Ford Powerstroke Diesel Forum banner

Trans Overheating 2002

2K views 9 replies 5 participants last post by  CSIPSD 
#1 ·
I need help really bad. I have a 2002 f550 dump. Its my work truck i use every day. For the last year or so, the trans temp has been getting very hot. It gets in the the yellow and red. Its a real pain in the butt. I have asked different people what to do and a few people said that 2002 had a bad year for the trans. And to replace it with a rebuilt heavy duty trans with this and that. Ok , thats 3000 dollars or more and i dont have that. Is there anything that comes to mind when i mention a 02 trans overheating. Do i get a bigger cooler? I heard that will not help. what do i do? please help before i buy a chevy
 
#2 ·
Are you doing anything different than before. An unlocked TC will heat the trans
up very fast. When is it that it heats up? What are you doing at the time?
 
#3 ·
first of all you need a real transmission temp gauge.. the stocker is just a dummy light... and actualy if your stocker is getting hot your real temps are VERY hot....

so get an aftermarket trans temp gauge.. or a full gauge kit (boost, pyro, trans temp)

after that is installed let us know exactly what temps you are seeing... you want to be around 80 degrees above ambient temp.... anything higher and your getting too hot... plus you also dont want to see anything over 200... if you do then you prob have some kind of internal problem like a slipping torque convertor...

after all that is done you need to install a aftermarket transmission cooler or step up to a 6.0L cooler.... after i installed my 6.0L cooler i saw a 60 degree drop in temps...

hope all this helps.. if you have any questions please feel free to ask

-Raul





 
#4 ·
i own a junk removal company. so i the only thing i have it my truck is junk. no more then 2 ton, most of the time its less then a 1/2 ton of debris. This truck does not care it its loaded or not. Once driving a while, its starts to heat up. It even does it on the coldest New York winter days.
 
#5 ·
Does it shift correctly or slipping a bunch? I am not sure on your truck, but there
may be a by-pass to help the trans warm up, someone chime in and correct me
if I am wrong... That may not be opening to let oil to the cooler. Are the cooler
lines hot also?

Also, get under and see if a line got crushed, or if the trans cooler leaked and is
plugged with dirt.
 
#6 ·
you are correct... it could be the bypass line... its not their to help warm up... its their so that if the cooler clogs it bypass's the cooler and dumps right back into the ban.... but... it is very impossible to figure out what is going on with his trans without him giving us accurate trans temp readings which he can not get from the stock gauge....

-Raul
 
#7 ·
Troubleshooting is done everyday without a true temp gauge, but it is easier with
a real one...

Also, a thought.... Can the trans be cooled down by driving it on a freeway at a normal
speed?
 
#8 ·
there is also on some models a inline filter that are known for getting pluged,i would do a full tranny service with both filters,the one in the tranny and the inline if you have it.
 
#9 ·
Im going to get it serviced. It was just done last year. With me trying to find a plugged up line and like having mickey mouse play baseball. as for a true temp gauge, i dont have one and im not having one installed. i have a stock work truck, not a race car. i dont have the cash for aftermarket pods and gauges. as far as shifting, it does that fine. It doesnt slip. The truck does however lose power when hot.
 
#10 ·
The reason people are telling you to install a tranny gauge is the one on the dash is 100% worthless. 90% of your problem could be a wire issue causing the gauge to read high. Even if its just a cheap gauge from autozone, get a gauge in the test port and find out what the temps really are.

There was no issue with the 2002 trannys, the early 2001 trucks had a diode issue but it was fixed by mid year.

Could be a bypass, could be a cooler issue, could be a million things.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top