Drivetrain 94 Gt Aode Gear Hunting.

[CorbinGT]

Hello friends,

Please I am in desperate need of help everyone. I have an 94 GT with the AODE with 62K miles. Mods are basic bolt ons (heads, intake & exhaust) Rebuilt Trans 5K miles, 3 years ago by a shop.. warranty has expired. (Basic Rebuild, nothing special). The fluid is FULL the color is RED, no deposits in it. It does not burn fluid at all. I have replaced the TPS, the VSS & MLPS in my driveway. The car drives perfect when I first fire her up, no issues, no slips, no hard shifts. After driving for 20-30 minutes it will hunt for gears ONLY after I let off of the throttle. (Downshift then upshift 2 times) It hunts between 4th & 3rd gear. On the highway w/ the cruise control ON it will NOT do it.


ALSO the car has a problem starting in first gear after 20-30 minutes as well. Like it hesitates to go into gear. I would not call it a slip but it imitates one. If I give it too much gas, it will rev up and won't go into 1st right away like the Torque Converter is not locking but if I "ease" into it the car engages fine. If I ease into it then go WOT it does not rev up it pulls hard and strong as a 5.0 should NOTE: THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN WHEN I HAVE IT MANUALLY IN FIRST GEAR.


Do i need another rebuild? Do you think I could have improperly aligned the MLPS? Could the piggy-back to the MLPS be bad? I had it not start for me on ONE occasion while it was in park but I got it to start in neutral. What about the Shifter Cable? Do you think my throttle body cable could be the culprit? It seems to have some slack in it after I reinstalled my TB replacing my TPS.

All input is welcome & appreciated. - Corbin

 

[addermk2]

TCCoA Transmission Article - Page 4
TCCoA Transmission Article - Page 15

TCCoA Tech Articles



FYI, your throttle cable has nothing to do with transmission operation. Your trans is computer controlled and does not rely on a TV cable.

Im curious what your trans fluid temp looks like.

 

[toyman]

MLPS? Is that the same as the TR (Transmission Range) sensor? A bad TR will trigger a 522 trouble code. To test the TR you will need to check the resistance between the TR sensor terminals following the different gear selections. Definitely adjust the shifter cable to ensure it's properly set.

 

[addermk2]

Manual lever position sensor.

Actual ford name.

 

[Chythar]

Early versions of the MLPS were not properly weather sealed and would go bad over time. If yours is one of the earlier ones it may be bad. Newer versions of the MLPS have a visible orange gasket, like in the image below:

While you're there, double check that the MLPS is aligned correctly. Put the car in neutral, and check if the two lines are aligned, as shown below:

If they're not aligned, loosen the bolts and rotate the MLPS until the lines are aligned as close as you can.

 

[CorbinGT]

Thanks for your input fellas, I really do appreciate it. addermk2 thanks for the input regarding the TB cable & the links I bookmarked them I know the AOD is reliant on them...was unsure about the AODE. Like I said the fluid is fine..no deposits at all... The temp gauge is always below halfway.. No overheating of the Trans.

toyman, what is the shifter cable supposed to be adjusted at? Is there a certain torque or position it needs to be in? When I was underneath my car it seemed to have SLIGHT play in the bolt (I was able to wiggle it). This is next to the MLPS correct?

THANK YOU Chythar i appreciate the pics. I am thinking the MLPS may not be aligned correctly because once again today I was unable to start my car in park for the first time, but after driving for 5 minutes then starting it up again it worked. I will have to wait till tomorrow when I am back at work to have it up in the air to see.

If I had the MLPS aligned wrong how sensitive is the alignment? This really started to happen after a day of racing around town and on the highway. Could driving my vehicle how it should be driven (Hard) cause the MLPS to move out of alignment? When I replaced the sensor it seemed to be aligned? Like I said this does not happen when I manually start in first gear, and after 20-30 minutes of driving it will up shift and down shift after letting off of the throttle...

All input or suggestions are appreciated
Thanks again - Corbin

 

[Chythar]

I missed the part where you had replace the MLPS already. If the bolts on the MLPS weren't very tight or came loose, it could definitely cause issues. Especially if the sensor kept moving around. The shifter cable is obviously how you manually select gears with the shifter, and the MLPS is the only way the computer knows what gear you want. The only electronics in the auto shifter is for lighting.

I don't know how precise the MLPS alignment needs to be, but since you're having troubles it can't hurt to align it as perfect as you can. As to play in the shifter cable bolts, I don't remember how much play is allowed, if any - it's been a while since I've owned a Mustang with an AODE.

Just had a random thought - have you checked your VSS (Vehicle Speed Sensor)? I remember having a hunting gear issue when the plastic gear in the VSS stripped when I last had an AODE. The VSS is the blue sensor that sticks out of the back of the transmission, on the driver's side I believe. One bolt lets you remove the VSS and inspect the plastic gear.

Have you ever upgraded the gears in the rear differential? the only time I've personally heard of the VSS gear stripping is when they have 3.73 or 4.10 gears installed in the rear diff. To correct the speedometer in this case, you have to use a non-Ford gear with really thin teeth - and the teeth can strip.

 

[toyman]

The shifter cable connects next to the TR sensor or MLPS (Ford calls it a TR in the '95 service manual). Put the shifter in Drive position against the rear Drive stop (on the console). From under the car loosen the shift cable-to-manual lever retaining nut. Move the manual lever to the Drive position by moving the lever all the way forward until it stops, then pull it back three detent positions. With both the shift lever and manual lever now in the Drive position tighten the adjusting nut securely.