrity.

If I were there...I would disconnect and examine both ends carefully...you might need a mirror for the case side...there is an elongated o-ring seal that can become dislodged and prevent you from seating the connector completely.

O-ring seal was/is in place.

Remove all of the WD-40...clean out anything that might cause electrical problems...

Done -

Use an air nozzle and blow out any residue in both sides of the connection and use a mirror and a small hook tool to put the o-ring seal back where it belongs.

- this way.

Look carefully at the connections...the male and female ends...the female ends can become spread too wide to make adequate connection...there is a method for fixing that but we will get back to that later if needed...

This we forgot to do. Will be checked tomorrow.

Use dielectric grease on the harness end (smear it across the terminals) and carefully place it straight down into the case receptacle...seat it completely.

Didn't use grease by now. But it sits completely within the terminal.

Check your ECM or TCM fuse in the fuse panel and make sure it is not blown.

I don't know which fuse number is protecting the TCM/ECM.
So I checked all the fuses inside the cabin. But not the fuse box in the engine bay.
Checked fuses were all fine.

Which MLPS sensor do you have...? The first version was troublesome...the second version was better, but the wiring harness required re-configuring to install the updated sensor...

I believe that we have the old/first version.

It is recommended to always use the newer MLPS sensor and adjust it correctly with respect to its position on the transmission case.

Which one is recommended to purchase as replacement?

You adjust it in the NEUTRAL position...IIRC...

It is.

When I checked the MLPS sensor I would test voltages--with the key in RUN position. (You must back probe the contacts) What I usually found was a starting point of approximately .70 of a volt and each successive position would add approx. another .70 of a volt until you reached approx. 4.5 volts DC

This we check tomorrow.

That is all I can do at the moment without more data and/or pictures...I have to go to work...

You're fantastic! Thanks.

What we did today was:
- Executing part of your upper suggestions

Next to that
- unplugged main electrical connector
- started the engine in "N" and switched to "D" to check if it will behave differently.

But it didn't.
So we plugged it in again.

Conclusion:
In "D" we have third gear and overdrive (which comes too early).
In "1" and "2" we have the same gear. Which is first or second. Can't say.

Thanks!

 

[sieg01]

Fwiw, the last e4od I worked on... Changed flexplate, input seal, drained the TC also, and changed the filter. It shifted better/quicker than before once we were done.

I'm wondering if your work stirred up some sediment or debris in there and something is sticking.

Thanks u2slow.

We didn't take the TC off.
The oil in the gear box looks like new. Perfect shiny red.

 

[u2slow]

TC doesn't have to come off. It has a 1/8" pipe plug for a drain.

It could still be possible the filter is clogged.

 

[Rdnck84_03]

TC doesn't have to come off. It has a 1/8" pipe plug for a drain.

It could still be possible the filter is clogged.

I may be off base here. I would think that if the filter was plugged, it would just not want to engage any gears instead of starting in high gears. A clogged filter should cause a low pressure situation.

I know that I had a c5 years ago that the pump barely made any pressure at all, you had to wind the rpm up to around 2500 before it had enough pressure to engage the clutches. Once the pressure got up high enough to build enough pressure it would shift fine through the gears.

I also know on the powerstroke e40d, (I am assuming that the idi e40d does the same) if the line pressure is too low they will direct all available pressure to the clutch pack to prevent slippage. This results in the torque converter locking, which at low rpm usually results in the engine stalling.

I'm sure @XOLATEM can explain this in far more detail than me. He did transmissions as a job, I only know what I have dealt with on vehicles I have owned myself.

James

 

[u2slow]

I don't really know the E4OD that well. Seems to me that different clutch/band sections could be worn to different levels and the same available pressure may not grip one set as well as another.

This last one i touched only needed a front seal. I did the other stuff as precautionary, and the shifting improved as a result. It was just an F150 with the L6.

Could carefully collect the fluid for re-use and go in for another check-over and filter. There is a Lucas transmission additive that a diesel shop recommended to me when i had my E350. I don't know how much it helped, but the trans lasted thru till I sold the van.

 

[XOLATEM]

Which one is recommended to purchase as replacement?

More Information for ROSTRA 501062

Conclusion:
In "D" we have third gear and overdrive (which comes too early).
In "1" and "2" we have the same gear. Which is first or second.

With this symptom...I can't help but think that you need a dedicated ground strap from the transmission case to the battery negative terminal...this was one 'fix' we used when those transmissions were new...(new to the repair industry)...please do this first...then...

Check to see if your TCM/ECM is getting power (B+) from the main harness...and see if it is also getting a good ground connection...(-)...

I have seen a lot of good information on this site with regards to the electrical system for an E4OD in the 'random media' feature...I don't know how to gather it all up in one place for you...

Maybe another, more experienced information gatherer on here can bring that data up for you...electrical circuit diagrams and E4OD information.

It would be good to have a diagram of the main harness connector at the transmission and check for power and ground at the connector with the KOEO. (Key On, Engine Off)...

The fact that your symptoms are the same with the transmission regardless of it being plugged in or not is the clue that you are experiencing an electrical problem...

Wishing you luck finding the problem..

'X'

 

[sieg01]

Hi @ all! We'll check the electric and ground today as well as the other cable related suggestions.

Would be logical, that it is an electric caused failure, because the gearbox was just fine when driving the van on the workshop lift for the flexplate replacement.

 

[sieg01]

Sorry to use a Russian phrase: "Vertrauen ist gut, Kontrolle ist besser." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trust,_but_verify
but it simply fits here.

Van and E4OD are just fine again.

I've gone through yesterdays work to verify it.
Checked the female ends in the plugs to see if they are spread too wide,
Checked ground cables - which looked all good.

And then
While "playing" - a bit frustrated - with the "power plug" - I pushed it several times (very) hard in the terminal. (the "locks" cracked with all the connecting and disconnecting - and you can only guess if you reached the bottom.)

Then I fired up the engine ---> and right from the start the Van behaved like normal - again!

The test drive confirmed that all gears are here again and the shifting performance is as it used to be.

So - Thank you all!
Without your help - and a hint of a friend in Kankaanpää - I probably would have faced an even harder time.


Next step:
I will purchase a new MLPS to have it on stock - if needed.

Conclusion:
Don't give up.