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Official A4LD Problem Thread!


sbricker

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1996 4.0 Auto Band Adjustment Problems

Hello, I am having some trouble with the band adjustment. First off, how to overcome the square bolt head without the shmancy ford torque wrench? Second, what constitutes a turn? I marked a point on the bolt head and moved it around twice, but with varying results( some gears no working)

Thank you
 


Euphtech

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Long story short, dipstick showing over full on 3 quarts and no gears engaging

I bought this 91 Ranger for $500. It always shifted strong into R but sometimes slow into D. Replaced filter, helped a little... did A LOT of reading on this site. Finally it stopped shifting into drive all together so I bought a $200 rebuild kit off eBay and started removing the transmission. I chickened out and took the transmission to a guy to do the rebuild. Picked it up a few days later and put it back in. Now the fun begins...

I expected a rebuilt transmission to take around 8-9 quarts of fluid... don't ask me why, I don't know. Quart 5 started pouring right back out of the transmission. Way overfull. Drop the pan, remove some fluid. I don't know how much.

Check the dipstick and it is showing full. Start the truck. No reverse, no drive, no nothing. Dipstick still shows full. Linkage is hooked up properly.

Drop pan, check linkage inside, everything looks good. Pour fluid back into bottles... ONLY 2 QUARTS?

Replace pan. 1 quart. Full. 2ND quart. Overfull. 3rd quart more over full. Start truck, no gears engage and the fluid doesn't seem to want to circulate into the transmission. I can finally get reverse and drive to bump a little if I Rev it up to 3500 rpms. Truck moves about a foot.

From what I have read, it should take 3.5 quarts to fill up after dropping the pan. The guy who rebuilt the tranny is totally flaking on me so he is no help. Any ideas?
 

flathead4848

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a4ld

I have read the posts here and I have nothing good to say about the a4ld. I have a 93 ranger I bought it from the company I worked for. It got serviced regularly but trans went out at 10,000 miles It was replaced by the dealer It went again at 150,000.Company bought a rebuilt. I put it in, went out again at 175,000. Got a low mile junk yard unit lasted 50,000. boss wrecked it Company totaled it so I bought it for $500.004 months later reverse went out . got another put it in worked pretty good for a cheapy. this oneis now out after I put in new seal and torque converter. my part it out or change it to a stick. No one in my area will rebuild it and no junk yards has one. looked on line for one and cheapest $1,000. Well that's my story and Iam sticking to it flathead4848
 

Chato308

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What upgrades to do?

Okay so I'll cut to the chase, I posted in the intro section with no luck so I'm posting here. I recently bought a 1990 Ranger 4.0 OHV A4LD 4x4 with 212k miles. I bought it knowing OD didn't engage but it came with a spare "good" transmission. Well I've been trying to diagnose the problem with its current bad OD. Well here's what's going on with it:

-I have to wait till the RPM's drop under 1k before shifting into gear
- If I shift directly to OD it doesn't engage and just revs. If I go from P to any other gear besides OD it shifts no problem. I can still manually shift into OD when I reach highway speeds but need to shift down to D when my RPMs/speed drops too far in order to keep my transmission engaged. Now I did notice when my Radiator coolant resvior was low that after the truck warmed up it wouldn't engage the TC which in turn wouldn't let me manually shift into OD either.

Now my plan is to tear apart my spare A4LD and do little things to make it more reliable. Now my question is what are some "must have" upgrades for these transmissions? My Ford A4LD service manual will be in soon so I plan on tearing into it soon. My spare transmission is suppose to be good so I shouldn't have to worry about broken gears or major hard parts. But we all know how these "good spares" usually work lol so I want to go over it whole it's not attached to the truck.
 

Shran

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-I have to wait till the RPM's drop under 1k before shifting into gear
- If I shift directly to OD it doesn't engage and just revs. If I go from P to any other gear besides OD it shifts no problem. I can still manually shift into OD when I reach highway speeds but need to shift down to D when my RPMs/speed drops too far in order to keep my transmission engaged. Now I did notice when my Radiator coolant resvior was low that after the truck warmed up it wouldn't engage the TC which in turn wouldn't let me manually shift into OD either
I don't really know a whole lot about how they work, A4LDs are a waste of time IMO but that sounds like a low fluid issue to me. They are really sensitive about having not enough or too much fluid.

Could also be a shift linkage issue? Every A4LD I've driven that has lost OD simply doesn't have it, it will never engage, but every other gear works fine.
 

Shanghaihog

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Bronco II
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Guys,
I have an 86 Bronco II. Noticed that when I back out of the driveway (on a hill) that the truck will fall out of gear. If I give it gas then it stays in gear. Today I was in 4WD High and driving up a hill. I was accelerating then let off gas. Again, it 'lost' drive and could only be reengaged when I rolled back down to the bottom of the hill. I've done a lot of searches and haven't seen this problem repeated. Any ideas what could be the problem?
 

Barraman

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I have a 1994 Ford Ranger XLT 6cyl 4.0l 4WD with an A4LD auto transmission that has trouble shifting from 1st to 2nd gear when it is cold. Once it warms up it seems to shift ok. No smoking issues. After reading this thread I decided to buy an aftermarket adjustable modulator and replace the old one. I took out the exhaust and replaced the old modulator and put the new one in and it immediately starting blowing out volumes, I mean volumes of white smoke that smelt like oil. I reread a thread on modulator replacement and then remembered I did not see the modulator pin during the replacement. I pulled the replacement modulator out and saw there was no pin in it. I felt around the area and to my surprise I found the pin laying on the transmission. I put the pin back in with the replacement modulator and it was still pouring out white smoke....Thinking the replacement modulator was bad I went into Amazon and ordered the OEM Motorcraft modulator for $50. When it arrived I got back under the truck and removed the hose from the aftermarket modulator and noticed about a couple of ounces of oil drain out of the line. I then replaced the aftermarket modulator with the new oem modulator carefully making sure the pin was installed with it. BTW, when installing the new modulator I pushed hard on it a few times before tightening it up and felt a definite click, I hope that was something that was meant to click and not me destroying the new modulator....,I then started the engine and it is blowing a lot of white smoke again. I have started it multiple times and run it for about 10 minutes each time at which time I have to turn the car off as the smoke is so bad I worry about my neighbors. I did notice when backing it onto the street that The transmission was slipping a lot. I checked the fluid level which was low and put 600 mls in it before it got to normal fluid range (I did this while the engine was running). I still can't get reverse as it slips and it's still billowing smoke. Transmission is not slipping in drive. Need help please, it's my sons first car, we have done lots of work to the truck, it's a really nice truck and would be perfect if we could just get this transmission working. On a side note, we purchased the truck from the neighbor who let it sit in the driveway for five years without running, he's the original owner and it only has 100 000 miles on it. I hope this means the transmission should be ok. Thanks for any help from the forum.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Hitch

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92 Ranger with A4LD

I have a 92 Ranger 3.0 V-6 2 wheel drive with a A4LD, shifts fine but it does not go into overdrive. It only shifts 2 times and I can't feel the converter lock up if it has a lock up. It was like this when I bought don't know how long it's been like this. It has no over drive button on the shifter but the indicator has 2 drives one with a circle around it that I run it in. Any suggestions.
 

The Kiln

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1988 Ford Ranger 2wd, 2.9 L 6 cyl, A4LD with Overdrive

My Ranger's a4ld transmission suddenly began slipping out of gear recently. The a4ld is the original, factory-installed transmission, with 125K miles on it. It was pulling strong and steady in all gears until the sudden jump in engine rpm's that signalled something had malfunctioned. Initially, I thought I had inadvertently bumped the floor shifter into neutral. Such was not the case. I made it home, and had a tow truck take it to a local well-respected transmission shop in Pinebluff, NC. The owner said it needed to be rebuilt, and he could do it all for 2,333 dollars. OUch.
I found a rebuilt a4ld with 28,000 miles on it, rebuilt by another reputable transmission shop in Dobson NC (the truck was a recently deer-wrecked 1988 Ranger 4wd). I want to ask you all if it will work as a replacement. Thank you very much.
Jackson Sadler
Sandhills area of North Carolina
 

IIBRONCOS

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I have a 1988 Bronco II with the A4LD automatic transmission.
The transmission shifts great from 1-2-3-4 but acts erratic at torque converter lock-up. Sometimes the TC will lock-up and stay locked up as long as it needs. Other times it will rapidly kick in and out of Lock-up even on a level or slightly downhill road. I talked to a transmission shop today and they said it did not sound like a transmission issue but and engine issue, like a sensor, brake light switch or an RF signal picked up by the computer. The engine runs great and I don't get any CEL. The transmission has no leaks and the fluid is full and very clean. Can someone help clarify ?
Thanks.
 

Blackjaq6991

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1990
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Ra
1990 2wd only slips when in od

yup only when in od
i got this baby for 250 bucks they said the tranny was shot slipped so bad they pushed it home from the market.
i jumped it put in 1st drove it around the block and bought it
drove it home in drive no issues
but once in od it slips really bad
i changed filter and fluid normal amount of gunk in the pan fuzzy stuff on the magnet and grey goop on the bottom
tested the servos for resistance like my local auto guy advised both checked out to have proper levels as per my shop manual
and both clicked when i tested with a motorcycle battery and test leads
reassembled new fluid and at proper levels
drives like a dream just not in od .
i adjusted the band bolts like ive read but i dont think i went as far as snug just a couple turnss in from where i found them
igot the truck for the motor for my other extended cab 1990 5 speed but winter is close aand we get lots of fall rain in oregon so i just want to drive this one till spring
my 85 f150 has a beefed up 4.9l that get 9 mpg
so even in drive im doing way better closes to 14 right now but id love some input on what i might try next rebuilding is not an option since its just a donor anyway the other motor has cracked heads and spun bearings on the crank
thanks or any help Blackjaq
 

SpencerC

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wont go into reverse or park

Help please!

My sons ranger wont go into nuetral or reverse. it is parked in a parking lot against a curb, we could go forward and get up onto the sidewalk but we can not get it into nuetral to roll it backwards nor into reverse.

We are at home reading through the haynes trying to get a direction.

First what transmission does a 86 ranger 4 wheel drive with a 2.9L V6 have?
The lever is on the floor and it has 1 2 D and OD N R P.

I have looked at the linkage and everything. it goes through all the gears physically but something inside the transmission is obviously not right.
 

SCOTTY

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1990 Ford Ranger XLT 2.9 V6 Auto.

Problem: No OD

Solution: Temp sensor connector (NOT the sending unit connector to gauge)
was loose. :yahoo:
 
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Braindead

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My credo
They say it can't be done, so I did it. Again
A4ld

My current A4LD 2WD Ranger was bought with the express advisory that "the transmission is dead and smokes up a storm behind you".
After firing it up I put it into gear and after making a sound I have NEVER heard from anything mechanical, and lurching in false neutral for a moment, I was able to drive it home about 12-15 miles through afternoon pre-rush hour traffic in the center of the city without any issues whatsoever. Subsequently I drove the truck a few times to the store on errands and such. When started it goes into gear immediately, then after about 10 to 30 seconds it goes to false neutral for a bit. If in a hurry I give it a jab at the gas pedal one, two or occasiuonally three times and it catches. Usually OK from that point on, but this is just short trips of five miles or less.
No attempt on a repair yet, it is about the fifth vehicle on the "to-do" list since it is essentially ready to run in a pinch.
I have had many vehicles, quite a few of them were/are Rangers and Explorers. I have always avoided the automatic versions but sometimes they start out as parts vehicles that are too nice to part out. That's when I get A4LD's
From what I have read, Ford was going to build an overdrive automatic for four and six cylinder compact vehicles and was deciding on whether to use the C4, which was used for V8 Mustangs, V6 Pintos, and many small block intermediate cars and light trucks. The alternative was to use the C3 trans which was not considered strong enough to use in a Pinto behind anything bigger than a four cylinder, and never in anything like a commercial vehicle, such as a pickup truck.
Obviously they have to use the C4, right?
Well no, because they let idiots called "accountants" make technical decisions. So, they used the C3.
I am only going by what I have read, but it sounds consistent with the practices in Detroit at the time. Which is why companies like Mercedes have good reputations, they never let accountants make important decisions.
I also read that the accountants were the ones that ruled out IRS for the 64 Mustang. Decisions made today affect a company's reputation, and therefore the profit margin long into the future in the auto industry.
Other than the nearly useless automatics, the Ranger became one of the most competent vehicles you can buy in any class.
Save a buck today to lower your reputation tomorrow.
BTW, if you want to build a C4, use the straight six cylinder F100 - F150 C4. It is the strongest one made, it has a separate ring of bolts for the pump and bell housing, no other C4 that I know of has this. Just swap out the bell housing for the one you need.
 

Neusser

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1988
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Ford Ranger
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2.9 V6
Transmission
Automatic
2WD / 4WD
2WD
Greetings from Germany guys,

My 88 Ranger 2,9 2wd got a little Problem with the Overdrive. I have to go over 60mph before it shifts in OD. The other gears are working fine. Fluid level is OK. I have searched a lot about the Transmission, i know that the OD gets the signal from the computer.
next to the speedometer cable is a plug thats empty. there is no wire.
the 2 pin plug next to the shifter mechanic is empty too.
only the round plug has a connecting wire harness.

what do i have to do to make it shift earlier?

thanks for your help
Ulli
 
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