2002 2.3 auto 2wd engine was/is running well
Freshly rebuilt tranny

New to this forum and fords. I'm from the jeep community and I'm trying to help my mom(it's her car). I'm fairly mechanical and decent with manuals and engines but autos throw me for a loop. Anyways...

Starts just fine and idles fine. In drive it runs in first fine up to the rpm shifting point to 2nd then instead of shifting it just drops all power and does not regain and there is no response from the gas pedal. I can then shift it to neutral and back to D and it will do the same thing. Going downhill it runs fine but on flat ground or a hill and the power disappears. Also when I come to a stop light it tries to stay driving in gear. It is not the normal inch ahead when you let off the gas, it was apply a lot of pressure to brakes because the car wanted to jump and run. It was also shaking because of the amount of power trying to move forward. I put it in neutral and it calmed down and idled perfect. Then shift to d again it starts all over.

Not one hundred percent positive but it doesn't exactly seem like a gas situation since there is no misfire or hesitation in neutral or first gear but something is going haywire when it hits that first shifting point

Only one code and my mom said it came after a while of driving like this and it was p0132 (o2 sensor from what I read).

I am good with reading wires and feel confident with working on the car so if anyone has an idea of what to check let me know. I do not have a fsm for this car yet. Just trying to get my mom back on the road ASAP. Thanks.

 

Welcome to the forum

Reads like an engine issue not transmission from your description.

You don't mention REVing up the engine when in Park, and if it REVs up fine.

p0132 indicates Upstream O2 sensor Bank 1 sensor 1(closest to the engine) is not switching back and forth from low to high voltage.
O2 sensors measure the oxygen level in the exhaust, low voltage means high oxygen(lean), high voltage means low oxygen(rich)

2002 still uses narrow band O2 so .1volt to .9volt is the range
O2s generate this voltage by chemical reaction, similar to a battery so they do wear out, life expectancy is 100k-125k miles.

p0132 says O2 is staying at high voltage, so either engine is running too rich or there is a short in the O2 wiring.
O2 sensors have heaters, they get 12volts when key is on to pre-heat them, they need to be above 600degF to work.
There are 4 wires to O2 sensors, 12v + ground(heater), and O2 voltage out, 2 wires
If one of the heater wires shorts to O2 voltage wires then high voltage would be the result.
So check the wires carefully they are near exhaust, of course, so can get burned.
Check for moisture in the connector as well.
If over 100k miles replace that O2 sensor
Light blue/orange wire is 12v heater wire, Red/white wire is heater's Ground but runs to computer, so computer can monitor if heater is getting the 12volts

Pull out 1 spark plug, or more, look at the tip, see if engine is indeed running Rich, darker tip, blackish.
Good burn will be very light brown, even still white if plugs are newer


Next thought is fuel filter, limit fuel to injectors

Next would be fuel pump itself, same limited flow
But these should cause "running out of gas" feeling like you said

2002 Rangers use Returnless system that should run at 65psi fuel pressure.
There will be a test port on engines fuel rail for a pressure gauge, you can rent these or some auto parts stores loan them out.
With gauge connected start engine and watch pressure, should be 60-70psi
Raise RPMs to 3,000 and hold there while watching pressure, should hold no lower than 60psi, if it is slowly dropping then replace filter first and retest.

At the end of the fuel rail is the Pulse Damper, when running fuel pressure above 50psi you will get pressure waves in the fuel rail as injectors open and close, Pulse damper is just a rubber diaphragm that absorbs these waves so they don't reflect and build up.
On this Pulse Damper is a vacuum hose, a safety feature in case Damper leaks, if Damper does leak then raw fuel would be sucked into the intake manifold causing Rich running.
Check this vacuum hose for fuel or fuel smell.

Clogged exhaust, this limits power with no misfires, any piston engine is just a self powered air pump, if air can't get out then new air can't get in, so when limited outflow is reached engine simply can't get more power, not enough new air, with fuel, can get in, no misfires but Rich running would occur.
A Vacuum gauge is a cheap($20) tool that works on any gasoline engine and can tell you ALOT about condition of engine, including exhaust flow
Good read here on that: Technical Articles: Engine testing with a Vacuum Gauge - at Greg's Engine & Machine

2.3l DOHC Duratec engine uses IMRC(intake manifold runner control) this is like a mini-super charger, but it will usually throw a code if there is a problem.
But symptom is a lack of power, and usually misfires

 

Ok that's interesting that you think that. I'm testing fuel pressure in another car today so ill check this as well. I was thinking more along the lines of something electrical and computer related to the tranny, not the tranny itself. I figured the lean code was because the engine runs fine to the high rpm limit of first gear then when it wants to shift to 2nd it dumps the gas and the throttle body is still open but it never shifts and the gas doesn't return. Was thinking since it doesn't shift it would be something with or in line with the tcu or tcm(not sure what the ranger uses). But since the fuel doesn't return until I shift back to neutral I'll check the fuel issues as well. Thanks

 

The EEC-V computer runs both engine and transmission(automatic), Ford calls it a PCM, powertrain control module

Yes the 2002 transmission is fully controlled, all shifts are done by the computer via solenoids in the transmission.
Highly monitored system so you would expect trans codes if there was a problem with wiring to or in the transmission.
When you turn on the key 12volts goes to transmission connector and all 5 solenoids get/share that 12volts, then each solenoid's other wire goes back separately thru connector to the computer, computer monitors if it is "seeing" that 12volts thru each solenoid, thats step one.
Then computer Grounds each solenoid to move its valve, as a test, to see if voltage changes, a draw, step two.
So if there was an internal issue it should show up as a P0700-P0800 code
Not all code readers pick those up, but most do

One other test you can do, unplug the MAF(mass air flow) sensor, this will put computer into Limp Mode, transmission shifting will be harsher, and follow RPM/speed only shift pattern.

REVing an engine with no load(stopped/Neutral) is much different than when engine has a load, computer calculates load by MAF sensor, throttle position and RPM

 

Ok I'll check the MAF later when I check fuel pressure. I just know when I was revving in neutral and park I was able to test for no exhaust restriction and no vacuum problems. It has a new fuel pump from a big box store. It should be good but I have also had fuel pumps and the like bad out of the box from those stores and I didn't install it so I definitely won't rule it out yet.

Thanks for the trans info. I have only had manuals in my life and my current jeep is pre obd's and computer stuff in general and everything runs fine off just a couple sensors. So the mechanics of engines and whatnot I'm good with but computers controlling everything can make my life really easy(codes and self adjusting) or really frustrating(codes and everything is connected so it's harder to isolate).

 

Yes, the basics are all the same, for engines and transmissions, and they are far less trouble than in the "old days", most forget HAVING TO adjust carbs, points and spark timing ALL THE TIME when wishing for the "good ol' days", lol

The computer sensors and controls, are fairly simple, most can be tested.
The computer is not really a "computer" like we think of them, it is just a large number calculator, to adjust air:fuel mix on the fly.
And responds to IF>THEN logic, not very complex
It doesn't even know your are trying to start the engine until Crank sensor starts to pulse, lol.
Not much "smarter" than a vending machine from the 1970's.
But super reliable because of that