A4LD not shifting out of 1st gear regardless of position on selector lever.

[jayE]

So, my truck is an 85 with 79,000 miles on it. It wasn't shifting into reverse and my mechanic said that the fluid looked dirty and to change it. My son did that yesterday. Initially, it shifted through the gears, 1-4, seamlessly but reverse was still an issue. Then, my son took it out last night and he said that the transmission is stuck in 1st. Naturally, he came home and swapped it out for another ride.
I drove it this morning it did stay in first regardless of whether the selector lever was in "1, 2, D, OD, N, R. Park did keep the truck from moving but at the same time it felt like it was pushing against itself. During the same ride putting the selector into "2" kept the trans in 2nd gear. Then, later with the selector in "2" it was back to being stuck in 1st gear again.
Also, the truck will start regardless of what position the gear selector is in. The fluid and filter were replaced and the fluid was Castrol Transmax DEX/MERC. Almost 4 quarts were replaced.
If anyone has experiance with a similar A4LD situation I will certainly appreciate learning what you did to fix it. Thank you very much!

 

[901wd#2]

I think it was an 87 but it may have been an 88. I was told the governor needed taken apart and cleaned. I never bothered with it.

It would only shift to second gear if you wound out first to 15 to 20 miles an hour and then let off the accelerator completely, once it got to second it would go to third and fourth also downshifting as it should.

Usually a trans fluid change requires more than 4qt.

 

[SenorNoob]

Yeah, trans fluid change should be more like 6 IIRC. Is it low?

An 85 is early enough to be different. Ya sure it's in A4LD?

Kinda sounds like the linkage is messed up somehow if it'll start in any position... Can you get 2 people to have one move the shift lever and another watch the side of the transmission to see if you can spot anything loose or broken? Don't have the engine running and keep the parking brake set or use wheel chocks!

 

[jayE]

I did add more transmisssion fluid so now I replaced almost 5 quarts. I will keep checking it to see if it needs more again but right now, it is near the top of the "x" area on the dipstick.
The transmission fluid that was replaced was filthy. The pan didn't have a magnet in it but the inside of the pan was gritty.
The 4th through 8th digits of the vin that describe the model, body type, restraint system, transmission type, and engine code are BR10S. But, I couldn't find anything online regarding the transmission using these digits. Google AI said that the AL4D was the transmission used in the 1985 2wd Ranger so I went with it.
Car-Part .com says that the automatic tranmission for the 2.8 engine was the 6-171.
Google says that 6-171 is a C4 but it also says that C4's are a 3 speed automatic tranmission. Mine does have a 4 speed automatic. So, I guess the transmission type that I have is about as clear as my old transmission fluid.
It is frequently challenging to slide the gear selector into park or into 1st. Sometimes even reverse IIRC. We will take a look and I'll post what we see. Thanks!

 

[RobbieD]

"6-171" sounds like number of cylinders and displacement in cubic inches.

If yours is a 1985, it should be an A4LD; '85 was the first year. 1984 was the last year for the C4.

'85 was kind of an odd year- last year for the 2.8, first year for the A4LD.