Hey Guys,Just returned from maiden voyage in 94, 28' Aerbus..Bummer.Transmission problems twice due to overheating, 2nd time cost me - total rebuild on the road, $3000, which I never budgeted for or could afford!Why overheating? Is this chronic with this16,000 lb beast?I had tranny cooler blown out and cleaned. Installed trans temp gauge to monitor. On the way home, after about 1100 miles the temp started rising.. .....I slowed from 65 to 55, but still getting too hot, above normal.Pulled over many times to let cool down, and now am afraid to drive it.Any ideas?I moved up from a 23' Winnie, which handled much better, accelerated way, way better. It was 12000 lbs. Does that 4000 lb. make that much difference?Hell, I can only go 35 mph up hills around Colorado, and only 40, maybe 45 on big highway hills at lower elevation, which makes for an even hotter tranny.Winnie had 454, Aerbus 460. Does Chevy rule?Help please!Omar

I had a 96 Holiday Rambler 36 ft. that gave me problems with trans. overheating. I added a aftermarket trans cooler in front of rad. with electric fan. When gauge showed temp starting to rise I would turn fan on and that cooled it down to acceptable temp (180 to 210 deg).

JcWhitney.com and summitracing.com both sell several DeRalle transmission coolers.Look for a flat plate design. Install it after the factory transmission cooler. Look for one rated at around 20,000 GVWR, and it should do the job. They install quickly with quick connect push on fittings and a hose clamp, with flexible lines, and inlet and outlet can be reversed to keep the lines shorter, or prevent it from kinking. When you click on the website above, look for or search "Transmission cooler" or DeRalle. Either should find what you are looking for. Your local auto parts store might have them too - no shipping cost either.Also was your engine overheating too? My 97 with a 460" engine does not overheat on the hills, and I have a digital temp gauge on the transmission too. IT normally runs around 180- 195F and on a hill might reach 215F for a short time. But that is in the normal range. How hot was yours getting on the drive back home?If the engine is also overheating, then have you heard the fan clutch kick in? That could indicate that the fan clutch is bad. This can lead to the radiator overheating, and that is where most of the transmission heat should be going - the cold side of the radiator. It has a 30,000 Btu heat exchanger built into the side tank. The stacked plate heat exchangers are a bit smaller in heat capacity. Fred.

Yes, the E4OD has problems. I have a '97 Ford diesel and I have had the trans rebuilt twice. First time, it got hot 250+ on a trip and went out. Second time, their was an electrical issue that caused the problem. When the trans was rebuilt the first time, I had ALL the cheap aluminum parts changed out to steel. This is one of the issues Ford had with this tranny. Make sure you get the BIGGEST cooler you can and place it on the front of the radiator. Also, change your fluid and FILTER around 12k miles. Do not hunt in and out of 3rd and 4th gear. This can also create heat build up.P.S. Had a Banks Trans Command and shift kit installed also.Good luck;)

A friend owns a Trany shop, back when the E4OD was introduced he started putting Banks TransCommands in every commercial truck (Tow-trucks, etc) and recommending it for everyone.It stiffens up the shift, the soft shift the Ford designed into that Trany was one of the major contributing factors to over-heating under load.I did that with the one I had, and never had an issue

Omar, You need more cooling is all. I have the same transmission as you, but built by BTS in Arkansas with a TCI torque converter. The tru-cool max transmission cooler (in my sig below) is what you want to add in line to your current set up. The hottest indicated temp was crossing through Texas in a headwind in high 90 temps, and it got up to 185.Wish you luck.v/rVince

E40D Tranny | Good Sam Community

John_Joey
Explorer
Oct 29, 2014
I would look closely at the radiator. If it is original then is it plugged inside? If not, is the fins plugged with junk. If it was replaced is it with the correct one, or a cheaper one with less cooling capacity.

A radiator shop should be able to answer those questions for you and at least rule it out as the cause.

The fan clutch is also worth looking at. Put a piece of tape on the blade and off to a stationary item. When the engine is cold start it up. If the tape is torn then it should be an OK fan.

I had a 460 Class A and had no problems at all like you are. But I changed the fluids, kept the fins clean, and paid attention to make sure the fan clutch kicked in when I figured it should.
kotr1998
Explorer
Oct 29, 2014
I had a 1993 Ford with 7.3 diesel, motor ran cool but tranny ran HOT. Added tranny coolers 2 of them no help. Changed radiator and took care of the problem, even took off 1 of the extra coolers. Hope you can find your problem. Good luck!
sjholt
Explorer
Oct 29, 2014
Just for a little insurance in case the trans does heat up, go get some synthetic ATF and install it 100% in the trans. It will keep the bushing from going out when and if the trans gets hot.
barlow46
Explorer
Oct 28, 2014
http://www.brianstruckshop.com/upe_view.php?id=9
Dutch_12078
Explorer II
Oct 27, 2014
I had the E40D tranny in our '95 Coachmen replaced with a remanned by Ford tranny with a 3 year/100,000 mile warranty for about the same price as a rebuild. I didn't have any more problems after that. The remanned tranny included a new external cooler, but it wasn't much larger than the one it replaced.
Skylark
Explorer
Oct 27, 2014
Check with Brian's Truck Shop in Lead Hill, Ark. Excellent service and very knowledgeable on ford transmissions. Guru on ford transmissions.

brianstruckshop.com
RLS7201
Explorer II
Oct 27, 2014
As designed and installed by Ford, your transmission does NOT have an over heating problem. Something has failed. Find what has failed and fix it. All the add-on cooling patches are not necessary.
As previously noted, the E4OD is a soft shifter and does respond well to the Banks Transcommander. My 95 Bounder with E4OD has 132,000 on it with NO repairs or add-on coolers. I did add a home brew shift enhancement to firm up the shifts.

Richard
Tiger02
Explorer
Oct 27, 2014
Omar,

You need more cooling is all. I have the same transmission as you, but built by BTS in Arkansas with a TCI torque converter. The tru-cool max transmission cooler (in my sig below) is what you want to add in line to your current set up. The hottest indicated temp was crossing through Texas in a headwind in high 90 temps, and it got up to 185.

Wish you luck.

v/r
Vince
n7bsn
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
A friend owns a Trany shop, back when the E4OD was introduced he started putting Banks TransCommands in every commercial truck (Tow-trucks, etc) and recommending it for everyone.
It stiffens up the shift, the soft shift the Ford designed into that Trany was one of the major contributing factors to over-heating under load.

I did that with the one I had, and never had an issue
keepingthelight
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
Yes, the E4OD has problems. I have a '97 Ford diesel and I have had the trans rebuilt twice. First time, it got hot 250+ on a trip and went out. Second time, their was an electrical issue that caused the problem. When the trans was rebuilt the first time, I had ALL the cheap aluminum parts changed out to steel. This is one of the issues Ford had with this tranny. Make sure you get the BIGGEST cooler you can and place it on the front of the radiator. Also, change your fluid and FILTER around 12k miles. Do not hunt in and out of 3rd and 4th gear. This can also create heat build up.

P.S. Had a Banks Trans Command and shift kit installed also.

Good luck;)

Forum Discussion

E40D Tranny

About Motorhome Group

Related Content

Tranny overheated

Tranny fluid change

E40D problem?

Sloppy Tranny

E40D Fluid Change