Please help me transmission guys! (AllanD?)

[Hardwareman]

My neighbor just gave me her 1996 Mercury Mystique with 95,000 miles on it! The engine runs excellent but the tranny does'nt want to drive forward, it only works in reverse. There is also a clunking loose sound in the bellhousing when trying to drive it in any forward gear.

Could I be lucky enough to get away with just a torque converter swap? How do you check for that? Thanks.



Allen

 

[Hardwareman]

That's ok. I'm just going to tear into it this weekend and replace it if necessary with a salvage yard one. I just discovered that the Ford Contour uses the same drivetrain.





Allen

 

[Mutant Pony]

Since you have reverse It is not the torque converter. I would say it is a hard part inside the trans that has failed. Considering the trans, I would start calling junk yards for a good used one.

 

[Hardwareman]

Thanks Mutant! I'm not very experienced in automatic trannys so I really appreciate the help!

Once I get the donor would it be wise to reuse the existing torque converter? And how is it installed? Thanks.



Allen

 

[baddis]

i wouldn't . for the simple fact that there could be large chunks of material inside it.

 

[Mutant Pony]

Use the torque converter that comes with the trans. If it doesn't come with one you'll need to get a replacement. DO NOT USE THE ONE THAT IS IN IT NOW. It will be full of contamination, It will ruin the new trans. The converter must be fully installed in the trans during installation, If it is not ALL the way in, the trans will be damaged when you bolt it to the motor.
Ford uses studs on the converter. Line up the flywheel and torque converter before installation. Two studs straight up and down for instance.
It has been a while since I put a trans in a contour/mistake. Otherwise I would give you more valuable tips.

 

[Hardwareman]

Man, thanks for all the valuable information!

All right then, I'll make sure the torque converter is fully seated into the tranny before installing it and also will not use the old torque converter. I'll also check on the marks or studs or whatever is there to properly align the converter to the flywheel.

Hopefully all goes well.........and yeah this car kind of reminds me of the older Ford Taurus...lol




Allen

 

[Bent Bolt]

Man, thanks for all the valuable information!

All right then, I'll make sure the torque converter is fully seated into the tranny before installing it and also will not use the old torque converter. I'll also check on the marks or studs or whatever is there to properly align the converter to the flywheel.

Hopefully all goes well.........and yeah this car kind of reminds me of the older Ford Taurus...lol

Allen

But much,much harder to work on. Those trannys are NOT easy to remove if it's a V6.

 

[Hardwareman]

Dude! You're not kidding!

In order for me to remove this damn tranny I have to pull the entire motor out with a puller and disassemble on the bench. What a nightmare man! I could of course remove the subframe, but why do all that work when pulling the engine is way easier in this case.

I have everything unbolted except where the exhaust manifold bolts to the pipe and the pulling of the wheels to remove the axle shafts. ALL the motor mounts are off and even the wierd bracket assembly that holds the passenger side axle shaft is removed. I don't have a engine hoist so I'll probably have to wait until next weekend now when I can go buy one at Harbor Freight.

I'll Take some pictures and post up during the event to show and tell how everything's going. I can't believe a vehicle like this was manufactured. What a nightmare to work on!

One more question guys: I've already been to the pick-n-pull and there are TONS of donors out there. Any way of figuring how a tranny is good or not? I would hate to do all this work only to put a bad tranny back in you know? Thanks.


Allen

 

[Will]

Probably broke a band. If it has a pan, pull it and see if anything falls out. The bands wrap around a planetary drum and stop the drum by pulling tight around it. When they break, parts of them drop into the pan or bounce around in the works, which is probably what you are hearing.

The best you can do in judging a junkyard tranny is to smell the fluid to see if it is burned and have a look in the pan. When a car dies because of tranny failure you'll generally see parts in the pan or smell the burned remains in the fluid.

But I don't trust any tranny I haven't seen operating. It's too much work and money to swap it in and back out again.

 

[Hardwareman]

Yep, it has a pan. If it is a band, is this something I can replace? Thanks.






Allen