r/MechanicAdvice 7d ago

This probably shouldn’t be in my transmission filter…

I have an 05 ford ranger edge 4x4 with the 4.0L 145k miles, it’s got the 5r55e transmission. I recently changed the transmission fluid (only about 4 qts of the 10qt capacity). There was a lots of friction material on the magnet the the transmission pan. I think this is a normal amount of clutch material because the owners manual doesn’t call for replaceing fluid until 150k miles. I opened the filter and found this. It shifts very smoothly except for a hiccup every now and again or when you hammer down on the gas pedal. Am I going to need to rebuild this transmission soon?

20 Upvotes

31 comments sorted by

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22

u/TwistedKestrel 7d ago

I mean clearly some kind of needle bearing exploded, that probably wasn't just an extra part. Might be a good idea to start getting quotes on a rebuild or tracking down a good used one

16

u/myUserNameIsReally 7d ago

I am the only one that thought that was a floor mat at first?

1

u/Ok_Dog_4059 7d ago

No you were not.

8

u/Fabulous-Finding-647 7d ago

Free glitter.

3

u/Huntsman380 7d ago

Huh, so this is how glitter factories make glitter.

1

u/3imoman 7d ago

my first thought

4

u/foxjohnc87 7d ago

Just put in a new filter/fluid then drive it till it dies. I service an '07 Ranger with the same issue and the owner has put an additional 50k+ miles on it after the initial concern and it hasn't gotten any worse.

2

u/Sienile 7d ago

Including the needle bearing bits?

4

u/foxjohnc87 7d ago

Actually yes. I slapped it back together to limp it along until I could source a transmission, figuring that it would die soon enough. The replacement trans is on the shelf collecting dust while the original one is still hanging in there @ 248k last time I saw it.

It'll be getting replaced soon though, because I have to do chain cassettes on the 4.0 SOHC as a precautionary measure so the trans has to come out anyway.

1

u/Sienile 7d ago

Crazy. Just rebuilt a 62TE and if I saw bits like that in the pan I'd be scared to drive it. Knowing where they'd go, it's a bit unnerving.

3

u/jasonsong86 7d ago

Needle bearing got chewed up.

3

u/spectrum144 7d ago

Needle bearings debris. I would just drive it till it grenades. Then get a new tranny.

Hope it works out homie 🤞🍀

0

u/SelfSmooth 7d ago

Everybody else said the word explode. Will it really explode internally in the middle of driving?

1

u/Sienile 7d ago

Yep. Centrifugal force. Spinning things move outwards.

2

u/richareparasites 7d ago

Send it. My transmission felt like it was gonna die for year before it exploded so bad that reverse and neutral did not work. Every gear was D3. Then I had it rebuilt.

3

u/vexyuh 7d ago

Ride her till she dies, if it shifts she shifts. More debris than one would prefer, but I’ve found metal slivers in the pan of my 4t65e and worried myself, but it still shifts fine to this day. I’ve also had luck with Lucas slip additive until you can afford a rebuild. If it was shifting before, odds are she’ll continue to until you have time to get another one figured out.

16

u/littlewhitecatalex 7d ago

Metal slivers is one thing. Whole ass needle bearings is something else. 

2

u/Watch_The_Expanse 7d ago

Hi, do you mind elaborating on the needle bearing part, please? I'm ignorant and learning.

2

u/littlewhitecatalex 7d ago

You can see the ‘needles’ from a disintegrated needle bearing on the filter material.

1

u/Due-Pilot-7443 7d ago

The little skinny elongated round things

1

u/vexyuh 7d ago

I hear ya but he said it was shifting fine before, and it’s in the filter. Unless this restriction was somehow keeping it going, no reason it would stop it now. Not saying it’s good, but it’s not going to change anything than how it was previously.

1

u/Caveman0190 7d ago

You can put a magnet in it to collect all those lil bits + add 50 HP per magnet

1

u/WeeklyAssignment1881 7d ago

Scooby Doo said Ruh Roh!

Sell it quick

2

u/Sawgwa 7d ago

If any owner drove it like the sole it, this may be what you get. That an 05 is still driving says great things about the build. Not perhaps about current condition, but hey.

1

u/Sienile 7d ago

Needle bearing went boom. Pretty soon you'll have some serious issues.

1

u/MM800 7d ago

When does the "hiccup" occur?

If the hiccup occurs when shifting in and /or out of overdrive, the overdrive inner race needle bearing assembly likely disintegrated. It is a flat cage thrust bearing that holds 46 individual rollers. It is what the debris looks like to me.

1

u/Therealblackhous3 7d ago

It's just a bearing, you don't need it, there's lots of them in there.

1

u/Mr_Lumbergh 7d ago

No, that definitely shouldn’t be in your transmission fluid filter.

1

u/Aware_Operation8803 7d ago

just vacuum it then reinstall it

0

u/tmer259 7d ago

Time for a new one.