[JOHNC_67]

I had a problem with my trans this past weekend. I was upstate NY,
towing a small trailer w/ quad, etc., one quad in bed, and tools.
All about 3k lbs. Not anything heavy at all. Truck ran absolutely
great. Up hills like a freight train, literally.
Now for the problem. After I got to my property, after opening gate,
I noticed trans fluid puoring out of the front of the trans from what
looks like the front pump seal (behind convertor). It was coming out
thru the hole in the convertor cover. I shut her off. Let her cool
till next day. Went into town to get some fluid. Put about 5.5 qts.
Start her up and no leaks. Everything works fine. Anyone ever
experience this. I believe I got the trans so hot and built up so much
pressure that I pushed the fluid past the seal. However, something must have caused this pressure to rise other than heat, right. If the
seal pushed out of the housing the leak would still be there when cold. Anyway, my question is what to do. Fill her up and drive her or
pull trans and get rebuilt if there is damage done. I mean what's the
point of the truck if you can't load her. Maybe a new torque convertor
Yes I do have an aux trans cooler. Any suggestions? Also, what trans
rebuilders and torque convertors do you recommend? I remember a post
a while back about using 4r100 convertors in e40d, but not sure.

Thanks,
Any responses greatly appreciated!
John C.

 

[Powerstroke2000]

John, I'm not a transmission expert by any means, but this same issue happened to my brother several years ago, while towing a horse trailer up a long steep grade.
He did the same as you...let it cool, and filled it up in the morning...and drove the truck for another year...and eventually sold it, as he wanted a Superduty.
He never did have his tranny checked, but I believe you basically "boiled" your transmission fluid, thus it had to find a way OUT. Definitely not a good thing, and you may well have done "some" damage, albeit possibly not extreme.
Do you have an "aftermarket" transmission cooler, or the stock unit? It sounds like you should have the largest possible cooler for these trucks, as I have a Tru-Cool unit and have never seen my transmission temp above 190° in the 11 years that I have owned my truck, and I've done ALOT of towing with it.

Drive it for a while, and see how it reacts, and if it gives you the least bit of problem, have it looked at. Do you know if it has ever been previously rebuilt? How many miles are on your truck?

There are alot of folks here with beefed up transmissions, so I'm sure you will get alot of advice and comments.

Best of luck!

Dale

 

[WorkinMan]

You say you have an aux trans cooler. Is it the STOCK aux trans cooler? If it is, it's junk. If it ain't stock, it sounds like maybe something is blocked. If you have a decent cooler, it shouldn't get that hot. You also need to put a transmission temp guage in there so you can monitor how hot it's getting. With a bigger cooler and a guage, you should be okay. As for what already happened, I would change the fluid and filter and just keep on driving it. I've heard of alot of people getting their transmissions so hot it puked out the front seal and still running it years later. I'm certainly not an expert, but I can certainly steer you in the direction of one. PM Richter69 and he will set you up with everything you need to make your tranny last as long as possible.
Chris

 

[John_C67]

I appreciate all your input. I was also inclined to fill'er up and drive her. I believe the cooler is aftermarket but I'm not positive since I'm not the original owner. I will try to contact Richter69 to get what I need. Also what is the difference between a stock E4OD TQ and a 2002 4R100 TQ?

Thanks Again,
John C.

 

[Nit]

in teh early yaers the front seal was junk and they do puke like that if youoverheat them , so get ? make sure youhave a good large cooler and at some time replace that seal with the new style one.

 

[trucktech]

Along with putting in a good seal, you can also drill the fluid return hole behind it to help prevent pressure buildup. Most decent shiftkits have the instructions to do it.

 

[TCH777]

The guy who built my currect tranny said that was not a really good thing to do. My previous rebuild had that in it and he said that it may not have caused the pressure loss issues that destroyed it but it sure did not help. He said that modification was thought up awhile back and most E40D builders don't do that mod anymore.

 

[trucktech]

The only pressure loss it will cause is the one directly behind the TQ seal in the very front of the pump. If pressure is lost elsewhere there is a definite problem in the trans.

 

[Richter69]

If the tranny is right and the good seal is used you do not need to redrill the drain hole. I have never done this mod and never had a problem with a seal leaking.

 

[JOHNC_67]

Well, so far so good. I also would like to thank all of you for all your advise. Thanks for the PM Richter69 & Dale I, I will be in touch.
As far as my trans cooler goes, the aux cooler is pretty big. It is 10x12 (8 pass) albeit it a tube-fin. The problem is the previous owner bypassed the radiator. So the only cooler is the aux. I may be able to get a 6.0 cooler, do You think that would be enough alone? The only reason is I'm nervous about using the radiator now is because it hasn't been used for so long. I don't know what kind of junk is in their or if it even leaks. If I can't get a 6.0 cooler, do you think I could do the same with the Tru-cool 4739?

Thanks Again,
John C.