I was reading a post by ScrewBigRed today and he posted the link www.blueovalnews.com and there are some real intresting articals there. One artical that caught my eye was one about the
2001 4R100 transmission. An artical called "Engineering defect plagues 2001 Ford 4R100 transmission"

Now this is old news as it was published in September of 2000, but is may affect several fords out there made in late 2000 or eraly 2001.

http://www.blueovalnews.com/trans_truckfails.htm

Read this, maybe try the experiment that caused the trans to fail...

"Michigan powertrain operations group discovered that if the engine's RPM went up to 4,600 and then the throttle was released and then applied again under wide open throttle the mechanical diode would fail. "

Get ready to take your truck into Ford for a replacment if you have a bad transmission after this test according to blueovalnews.com.

Now I don't know where this news comes from and how creditable this is but everyone should check it out.

 

i guess i'm glad i have the 4r70w?

 

I thought the Screw's all had 4r70 trannies.

 

you are right, the s-crews all have 4r70w trannies, i was just making a comment...

 

There are a lot of Screws out there with the 4r100, I know, I have one. As for the diode problem. It only affected a few hundred units and my understanding was that none of them actually made there way to dealers, or a very few at the most. This had been discussed at length quite some time ago. No worries. And I'll gladly keep my 4r100 with it's higher HP and TQ rating. Has worked fine for me.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by lrutt
[B]There are a lot of Screws out there with the 4r100, I know, I have one.

hey, what tranny code do you have on your door sticker...located on the b pillar when you open the drivers door? also, what is printed on your tranny dipstick cap. just interested since you currently can't order an s-crew (even harley version) with the 4r100...thanks.

 

WingNut seems not to be experiencing trans trouble, as of the date and time on the photo in the previous post.

 

Ditto TroyK

Irutt would be the first to actually have a confirmed sighting (his) of a SCrew with the 4r100 Transmission. The "4r100 Transmission in a SCrew" seems to be a debunked urban legend at this point.

The previous myth was that only the California SCrews had the 4r100, yet everyone who has participated in this tranny hunt from California has stated that they don't have it either.

How about it Irutt, what's the code on your door sticker ?

 

Trans code E. I believe the 70's code is U, correct? All the research I did before buying said that was the 100. Also, the 70's have like 14 bolts that hold the tranny pan on and the 100's have like 20 or 21, I have the 20 or 21. The lightnings also have the 100 in them.

 

what does it say on your tranny dipstick cap? last time i was at the ford dealership, i checked out a harley s-crew that was on the showroom floor...it had the 4r70w...of course the lightning with its higher output motor is connected to the hd 4r100.

 

I dont know for sure on the HD,,however the reason the Lightning has the 4r100 is because it has more then the 350ft lbs that the 4r70's are rated for...

I tell you what,,you will know if you have the 4R100,, because it is enormous,,I have one in the PSD,,,It probably weights 500 lbs...
It takes some 15-17 quarts trans oil...The pan is larger then your intake on the 5.4...

I personally cant see it in a F150....

Its a good trans and can be made bullet proof...

I dont think the HD are rated over 350 ft lbs....

 

OK, I don't know how much more documentation you need on this but the HD's do have the 4r100,

- trans code E
- 20 or 21 pan bolts, don't remember for sure as it's been a while since a crawled around under there and counted bolts but it verified the 4r100 versus the like 14 or so bolts the 4r70 has.
- tranny dipstick says Mercon fluid, what the 4r100 calls for, check the manual page 258.
- and it does look like a big a$$ tranny.

I hope this answers all your questions.

 

You are right, I went and looked there are 20 bolts...now we all know...that is one big trans...So we can include the HD to the Lightning and the Super Duty for trucks with the 4R100...

 

Thanks for the confirmation. I had researched it pretty thoroughly before. I know the 2001 HD's have the 4r100. Can't say for the 2000's though. I had also heard from a guy who used to post here that there are like a dozen different flavors of the 4r100. The PSD ones have steal planetary housings instead of aluminum like some of the others. There are some other differences depending on how much power is in front of it. That just happens to be one of the things I remember him saying. Originally I was concerned because of some of the postings about the 70's problems.

Audios

 

Dont think you are escaping the problems just because you have a 4R100,, these things have their share as well,,,although they are border line for the diesel's,,any mods to the PSD and it will break this trans no problem..its the weak link...

I am going to go through mine and do the transgo shift kit, syn oil, and the mag-tec deep pan(adds like 5-6 quarts to bring it up to 24 quart capacity--6 galllons), and a inline filter and cooler with a fan...this is about it until you go deep inside(T/C)....

You are also right that there are several variations to the 4R100...
Some of the other PSD's are putting 900 ft lbs through these...
Of course not stock...

Overall this is a good stock transmission,,in the F150 you have alot of trans and tons of room for improvement. The Chevy Allison is based on this design....

Can't wait for the new 5R110,,now that is going to be some trans...5 speeds and 550 ft lb stock..vehicle braking...its still based on the 4R100 model...what a design....