HELP! 1991 Ford E350 Jamboree transmission fail

I have only used their hydraulic oil booster but I would try this FIX.

I agree the noise notes more than a leaking front seal. As you read in the other post link the seal goes because of other parts failing first.

With that being said the transmission may not be dead just yet and the real fix is to pull out 35 $100 bills.

Since you are only four hours from home I would add the 24 oz bottle of fix and at least one quart of synthetic ford spec'ed transmission fluid then check the level with it running per the manual. With the engine not not running full level will be well above the full mark because of torque converter drain down.

I might go two bottles of Lucas Fix but that might be an over kill but i would leave with it one quart over full mark and keep my speed more like 50 MPH. After about more or less 25 miles you might check it just to make sure it was not low. If it was down to the full mark or much below add a quart of ATF. Do you get the picture?

It is just like a leaking tire over time you can judge when it is going to need air.

The objective is to get home and get service on your turf if possible.

Actually you have to give it some thought before you spend $3500 in your case due to age and other factors not important tonight.

The fact you could see the oil level on the stick is a huge PLUS because you did not run it out of ATF which would kill the transmission. I would not be concerned about the condition of the ATF at this point in time but I would add the highest quality ATF to beef up what is in there and LUCAS will help do that too.

Smells ok to me.

There was an article recently in the Turbo Diesel Registry. It mentioned the automatic transmission has only minutes to live if the fluid reaches 225 degrees. It might have said only seconds when it reaches 250 degrees. Does the fluid smell or look burnt to you?

Without the noise I'd say, sure it could just be a seal. But bad seals don't make noise on their own. It needs more than a seal.

BTW the MH has 40000 miles on it...

The fluid level just touches the bottom of the stick, and I am not even sure about that.
I live in LA so a bout 4 hours from home.

$1000 seems a bit high, but then I'm not in that area of the country....especially if you also have to pay for the new tranny. They are basically telling you that they want $1000 for labor. Swapping out a Transmission shouldn't be that hard for a shop that does it all the time. I would guess it is about 3-4 hours.....and assuming that they get about $100-150/hour, you should have about $500 or so in labor.

As for trying to just replace the seal.
Maybe! Trouble is, do you really want to take a chance. Of course, where are you getting the new transmission from, and what kind of warranty will it have?

If the fluid doesn't smell burnt, it probably isn't......but, that doesn't mean that there aren't issues with the transmission....I'd guess that the squeaking noise you heard was metal on metal, so you probably have some filings in the fluid (not a good thing). Again, it may or may not have an impact on the unit.

Of course, to make this even more crazy, the RV is 22 years old, and just how much do you want to invest in it. If they can replace the seal, you may want to go that route, and then have it looked at when you get home....maybe have the transmission pulled and overhauled when you get home?

Good luck with you search....

How low was it when you got to camp ground? How far are you from home?