So I last year after my transmission was not shifting right I took it to a Trans shop and they did a good job, as far as I could tell. they guy told me it was a Check ball that is commonly worn out on these transmission, and it would need to be replaced. he said it basicly wasn't moving when it needed to to shift properly, thats why it was sticking after it shifted and having trouble shifting. when I got the invoice it shows a transmission service charge, filter, and fluid, but it has a "valve body" on there as well, with a check ball under all that. i didn't think anything of it because the truck worked perfect again. Until... I took another cross country trip and pull some extra weight, over the ford recommended tow speed. Sorry, I like to get where I'm going in a hurry.... So yes I overheated the transmission again. and im back to square one with the way my truck is shifting. Now, I don't want to fork out a few hundos again to have this issue fixed, i've learned my lesson, not to drive fast with a heavy load. so I need some help figuring out what was replaced when this shop did the work. can anyone help me out with parts, and part numbers, and instructions on what and how these parts can be replaced? I am very mechanically savvy. having been a heavy equipment mechanic for 8 years. Im just not too familiar with auto trans in a regular pickup. I have a couple of exploded views of the transmission, just no instructions on the easiest way to pull it out and replace these parts or the part # or names of these valve body and check ball. any help from an experienced ford guy would great be appreciated.

2004 Ford F150 FX4

 

You have no way of knowing with any certainty whether this is caused by the exact same thing or not. A qualified transmission tech needs to open it up and start investigating. If you have seriously overheated it twice now, I'd be looking at a full rebuild.

Would you, as a heavy equipment mechanic, think a motorcycle mechanic could troubleshoot and fix an internal issue in a large diesel?

 

GLC, I was just saying that I'm pretty sure i have the skills to fix it, if I can get some help diagnosing it. And thank you for your input, do you know how often a transmission should be rebuilt? in my case?

 

Theoretically, a transmission should last the life of the truck, but we all know that doesn't always happen. Abuse drastically shortens the life. If it has 100k on it with that kind of abuse, it's probably time for a rebuild.

If you think you can rebuild it, get yourself a manual, pull it out, and start tearing it apart and see where you are at.

 

Ford recommended tow speed? What is that? I haven't heard of that before.

Go to https://www.atsg.us/atsg/ if you want a shop manual to rebuild the transmission.

 

I seem to remember a post about plastic ***** in the valve body giving problems, maybe melting??? Is that correct?

 

There are plastic check *****. The transmission would have to get REALLY hot to melt them. 300F won't do it. I have seen the check ***** wear out and not be able to seal any longer.

 

I would think if it got hot enough to melt the check *****, there are going to be more issues inside there.

 

i will get these transmissions here from time to time that have what look to be eroded check *****. It's not the same check ***** every time and it's not usually all of them in the same transmission. They are just smaller and will get stuck in their hole in the separator plate.

I have always wondered if this is a materials issue or a problem with something that was put into the fluid.

D

 

Next time you find one of them take a good look at the orifice in the separator plate. If you have one, use a magnifying glass. I always suspected a tiny, tiny burr on the separator as a cause of this.