Originally Posted by mpeoples  Hi. I'm a DIYer (no expert), but I did rebuild my own AX4N transmission, so I've seen the guts of the thing. There's a couple of things to check:
- Is the fluid burned? If it dark or black, or has black specks in it, you probably chewed up a clutch pack. You can usually check it by taking the transmission fluid dipstick out, and dripping fluid on a white piece of paper. The better way is to drop the transmission pan and have a look, but it's messy.
- The other thing you need to look for in the fluid is any metallic particles. You might see these by dripping fluid on the paper, but you might not see any. That's because there's a magnet in the pan that's suppose to keep them from flowing back into the transmission. If you drop the pan, you would see them if they exist. You would also see them in the filter.
That said, there's a problem with some older (mine was a 1996 Windstar AX4S) where the wave spring in the direct clutch (I can't remember which, but it doesn't matter), breaks, which causes the clutch pack to partially engage, and this eventually causes it to wear out. If you see a lot black specks, that's where they are most likely coming from.
I'm currently rebuilding an 1997 AX4N with a friend, and the problem with it was a valve in the valve body that jammed because of a broken retain clip. Sonnax has a technical note on this, and it is a known problem. To fix it, you have to buy the kit and the reaming tool, which will cost you about $100.00 or so. If this valve jams, a clutch pack gets shredded.
If you see metal in the fluid, then a sprag or bearing might have gone bad.
That all said, my experience with the Windstar was tough (you know when you only only do things once, you make all the mistakes). However, there's no reason why you can't rebuild it yourself for $200 - $300, assuming there are no major hard parts damaged.
The difficulty with the Windstar is the fact that you have remove the engine support to get it out. This requires a hoist, and something to hold the engine up after the support is removed. Ford, of course, has a special set of brackets for this, but I made my own out of uni-strut, threaded rod, some bolts, and chain.
You will need to get an ATSG manual (or better still, the factory service manual, which I have for my Windstar). You might also use a Haynes guide, as they will usually tell you how to get the transmission out. The pictures should make it clear what you have to do to support the engine. I suppose you could just leave it on the hoist, but you're going to have to figure a way to support the engine if you're going to work under it safely.
You'll also need a transmission lift or a floor jack with something to support the transmission. I suppose you and a friend could guide it down, but dropping it would be bad. You'll also need help getting the support member down as it's heavy.
What I've just describe will be pretty obvious to you, so you're not going to need any special tools or anything, just yet.
Now, if you decide to directly inspect the shift solenoids, it can be done with the transmission still in the vehicle, it's just not easy. I don't know what the differences are between a 1996 and a 2003, but I could get the cover off of the front of the transmission while it was still in the vehical. You have to support the transmission and engine, remove all the the "stuff" that's in front to the cover, then remove the front transmission support bracket that surrounds the cover. At that point, you can work the cover off. It also helps if you lift the end of the engine with the cover up a few inches (which may require loosening some mounting bolts). This give a bit of extra clearance.
You can check the solenoid's resistance using a mult-meter, but you could also do that without remove the cover, by checking the electrical connector on top of the transmission. You'll need a manual with the pinouts, but that's as good a way as any, and should probably be done first before you remove anything. The resistance values will be in the ATSG manual (which you can get from any transmission supply place).
If you find a bad solenoid, replacing them is pretty easy, and they're not very expensive.
If you do have to remove the transmission, the rebuild will be described in the ATSG manual. You've done stuff like this before, so you shouldn't have any problems with this.
The reason it costs so much to have AAMCO do it, is it's so time consuming to get the transmission out and in. So, work carefully. My mistakes required me to remove it two additional times (although I got pretty good at).
You should allow a couple of weekends for this, and having a friend around (who at least can hand you tools) really helps. The rebuild itself isn't rocket science, so your past experience indicates you shouldn't have any problems with it.
Remember to check the resistance on those solenoids!
This might have been a bit rambling, but that's just me. Let me know if you need more help. |
