Just bought this 135,000 mile police car and noticed it slams into each gear as you move the lever. From Park to Reverse to Drive and each time going the other way as well. I'll check the codes once I have it back, but any ideas until then as to if it might be simple like solenoids, or whole transmission needs to replaced. It's AWD with the 3.7L V6.
2015 Explorer slams into gear when moving the lever.
- Thread starter atikovi
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Not normal. It’s either in fail safe mode, or may need a main control, solenoids are not serviceable apart from main control. Also can be other underlying issues. Higher mileage police explorers are a time bomb for transmissions and PTUs. I speak from experience.
if you have to replace the transmission it’s easiest to drop the subframe, then the whole powertrain as a unit and separating it on a table or whatever you have.
if you have to replace the transmission it’s easiest to drop the subframe, then the whole powertrain as a unit and separating it on a table or whatever you have.
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Plus a lot of those never get the fluid changed since they have a 150K transmission fluid interval.
I'm seeing rebuilt valve bodies with solenoids for $200-$450.
the main control also requires initialization with the IDS. Keep in mind there still may be a mechanical issue with the transmission other than the main control. It can be a crap shoot.
Motor mounts?
Have someone shift through gears and watch for excessive engine movement.
Have someone shift through gears and watch for excessive engine movement.
Engine and transmission mounts are also a huge problem in the police interceptors they don’t last long at all definitely worth checking
Start with fresh fluid? Cheapest and easiest thing to try out of the gate. By 135k the fluid is going to be tired if its never been changed.
I'll bring it home next week and try some of the suggestions, thanks. Is this a 6F50 or 6F55 transmission?
They are on backorder too. I was able to score some when doing my panic stock orders.
mounts, sway bar bushings, front control arms and steering racks are all hot commodities
Drove home today. Still harsh from park to reverse or drive. Transmission in limp mode in 3rd or 4th gear. Keep it at 55 on the highway doing 2500 rpm. At home I scan it and get a bunch of battery codes in various modules plus these in the PCM,
P0103 Mass or volume airflow circuit high input
P0104 Mass or volume airflow sensor A control intermittent
P1127 Exhaust temp out of range O2 sensor tests not done
P1703 Brake switch out of self test range
P1780 Trans control switch O/D cancel circuit out of self test range
Erased the codes and now it runs perfectly normal on a quick 3 mile drive before dinner. Could it be this simple, that erasing and resetting the system fixes the problem. I can't be that lucky and expect some these issue to come back after a longer drive.
P0103 Mass or volume airflow circuit high input
P0104 Mass or volume airflow sensor A control intermittent
P1127 Exhaust temp out of range O2 sensor tests not done
P1703 Brake switch out of self test range
P1780 Trans control switch O/D cancel circuit out of self test range
Erased the codes and now it runs perfectly normal on a quick 3 mile drive before dinner. Could it be this simple, that erasing and resetting the system fixes the problem. I can't be that lucky and expect some these issue to come back after a longer drive.
Sort of sounds like an intermittent bad ground.
I'd still do multiple quick drain and fills. Do the first one and inspect the fluid. Internet says it's Dexron VI. I think, it should be cherry red. You'd have to confirm, since I've never used Dex VI. Regardless, you want it to look new. It should not be worn out, black, dark, etc. Do a number of fluid replacements to get new fluid in it. There's many explanations on how to do this. Would need to be done, probably, regardless of any other solutions and the fluid is cheap.
Yes, or a bad battery can cause some strange driving issues like this. Some new atf, service ptu, etc. show also help.
Well, it had the same problem this morning. Did some checking for anything obvious. The MAF codes were a clue. Checked the sensor and connector. They didn't click together. Seems like the ridge on the sensor was broken off preventing solid contact. Used some zip ties as a temporary fix. Driving it up to Connecticut tomorrow to pick up some parts so that should be a good road test.
You've been driving this for a month. Have you at least just changed the ATF? Could be a simple cheap solution or at least have an idea of how the ATF looks and rule that out if it's still problematic after an ATF job.
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