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Unusual Occurrence


chuckbear

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While driving on some local back roads we had a strange thing happen. We had been driving for a few hours that day and are into about a month of our current U.S. tour. Only doing 35 to 40 MPH and on hilly roads we suddenly lost the speedometer. Shortly thereafter while going up a small hill the transmission acted like it shifted itself into neutral. Shifting into drive 2 did nothing but downshifting into low gear, drive 1, downshifted the transmission and it shifted OK in drive for a while. Then suddenly it happened again. I have an SCT device connected to the OBD and the transmission was not showing above average temps and no error codes came up. We found a spot to pull over and check things. Fluid levels were right on and nothing appeared to be loose or disconnected. Just for grins, I reinstalled the 5 Star Tune and the speedometer came back and for the last few days, the transmission has behaved itself. But in the back of my mind every day, I worry about another episode. Has anyone else had something like this happen? 1999 F53 Bounder, V10. Chuck

58dd65872f8a7_ReducedRVandCar.jpg.cf7b626fb3b5b05ebc20cb05195193a2.jpg

Chuck and Susan      1999 Fleetwood Bounder 34            Triton V10 on Ford Chassis

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We had something similar years ago and it turned out to be some corrosion on a connector to the engine computer from the speed sensor.  

2004 40' Newmar Dutch Star DP towing an AWD 2020 Ford Escape Hybrid, Fulltimer July 2003 to October 2018, Parttimer now.
Travels through much of 2013 - http://www.sacnoth.com - Bill, Diane and Evita (the cat)
 

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It does sound like a loss of speed data for some reason but the lack of error code is strange. If you have the owner's manual, there is a number for the Ford Motorhome Hotline in it and they might be of some help. 

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

I had a similar situation with my Dutch Star.  2 or 3 times in 14 years my speedometer has gone to zero while driving down the highway.  I can pull over, turn off the ignition, count to 15, start it back up, drive on, and it will be fine for many more miles.  Once we were driving to the next town to take our driving test and it quit.  I went through the routine and it didn't start back up.  I told the lady at the DMV that the spedo broke on the way over, and she said, "The law states that you will obey the speed limits.  NOT that you will have a speedometer."

We each too the test and we each made 100%.:D

PS:  That's the ONLY time it has done THAT!

 

 

Traveling America in "God's Grace"

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We've had it happen a couple of times with the speedometer, several times with the tach, once with the odometer.  Usually the next start clears everything and we are good to do.   Ours has to do with the connections at the back of the dashboard display.

Barb & Dave O'Keeffe
2002 Alpine 36 MDDS (Figment II), 2018 Ford C-Max HYBRID
Blog: http://www.barbanddave.net
SPK# 90761 FMCA #F337834

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Kirk, I did have the speed sensor replaced and all was well for about a week. Then, a few days ago the speedometer dropped out again. If I stop and restart the engine, it starts working. So to date there is no answer. The problem with intermittent problems is that unless it is happening, taking it in for service is a waste of time and money. I don't know what to do at this point, especially since we have about 8,000 miles left on this trip. Chuck

58dd65872f8a7_ReducedRVandCar.jpg.cf7b626fb3b5b05ebc20cb05195193a2.jpg

Chuck and Susan      1999 Fleetwood Bounder 34            Triton V10 on Ford Chassis

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The speedometer only, but the tach keeps on working? Since all of that is electronic it could be something as simple as a ground problem, but as you say, intermittent is very difficult to pin down. Have you ever just continued driving based upon the tach for speed indications to see what happens? Wondering if a bump in the road might make it start to work again....  

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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3 hours ago, chuckbear said:

Kirk, I did have the speed sensor replaced and all was well for about a week. Then, a few days ago the speedometer dropped out again. If I stop and restart the engine, it starts working. So to date there is no answer. The problem with intermittent problems is that unless it is happening, taking it in for service is a waste of time and money. I don't know what to do at this point, especially since we have about 8,000 miles left on this trip. Chuck

When ours goes out, we just use the TomTom nav unit for a check on speed.  We have already set the cruise control, and we just keep on rolling.  Sometimes we will bump on the road and all of a sudden everything starts working again, so we know the connection on the back of the display is the problem.   Same with the tach, which is a different display module on the dash, it has to do with the connections at the back of the dial.  

Barb & Dave O'Keeffe
2002 Alpine 36 MDDS (Figment II), 2018 Ford C-Max HYBRID
Blog: http://www.barbanddave.net
SPK# 90761 FMCA #F337834

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OK, that is definitely more than just a dashboard problem.   Sounds like a computer gremlin between the engine & transmission 'talking' to each other.  I hate electronic 'gremlins' - takes forever to figure them out.

Barb & Dave O'Keeffe
2002 Alpine 36 MDDS (Figment II), 2018 Ford C-Max HYBRID
Blog: http://www.barbanddave.net
SPK# 90761 FMCA #F337834

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That's my thinking too. I have the 5Star tune loaded and talked with them but they don't see any way the tune will cause this. It has made the shifting on the coach much smoother and efficient. But the tune has been in for a year before this problem surfaced. That's why I know that if I take it in for service and it isn't acting up, it won't help. I am not getting any error codes on the OBD reader or dash lights when this happens. Chuck

58dd65872f8a7_ReducedRVandCar.jpg.cf7b626fb3b5b05ebc20cb05195193a2.jpg

Chuck and Susan      1999 Fleetwood Bounder 34            Triton V10 on Ford Chassis

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Crawl under there and start disconnecting plugs to and from the transmission. Only do one at a time and reconnect it. Do this several times. This will clean up the connections. See if any have corrosion or moisture. I had a F53 chassis that would do weird things after a rain until it dried out. Put dielectric grease in the connection to prevent moisture intrusion.

Ron C.

2013 Dynamax Trilogy 3850 D3

2000 Kenworth T2000 Optimus Prime

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For reference, the speed sensor on top of the rearend can have a bad connection from a broken wire inside the harness to the sensor. It's plugged into the sensor, the movement of the rearend can flex enough to break a wire. Strip the outcover off the harness and pull on each wire and see if it's broken. The rearend can also have enough metal in the oil to contaminate the sensor tip. inside the tip is a magnet, it attracts any metal in the rear end oil. one bolt holds the sensor, I think it's a 10mm, take the sensor off and wipe it, if there is a buildup of metal fillings on it, change the rearend oil. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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  • 4 months later...

Chuck , 

Hopefully you have this squared away , but , in researching for a somewhat similar problem , I found this Ford TSB 02-11-3 .

I'm not sure it would sovle your problem , but , it might . 

Here's a link to that bulletin : 

http://www.thedieselstop.com/faq/9497faq/tsb/tsb/files/021103.pdf

And one for a bit of discussion :

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/27854144.cfm

Goes around , comes around .

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1 hour ago, chuckbear said:

Thanks. While I have not yet fixed the problem, I do have a good handle on the fix and it is now on my to-do list for the short term. Chuck 

In that case , please post the outcome , here . 

I wouldn't think that you and I are the only ones with this type problem . Hopefully I'm wrong .

Goes around , comes around .

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I will try and remember to do that. Other projects have moved this down the list, like a soaked air intake filter this weekend. I plan to cut the ground wires from the OBD plug adding a new and improved ground. We won't know how well it works until after Christmas. And the problem is an intermittent issue that does not always show itself. We'll see. Chuck

58dd65872f8a7_ReducedRVandCar.jpg.cf7b626fb3b5b05ebc20cb05195193a2.jpg

Chuck and Susan      1999 Fleetwood Bounder 34            Triton V10 on Ford Chassis

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6 hours ago, chuckbear said:

I will try and remember to do that. Other projects have moved this down the list, like a soaked air intake filter this weekend. I plan to cut the ground wires from the OBD plug adding a new and improved ground. We won't know how well it works until after Christmas. And the problem is an intermittent issue that does not always show itself. We'll see. Chuck

Maybe you're talking about a different problem involving the OBD . 

The PCM grounding is totally different than OBD . Make sure to fully understand . ;)

Changing the air filter takes about 5 minutes , taking your time . :)

Goes around , comes around .

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As I understand the "fix" for this issue, including a Ford TSB that is no longer available, is to remove all the ground wires connected to the OBD connector and solder them to a new single ground. Then attaching that ground to a new clean connection to the firewall. As for the air filter, it isn't a matter of changing the filter, but modifying the air intake so I can drive if it's raining. Chuck

58dd65872f8a7_ReducedRVandCar.jpg.cf7b626fb3b5b05ebc20cb05195193a2.jpg

Chuck and Susan      1999 Fleetwood Bounder 34            Triton V10 on Ford Chassis

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2 hours ago, chuckbear said:

As for the air filter, it isn't a matter of changing the filter, but modifying the air intake so I can drive if it's raining. Chuck

I solved that with ours by relocating the air intake. 

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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3 hours ago, chuckbear said:

As I understand the "fix" for this issue, including a Ford TSB that is no longer available, is to remove all the ground wires connected to the OBD connector and solder them to a new single ground. Then attaching that ground to a new clean connection to the firewall. As for the air filter, it isn't a matter of changing the filter, but modifying the air intake so I can drive if it's raining. Chuck

I cured the wet air filter issue by adding a "snorkle" to the intake using a 4 ft length of aluminum dryer vent hose.

Dutch
2001 GBM Landau 34' Class A
F-53 Chassis, Triton V10, TST TPMS
2011 Toyota RAV4 4WD/Remco pump
ReadyBrute Elite tow bar/brake system

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