1997 Regular Cab 2.3L Automatic

I noticed trans fluid leaking on my driveway, so I put the truck in the air and saw that the previous owner of the truck used some mickey mouse trans pan gasket and a TON of blue RTV with it. It was leaking from the passenger side of the trans pan. So I scraped every molecule of RTV off and reinstalled with a proper gasket. Well turns out it wasn't the gasket leaking. I'm thinking it might be, what looks like, a small solenoid directly above the passenger side of the trans pan. The fluid is running down the outside of the pan and making it look like a trans pan gasket problem. Anyone have any insight here? Anyone have an exploded view of the automatic transmission on my truck? Any diagrams? Anything?

 

Sounds like the intermediate servo or overdrive servo has a leak at the seal. These are under spring pressure and need a special tool to hold them for servicing. The covers are 5 bucks, the tool is about 100 bucks. Scroll down to step 26 on this page to see a step by step, keep in mind the transmission is upside down.

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/...d.php?t=285161


Seal
http://www.bulkpart.com/Merchant2/me...ory_Code=4R44E

Tool

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Rotunda-T74P...83838746287058

http://www.shopfreedomracing.com/Ser...7-340-Used.htm

 

Thank you so much for your reply. Which in that link are you talking about? # A56904AH Servo COVER $4.92? And from that walk-through, it looks like there are two? So I should probably buy two and just replace them both? Are they the same part?

 

My ford manual lists different reference numbers for them, but I don't have the part numbers. You will need to check the casting numbers to see which seals you need.

If I were you I would get a quote from a trans shop, as that tool is rather expensive for a one time use.

 

I'm good friends with some mechanics at a GM dealership. I asked my buddy and he said, though he didn't have the tool, someone else in the shop would have it to borrow. Just kind of a pain in the *** to take it to the shop during a random slow time, rack it up, and try to find a part number right on the covers themselves. While hoping we don't have to actually take them out to see the numbers. Then I'd have to put it all back together and order the parts online. Which basically means we'd be doing the job twice. Ya know?

The cover listed for $4.92 in the link you gave lists a 2.075 ID cap and notes that it can be used to upgrade the piston size. Then references the piston right above it. Does this mean it won't work without upgrading the piston? Because there's like 6 different pistons listed all with different ID. Just confusing.

In the walkthrough you gave me above, it shows 7D027 and 7L493 as the covers and seals. Think these are part numbers? I've googled them for awhile and came across a whole slew of other parts/part numbers and I'm a little confused. This seems like a pretty inclusive lists of the servo parts. But it lists several "covers" for each servo and for each motor size. Again, confusing.

 

Those numbers are from the ford manual and I think you need to cross reference them with a book from ford.


As I search the net, I find that the leak can be caused by the bore wearing out and needing a larger piston, this is the kit to get the larger piston installed.

http://www.servobore.com/kits/a4ld.html

What a can of worms here.

 

You're telling me!!!

Ok. I've gotten the numbers off the outside of the servo...cover I guess? I was using a tiny inspection mirror, so hopefully my 9's aren't 6's and vice versa. hahaha (pretty sure I got them correct though)

The front (overdrive?) servo is 6452/1 R3T9A

The rear (intermediate?) servo is 6509/1 R3T9A (and I think this is the one leaking)

Googling and searching through parts catalogs with those numbers yields nothing. There was no other numbers that I could see. Just those numbers, a Ford symbol, two giant letters "BB", and two symbols that were just circles with lines through the middle.

Forward servo:


Whole forward servo. You can see the only other markings in this picture.


Rear servo I believe is the culprit:


Obviously i wiped them a little clean so I could read the numbers and take the pictures. The rear one was nasty.

 

Anyone?

 

These are like trade secrets or something. Have you tried the ford parts counter?

 

Odd you mention that. I'm headed there tomorrow. Fingers crossed, but from previous experiences with dealerships....ehhh

 

Ok so I think I've found the correct part. After my last post, I found an exploded diagram which I have attached. So it looks like maybe the part number is 7D040.

So today I went to my Ford dealership and just asked them for "the seals for both the overdrive and intermediate trans servos." I didn't tell them any part numbers or anything more than that. After poking around their computer, they came up with the seals and told me they were $3.23 each. So I said I'll take two. When they handed them over, they were in a bag with the part number E6TZ-7D040-A and the description "seal". Exactly the same part number I previous saw on my diagram. So it appears as though this is probably the correct part. Now all that is left is to give the install a go. Hopefully the piston hasn't bored out the housing and caused the leak. Gonna be hard to tell and I'm hoping to find obvious seal failure.

 

With half the the number missing from the diagram they really bend you over the barrel, at least they were cheap.

Don't forget you will need a that tool to compress the spring in order to release the snap ring. Also check to see the bore is smooth and does not need to be reamed for a larger seal.

 

Job is complete!

You don't need the tool. The spring is super easy to compress and Ford completely over does the safety. I just pushed against it with my thumb and it pushed right in. After seeing that, I felt comfortable enough to just go at it. It was NO problem. Came right apart with no issues. The seal on the overdrive servo seemed fine, but I replaced it anyway. However, the seal on the intermediate servo was rock hard, like it was made of solid plastic. I had to use a pick tool to remove it and it just snapped into bits upon removal. I slapped the new seal in there so we'll see if that stops my leak.

What I think may have been the cause. The catalytic converter was like 4" from the servo cover and there's no type of heat shield. I'm thinking maybe that extreme amount of heat screwed up the seal. I took the exhaust down (from the down pipe back) and used a pry bar to put a slight bend in it. Once the exhaust was back in place, it's about 8" from the servo cover. Thinking this might help.

 

Problem solved!

It's been a few days now and I have been steadily checking for leaks. Crawling under my truck and checking the servo area/trans pan for trans fluid. None so far! I used to leave a spot about the size of a tea cup plate overnight. Not a drop in nearly 3 days! Thank you so much to Blhde for your help and being the only one to probably even read my post. :-)

 

He wasn't the only one to read it, lol. I didn't answer because that is beyond me but I read it because I like to learn as much as I can. I am glad you got her fixed!

This site is pretty useful, huh?

 

Good to know you didn't need the tool, amazing how a few bucks of rubber can cause so much grief.

 

Sounds like a good fix... Congrats

 

I have a 99 xlt with the infamous 2nd to 3rd flare. I've changed fluid, filter, adjusted bands to spec and they were not effective. Which means servo replacement. My question is do I have to drop the trans to remove/replace the servo pistons?

 

It was years ago, but I don't recall having to on my 97.