Hi all, I'm having issues with my 2002 Mazda B3000 3.0L with the 5R44E automatic transmission. Here are the symptoms:

~5 sec delay before it goes into gear when shifted into reverse
~5 sec delay before it goes into gear when shifted in to drive or 1st
- Harsh shifts immediately after moderate to heavy acceleration
- Harsh shifts when transmission is cold, particularly into drive
- Doesn't kick down to lower gear unless almost full throttle is applied
- Possible slippage in 3rd gear (engine RPM's will jump up a few hundred RPM when throttle is increased slightly while cruising)
- Have not noticed flaring when transmission is shifting

Any idea on what may be causing this? I did a few searches and it sounds like there are many TSB's and issues with this transmission, so I'm not quite sure where to start. A few ideas would be to change the valve body and partition plate gaskets, change filter, and change fluid. Any other recommendations? Thanks!

 

All automatic transmissions run on Fluid Pressure
This Pressure is created by the Front Pump, it is in the front of the transmission, and connected directly to the torque converter, so always spins at engine RPMs, and it Pumps ATF through the system, higher RPMs = higher pressure

Reverse requires highest pressure to engage, 150+ PSI, this is why losing Reverse or slow engaging Reverse is the first sign of a internal pressure issue

Automatics just have one planetary gear set, so they don't "shift" gears like in a manual transmission, which is why they are so smooth when "shifting"
They have clutches and brakes(bands), the clutches engage or disengage rotations of certain planetary gears and the bands(brakes) hold the other planetary gears from spinning when its clutch is disengaged
The clutches and bands are all activated and deactivated by.................................FLUID PRESSURE
This pressure it routed to where it needs to go by the Valve Body's passages
In the old days spring valves opened and closed to route the ATF based on Pressure building up and dropping down
Newer transmissions uses Solenoids to route the pressure thru the valve body passages, this is much better for smoother shifts and MPG because "shift points" can be set for specific engine's RPM torque range,so best power and best MPG both

So your problem reads like you are losing fluid pressure somewhere, valve body is the most common place to get leaking valves and gaskets
Slow engaging and slipping means pressure is too low

You should see if there are any Transmission Codes, these start with P07xx, the xx IDs what computer sees as a problem
A transmission shop can test the Pressure at different places in the system, which "may" point to a more specific place.

The Clutches and the Bands(brakes) wear out in the transmission just like they do in the rest of the vehicle, they are immersed in fluid, they are cooled down so they don't wear out as fast as say front brake pads, but they do wear out.
So if you are at or above 200k miles then a rebuild is in order to change the clutches and bands
If you use a 2nd trans cooler then you can get past 300k miles usually, heat is what KILLS automatics, ruins valves, gaskets, wears down clutches and brakes(bands)

 

Awesome reply, appreciate the info. To give you a little more info, the truck has 125k miles on it. I'm maybe the 3rd owner of the truck and I believe it's had a hard life, so it looks and feels like it has more than 125k miles on it. There are no DTC's present for the transmission (I am making a bit of an assumption that DTC's can be read with the garden variety OBDII scanner) and never have been over the last couple of years I've owned it. There have been a bunch of other codes that I worked through for various engine issues, but I've worked through all those and haven't had any codes in probably a year. The transmission has been consistent with its problems the entire time I've owned it.

I avoid repair shops like the plague for cost reasons, mistrust, and personal satisfaction of doing my own repairs, so I will probably not take it to a transmission shop to test pressures. I am planning on take out the valve body, looking around, changing out the gaskets, filter, fluid, etc. I'm curious if there are other easy replacements to make while I'm in there that may solve my issues. Without troubleshooting pressures, etc. a little more precisely, it's a bit of trial and error, but I'm OK with that as long as the cost is relatively low. If worst comes to worst, I'm willing to drop the tranny and attempt to do a rebuild myself, but I'm not sure if I need to go there quite yet with the symptoms I'm having. I've participated in a C4 rebuild years ago and believe I can do an adequate rebuild as long as I'm able to find a manual on the transmission.

 

Yes, there are good and bad mechanics same as good and bad cooks, doctors or sanitation engineers :)

Some Readers will and some won't.
Unplug the transmissions 16 pin connector and start the engine, CEL(check engine light) and/or OD light should come on.

Then read the codes, should get a load of P07xx for all the unplugged solenoids, then you will know if reader does read trans codes :)

Don't forget to plug it back in, lol, but trans will work without it

New valve body can be installed with transmission in the vehicle, and even if you rebuild later you would still need the new valve body so not a waste of money

 

Do you think it's worth replacing any of the solenoids while I'm in there?

 

You can use an OHM meter to test the coil inside a solenoid, but a solenoid can be "bad" even with a good coil.

Solenoids use an internal spring to hold its valve in one position, when activated the coil becomes a magnet and pulls its valve into the second position, if spring is faulty or full movement is not possible then its valve leaks or doesn't fully open which is a pressure loss in the system that solenoid controls.

The computer can usually tell if a coil is broken, and it can sometimes tell if a solenoids valve is not opening and closing fully so it will set codes accordingly, but its not "fool proof".

If your reader can read transmission codes and it doesn't have solenoid trouble codes then you can use same solenoids.
One member here did say a solenoid tested OK, but when he shook it it ratted, and it turned out it was faulty, so as you swap them over do a "shake test", lol.

There are also Shift Kits for these transmissions, I don't drive automatic Rangers but people who do have had good reviews after adding the shift kit hardware

 

Do you know any of the Ford part numbers for valve body, partition plate, gaskets, shift kits, etc?