Ugh!

[88vmx12]

Well here goes , or maybe I should say there goes my Vmax moneys for the year. I was so close to getting her done. Then this.. I went to work yesterday and all of a sudden my truck is making a horrible noise. I think the tranny is going out of it. Almost sounds like the torque converter has come loose. The bad thing is I am away from home , I don't know any local mechanics. Let alone one that is reputable , that won't take me for a ride. I have an appointment with the local dealership on Friday. The guy was guessing 4 - 5K. Holy Crap 5K I was thinking. I was guessing 4K , it is a F350 Powerstroke. So I am going to get it in the front or the back no matter what I have done to it. I am bummin'
:sad2::sad2::sad2::sad2::sad2::sad2::sad2:

Gannon

 

[twistedmax]

just am idea, find the local municipal yard ,ask for the head mechanic chances are he does work on the side or may be able to steer you in the right direction,4-5k thats nuts.

my buddy is the local municipals mechanic and hes always got some thing going on the side. good guy, good work.motor heads are pretty much good guys look around youll find someone that can help you out. good luck!

 

[dannymax]

Are there any forum guys near where you are Gannon? Maybe some nearby that could steer you right. :confused2:

 

[88vmx12]

Dan,
Not that I know of. Sean is about 4 1/2hrs south of me. I was going to go to the bar across the street and ask around. There are alot of business owners that go into this bar. Hopefully I can get some good leads.
Gannon

 

[jfeagins]

What makes you think it's the tranny going out? Can you post up a sound bite for the noise, or define better where it's coming from?

I don't drive Fords, but in the GM stuff I've had over the years, every tranny problem I've encountered came with some accompanying shift problems or driveability issues - bigtime. Never just a noise from underneath.

I had a Riviera with harmonic balancer problems that sounded like an elf under the car banging on stuff with a 20lb sledge. The way the car was acting, I just knew for sure that it was transmission related.

 

[[email protected]]

We have a bunch of F350 and 450 diesels in our fleet 99% are auto's. We do a lot of towing with compact excavators and skid loader/CTL's and have burned up a tranny in every automatic in our lot at LEAST once.

Our situation may differ a bit but I have found it is best to go with a reputable shop that will offer a warranty on the transmission. We have gone thru ford and we have gone thru Jasper. A bunch of shops in my tri-state area are "certified" by Jasper and can install or repair their products. We are currently getting a better warranty on the Jasper tranny's that the ford ones. Can't remember the details though.

4-5K sounds pretty steep though. For just a convertor and trans? I think our bills typically come in around 3K for this kind of thing.

Another word of advice. If you are going to a garage and not going to rebuild this thing in someones basement be sure to get a detailed list of what your options are, what parts are being bought new, what is being reused, and the costs. It's not worth rushing it. My boss just made that mistake in December. I didn't find out what happened till a couple weeks ago but we got F'ed by a local Ford dealer (large trk division) and they still did not make it right:bang head:

 

[RaWarrior]

The 250/350 automatics are known for sucking when subjected to frequent towing. One of my friends has a 01 F250 with the 7.3. He drove it pretty hard and towed a big landscaping trailer and it died twice. They finally replaced it with the transmission from like a 550 or something and haven't had a problem since. On the other hand a local marina to where I work has a '00 350 with the 7.3 and a manual....never had to touch anything on it. Been bulletproof, and it's almost exclusively used for towing boats.

The 4R100 trans is fine for the gas engines but it's just not really up to the task of a turbodiesel with heavy loads....I've got like 85k on mine and no issues yet.


Does the truck still drive/shift properly? When does it make the noise(all the time, only in a certain gear, accel, decel?)

 

[Jayhawk]

Bummer. Hope it works out for you.

What I'm going to recommend, I've never used myself. But, it's advertised on local radio all over the place, and might help you out if you have time to do the research.

Angies List

It's supposed to be a site for finding reputable service folks, wherever you are.
:confused2:

 

[[email protected]]

Another thing to look out for on these trucks: rusty oil pans! If the trans is out and it is in question, now is the time to do it. We have had at least 4 of our 350's-450's leak from pinholes caused by rust. Once it starts it escalates quickly. The pans are reasonably priced and the labor costs are cut DRAMATICALLY if done in conjunction with trans removal.

 

[88vmx12]

ok guys here it is on the decription of what it sounds like. It has an awful growl / clatter noise. almost like a rod is going out. This is when at idle or in gear, now if you get it up above 1200 RPM it goes away. Here is the kicker if you are stopped and you put it into reverse . Once the tranny has engaged the noise is totally gone. It almost sounds like the flywheel is starting to come apart. Perhaps even the torgue converter. I think it definatley has something to so with the tranny because it goes away when you are in reverse. You guys let me know what you think. I had even pulled the tranny dipstick out looked at the fluid. Doesn't smell burnt and there is no metal particals in the oil on the stick. It still shifts good, it is weird that when you get up over 1200 RPM it levels out no noise and the slight vibration is gone. So I think it could be the flywheel or the torque converter. But in reasoning how could that be when it goes away when you put into reverse. When the torque converter and flywheel are still rotating in the same direction. I will know more tomorrow on what it is. I will be taking it into the dealer to morrow, infact I am going to have it towed. I am afraid that if I drive it it might mess up something that could be fixed.

Gannon

 

[[email protected]]

Well, I'm no mechanic by any means but it doesn't sound like a tranny issue to me. How about another guessing game? I will say U joint.

 

[COP RUNNER]

The same thing happened to my buddy's , and it was the torque converter ! ,,, He drove it like that for 6 months before getting it fixed ! ,,, The noise was so fucking loud outside the truck it was unbelievable !

 

[twistedmax]

would vibrate with a bad u joint,Im with coprunner torque converter. broken viens,fluid wont smell,and centrifical force will quite it when it spins up.

 

[88vmx12]

I hope that it is only the torque converter! that would be sweet!

 

[[email protected]]

Well, I'm no mechanic by any means but it doesn't sound like a tranny issue to me. How about another guessing game? I will say U joint.

I guess I shoulda read your post better. I just realized you said it made the noise at idle. You aint gonna hear a u joint if your sitting still :biglaugh:

 

[RaWarrior]

I asked this question on a Ford truck forum I visit every so often. The general suggestion was that a "mechanical diode" went bad. I have no idea what that is, or where it's located, but supposedly it's a common failure point on the 4r100 slushbox.

They also agreed that a $5k quote is absolute, unadulterated butt-rape. Said the transmission goes for about $1800, assuming it needs to be completely replaced.

 

[88vmx12]

I asked this question on a Ford truck forum I visit every so often. The general suggestion was that a "mechanical diode" went bad. I have no idea what that is, or where it's located, but supposedly it's a common failure point on the 4r100 slushbox.

They also agreed that a $5k quote is absolute, unadulterated butt-rape. Said the transmission goes for about $1800, assuming it needs to be completely replaced.

I hope that it is simple and cheep. But at this point I am stuck in Nebraska, or actually working here for about another month. I know no one , so I guess I am grabbing cheeks looking over the old shoulders :10_6_8:and asking for the lube:stir pot:. I hope they treat me right that is all I can say.

Gannon

 

[maleko89]

Where at in NE?

 

[88vmx12]

Columbus

 

[88vmx12]

not too far from you! heading to Eppley field to fly home on Wed. Will be staying at some hotel on Tuesday night.

Gannon