TALES FROM THE BENCH

Don't Guess: Test!

by Jarad Warren

Ford's 4F27E,
members.atra.com

FN4A-EL, FNR5
T
he 4F27E transmission family
has been around for more than
ten years, and has become a
fairly common sight in today’s shops.
Ford calls this transmission the
4F27E; it comes in the Focus and
Transit Connect. Mazda also has their
version: Called the FN4A-EL, it comes
in the Mazda 2, Mazda 3, and Mazda 5.
Then you have the 5-speed FNR5 that
comes in the Ford Fusion and Mazda 6.
These units have some very com-
mon wear areas, which can cause some
very common problems. In this article,
we’ll look at how to test for that wear,
using air testing, vacuum testing, and
wet air testing procedures. These tests
will help you identify problem areas
and repair them… before they become Figure 1
a bigger problem.
We’ll look at the servo pin bore, a 3rd gear accumulator, because it still Testing the servo pin bore is easy
pressure regulator valve, solenoid pres- has the 2nd gear oil applied to the front and takes very little time:
sure regulator valve, converter relief of the servo. Spring pressure combined • Remove the valve body.
valve, and the rear cover. with 3rd apply oil overcome the band • Locate the 2-4 band release port
apply oil and the band releases as the (figure 1).
Servo Pin Bore direct clutches come on. • Apply air to the servo release dur-
While it’s called a 2-4 band, the On the 3-4 shift, forward clutch ing teardown.
servo and band operation are critical oil is released. That cuts off the servo
for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th gears. Here’s release oil, so the band reapplies for You shouldn’t see any signs of a
why: The band is applied in 2nd and 4th gear. leak between the servo band pin and
4th gears. But on the 2-3 upshift, direct When the servo pin bore wears, the inside of the case. The servo shown
apply oil is sent to the back of the 2-4 direct clutch apply oil leaks to the had a large leak around the pin bore that
servo. sump. This can cause the direct clutch- needed to be addressed (figure 2).
For that shift, the 2-4 servo acts as es to fail.
24 GEARS October/November 2013

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 Check both stator support bushings

Figure 3

Torque Converter manded on. The solenoid and valve

Clutch Performance are functioning normally, but the con-
A common problem is code verter can’t keep the slip rate down.
P0741 — TCC stuck off. The two areas you should check are the
Figure 2 Let’s talk about this code. Just TCC circuit and the converter itself.
a little testing before the transmis- The torque converter clutch circuit
There are aftermarket kits avail- sion hits the bench will save time and has a problem built into it: It uses two
able for servo pin bore wear: Check money. bushings in the pump stator support to
with your aftermarket suppliers for the Look at the freeze frame data when separate the torque converter clutch
repair. the code set: usually you’ll see the release oil and converter apply pres-
torque converter clutch solenoid com- sure. Worse yet, the bushings are close

GEARS October/November 2013 25

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 Don't Guess: Test! Ford's 4F27E, FN4A-EL, FNR5

Figure 4

together and wear quickly because they

Figure 5
have so little support (figure 3). The pressure regulator valve
To test the bushings, first you’ll is almost always worn on this
need to plug the hole in the stator sup- transmission. Here’s an easy, quick test: If you like to compare test results,
port (figure 4). • Pour ATF into the test port. you can perform a simple vacuum
• Slide the stator support onto the • Cover the test location. test on the same test port. This can
input drum. • Apply low air pressure. save you time and money, because
• Pour ATF into the input shaft. If ATF and air leak into the pas- it’ll show what valves need to be
• Apply low air pressure into the tip sages next to the test port (figure 7), the repaired and where you can save money
of input shaft. bore needs to be addressed. on unneeded repairs.
There should be no oil or air leak-
ing around the shaft and
bushings (Figure 5).
You can also check the
stator support bushings with
a vacuum test stand:
• Clean and dry the shaft
and the stator support.
• Plug the hole in the
stator support.
• Apply a vacuum to the
tip of the input shaft.
Testing with vacuum
will give you numbers to
work with and lets you keep
track of pass and fail results.
After you install new
bushings in the stator sup-
port, repeat the test to con-
firm your fix.

Valve Body
Let’s test the pressure
regulator valve and con-
verter relief valve in the
main section of valve body
(figure 6). Figure 6

26 GEARS October/November 2013

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 More profits for shops is why Toledo TranskitTM rebuild kits
include solenoid filter screens and/or solenoid orings where
required. Toledo TranskitTM brand kits contain the components that are needed to complete the
rebuild which prevents the technician from having to stop and order missing parts. Saving time
and money means more profits for shops.

4R44E 4R55E

AODE 4R70WE 4R75WE

Chrysler solenoid repair kits:
S-70 Repair Kit A604 Solenoid Pack 1989-98
S-304 Repair Kit A604 Solenoid 2000-Up
S-305 Repair Kit A606 Solenoid 1993-Up
D92933 4419478 92933 Wire Harness Repair Kit A604 (Input and Output Sensors) 1989-Up
4854 Solenoid Repair Kit 45RFE 5-45RFE, 68RFE 2004-Up
DK22954B 4617463 Solenoid Kit A518 A618 {Includes Overdrive & Lockup | Governer Pressure Sensor} 1996-99

Filter screens
42740C 8680389 72713 Filter Misc. Screen Filter 4T80E Solenoid 1993-03
42266B 24219045 77717 Filter Misc. Filter 4L60E Force Motor (Late)
42266A 8683769 77714 Filter Misc. Filter 4L60E Shift Solenoid (Small Rectangular) (Snaps on Valve Body Plate)
49565096 4431789 72712C Filter Misc. Screen Filter A604 Solenoid 1989-Up
49965069 4431786 92786 Filter Misc. Screen Filter A604 Solenoid 1989-99 1989-Up
49965063 4539787 Filter Misc. Screen Filter A606 Solenoid Screen Plate
46065096 F2VY-7H187-A Filter Misc. Screen Filter AODE 4R70W/E 4R75W/E Solenoid Feed (In Valve Body) 1992-Up
46341C E6DZ-7G308-A 96711 Filter Misc. Screen AXOD/AXODE By-Pass Solenoid 1986-Up
45065074 Filter Misc. Screen Filter 4R44E 5R44E EPC Limit Filter 1995-Up
45065062 E8TZ-7N113-B 56712 Filter Misc. Screen Filter A4LD TCC Solenoid
46465060 E9TZ-7G308-B 36712E Filter Misc. Screen Filter E4OD/4R100 Solenoids (Fits On Separator Plate) Seal Aftermarket Products LLC
46865101 3C3Z-7H200-AA 36111 Filter Misc. Screen Filter 5R110W Solenoid Thimble Plate 2003-Up 2315 S.W. 32 Ave., Pembroke Park, FL 33023
Phone 954-364-2400 • Toll Free 800-582-2760 • Fax 954-364-2401
45065063 Filter Misc. Screen Filter 5R55N Solenoid Plate 1999-02 www.sealaftermarketproducts.com
45065064 Filter Misc. Screen Filter 5R55S 5R55W Solenoid Plate 2002-Up

seal123.indd 2 10/4/13 7:47 AM

 Don't Guess: Test! Ford's 4F27E, FN4A-EL, FNR5

Figure 7 Figure 8

Wear in the pressure regulator measuring the wear at two valve bore will cause a 2-3 flare or cause a slip in
valve may cause unstable line pressure, lands at the same time, so test port B 3rd gear.
hard shifts, and problems with con- will always leak more than A; this is By testing these areas and identify-
verter pressure and lube. normal. ing wear, you’ll be able to target the
The converter relief valve has two root cause of the condition, instead of
ports that need to be tested. When End Cover simply guessing. Because testing is
worn, this valve will affect the torque Check the ring lands on the end more effective… and more profitable…
converter clutch apply and release, and cover closely, because wear in this area than guessing, any day!
may set converter slip codes. is very common. Figure 9 shows a worn
A vacuum or wet air test at both cover at the top ring land. Also inspect
locations will show whether this bore the direct drum for ring land wear. This
needs to be repaired. When testing the
converter relief valve port A, you’re
only checking one valve bore land;
when checking location B you’re test-
ing two valve bore lands at the same
time. So test port B will always leak
more than A; this is normal.

Upper Valve Body

In this section of the valve body
you need to pay attention to the sole-
noid pressure regulator valve. A worn
solenoid pressure regulator valve will
cause low line pressure and low clutch
pressure. This valve commonly wears
out and sticks.
The test locations (figure 8) can be
vacuum or wet air tested.
There are two locations to test;
at location B you’ll need to block the
passage on the back of the valve body
while testing. The test at location B is Figure 9

28 GEARS October/November 2013

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