Questions about tranny

[Tilehelperdan]

Hi guys, thanks for existing so I have someone to ask questions of. I am looking at buying this 2002 Ford F350 Lariat Crew Cab Super Duty, $13,686 - Cars.com and have a couple questions. If you click on the carfax, it shows like 3 or 4 transmission services in the past 70k miles. Now, its a high mileage truck, so Im sure not everything is working like when it came off the line, but that much attention on the trans makes me nervous. I know it was mostly driven on the highway, between california and michigan, and it was used to tow. It shows two atf flushes and a new valve body being put in. Should I be worried that this tranny is going to die soon? What should I look for when I drive it? Also what general problems should I look for on a truck with more than a quarter million miles on it? And what is the life expectancy for these trucks? Thanks all.

[carnival owner mikey]

these trans are definately the weak point in the truck but at stock power levels the are usuall fine. when you test drive it watch the tach while it shifts, A jump in rpm would indicate slippage. pull the tranny dipstick and look at fluid color.smell it it should not smell burnt. in park put foot on brake and shift into drive then to reverse and back a few times. just make sure it shifts into all the gears while driving and make sure the tc locks up.( this will feel like another shift) good luck .hope this helps

[carnival owner mikey]

oh yeah and life expectancy is directly tied to maintenence.........i expect 500,000 out of mine then a rebuild or a fresh motor.(maybe a ctd5.9 but thats another thread)

[Tilehelperdan]

Well, I talked to the sales manager and he said the tranny was rebuilt but didn't know when. According to the service records the rebuild was done about 12k miles ago. According to carfax, the following was done-

Automatic transmission fluid flushed
Transmission fluid changed
Transmission checked
Automatic transmission checked
Valve body replaced
Oil and filter changed chassis lubricated
Transmission shift solenoids replaced

I don't know how extensive of a rebuild that is, as I've never rebuilt an automatic trans. Would you guys feel decent buying this truck so long as it doesn't do anything weird on a nice long test drive? If I get it a trans cooler would seem to be in order.
And I feel good about the service record, its fairly extensive.

[Hank]

My 2001 4R100 history:

Factory lasted 99,000 miles as far as I can tell.
I bought it with 101,000
Ford reman. tranny survived until 112,000 (13,000 miles)
2nd reman. tranny (under warranty) lasted another 13,000 miles
I decided to forget about Ford and go get it fixed right
Present tranny was built by a local shop that has a history of building for sled pullers, drag racers, power company line trucks, etc.

Got 20,000 miles on it and have had no issues except I increased cooling capacity with a second cooler. Temps NEVER get anywhere near high now!

Who built the reman. in it now? Ford? If so, you got another 1000 miles.

[melmount]

did not realize service info was on a carfax. Oasis report yes, but carfax??

[Tilehelperdan]

The trans work was done at Gateway Ford in Michigan. So basically, the trans might last, it might not.

If I were going to drop in a new one, is there an aftermarket producer known for high quality?

Oh yeah, thanks for the replies guys. I appreciate it.

[o0firemaster0o]

Originally Posted by Tilehelperdan

The trans work was done at Gateway Ford in Michigan. So basically, the trans might last, it might not.

If I were going to drop in a new one, is there an aftermarket producer known for high quality?

Oh yeah, thanks for the replies guys. I appreciate it.

Lots of guys use BTS trannies. They arent cheap though....I think around 4 grand. Brians Truck Shop