Greetings FORD RANGER enthusiasts! Do any of you guys know if it is possible to disable the " adaptive" feature in the ranger automatic transmission or flash it with permanent shift pattern?..after a week to ten days my transmission has a very slow 2-3 shift kind of overreving and then dropping into gear...any info is appreciated!

 

Welcome to the forum

Need year of Ranger and engine size to know what automatic you have?

But in general, no, to the question

After 1995 Ranger automatics used full electronic shift control, while it can be called "adaptive" because it "advertises well" , it is not all that adaptive.

Full Electronic control allows for smoother shifts and better MPG because computer is running the engine and transmission, so "knows" the best ratio to use with any speed, load and RPM.
If you drive with "foot to the floor" all the time it can "adapt" to that type of driving, hence the term.

But your issue reads like a transmission problem, so not solved by standard shift points.

Yes, you can have a 1995 or later computer programmed any way you like, including shift points, and generally it runs $250-$450 depending on what you need done.
No, I can't recommend anyone, lol.

Depending on the year the 2/3 slipping may need a new valve body which can be done with trans in the vehicle, and you can get "shift kits" for most models, which go in with new valve body

 

Thank you RonD for your response!....in hindsight I am embarrassed that I did not include the year and engine size of my RANGER in my inquiry, I know better but my brain misses a shift occasionally as well!...my RANGER IS a 2007 with the 2.3 , and I also failed to point out that when I disconnect the battery for about ten minutes and the transmission control returns to what I assume is it's base setting it works great!....ergo I do believe it is a sensor or program issue? If it never learned a thing and functioned in its " base" mode I would be happy!...any further input is greatly appreciated as well as your previous information!

 

Its not "learning" your driving, computer is re-learning engine parameters so runs trans in a kind of safe mode, shifting should be a bit harsher, because of this.

You have a 5R44E automatic, 2001.5 to 2012 Ranger 2.3l and 3.0l used these
5R55E is the same transmission but has a bigger OD drum for the 4.0l engines torque

Good read here on the 5R and 4R transmissions, they are the same: http://www.atra.com/Gears/2003/2003-05/2003_5_50.pdf

You have a transmission problem most likely, not a computer problem, but just my opinion

Google: 5r44e 2nd to 3rd shifting