Transmission will not ingage into drive

Tiny
THOMAS CLARK4
  • MEMBER
  • 1997 FORD THUNDERBIRD
  • 3.8L
  • V6
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 90,000 MILES
I let car sit for 2 years and transmission was strong, got it started and transmission would slip on take off. Went around block and parked it. Next day car would not even go into drive, but went into reverse fine. Bought and changed all solenoids, filter and speed sensors. But still no drive, only reverse.
Friday, September 27th, 2019 AT 12:47 PM

5 Replies

Tiny
94 TRANSAM
  • MECHANIC
  • 680 POSTS
Hi welcome to 2CarPros.

Have you plugged in a scanner to see if you have any transmission codes?

Here is a guide to get you started:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/automatic-transmission-problems

Rich
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Saturday, September 28th, 2019 AT 11:05 AM
Tiny
THOMAS CLARK4
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
Did plug in scanner but no codes came up.
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Saturday, September 28th, 2019 AT 3:35 PM
Tiny
94 TRANSAM
  • MECHANIC
  • 680 POSTS
Transmissions are tough to diagnose because many things can cause the same symptoms and 90% of those things are inside it. Based on what you are telling me I would say the most likely would be the internal seals dried out and cracked and you are losing internal pressure which would require a rebuild.

It is possible but less likely that a valve in the valve body is hanging up. You could drop the valve body and go through it as a last ditch effort before dropping the transmission.

Newer seals can sit but once they get this kind of mileage on them they dry out and the only thing that keeps them alive is the hot oil they are continuously soaked in. When that stops they simply shrink and crack.

Let me know what you find out or if you need any help with the valve body.

Rich
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Saturday, September 28th, 2019 AT 7:06 PM
Tiny
THOMAS CLARK4
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
Luckily one of my dad old friends showed up for a visit and he is a 35 year transmission re-builder. So I asked him and he said that the clutch plates are notorious for crumbling in this transmission. So we are going to pull it out and he is going to tear it apart and see what he can find out.I will post updates as it goes. Maybe a few weeks as I am installing a new motor in my 1987 Buick.
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Sunday, September 29th, 2019 AT 6:53 AM
Tiny
94 TRANSAM
  • MECHANIC
  • 680 POSTS
Great, keep us posted. We like to know what goes wrong so we can log it to the memory banks.

Rich
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Sunday, September 29th, 2019 AT 9:39 AM

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