High RPMs while coasting, lots of noise

[Jack17]

Hi guys.

I was hoping you guys could help me. I know absolutely nothing.

I drove into Boston yesterday, parked the car, went about my day. When I got back and pulled out onto the highway, my car was making a lot more noise than I've ever noticed. The noise just sounded like a noisy old car. The other more specific thing I noticed was that the RPMs were way higher than they should be. Coasting on the highway normally I have about 2500. That time I was coasting at over 5000.

I pulled over for a little while, tried to figure out what I was going to do. Got back onto the highway and the drive was completely normal.

Any idea what that sounds like? It's a 1998 Ford Taurus with 82K on it. I've heard transmission, PCM, some other stuff. I don't know anything about this.

I'm wicked nervous cus I'm a high school kid pulling in about $100 a week. lol

Thank you so much!

[shorod]

Welcome to the forum!

You'll probably need to describe the noise a bit better. If I'm understanding you correctly, there are two issues, one is a noise that is there just with the engine running, even at idle. The other is with the transmission/engine rpms being higher than usual? Also, at idle, is the engine smooth or is there a lot of shaking/vibration? Did you notice the Check Engine or Transmission light illuminated in the instrument cluster during the drive?

Also, you should consider moving this thread to the more specific Ford Taurus forum.

-Rod

[Jack17]

Thank you.

I guess I'd describe the noise as just a loud revving noise that was there even when coasting along at 60mph.

And I didn't notice anything wrong (the very high RPMs or the noise) until I was getting onto the highway. While I was on surface roads at 30mph or whatever, I don't remember any indication that anything was wrong.

There were no lights on during this incident.

Could a moderator please move this to the Ford Taurus forum? Sorry.

[MagicRat]

Okay, it's been moved.

It seems as if your car's transmission did not upshift.

As you may know, your car's traansmission has 4 gears. As you gain speed, the transmission shifts into higher gears. This allows the car to speed up while keeping the engine RPM's at a reasonable level.

If you were doing 60 mph at 5000 RPM, it sounds as if you were stuck in second gear.

Is it possible you had the gear shift lever in second gear "2" instrad of drive "D"?

Other possiblities are a bad speed sensor (the transmission uses the electronic signal from the speed sensor to help determine shift points) or possibly a stuck solenoid.

I would suggest, if you are short of money, just leave it alone, and see if the problem reoccurs. Also, check your transmission fluid level and condition. The fluid should be reddish in color. If its black or brown, it needs changing.

Here's how to check the fluid. I got this from this site:

Summary: Checking your car's automatic transmission fluid (ATF) every month and whenever the transmission isn't shifting smoothly is necessary to optimize performance of many components of your vehicle. In addition to following these steps, consult your owner's manual which will give you the intervals in which the fluid should be changed.

Step 1
Park your car on level ground and start the engine, leaving the gear in neutral or park. Wait for the engine to warm up. Unless your owner's manual directs otherwise, allow the engine to continue running throughout this procedure.

Step 2
Find the ATF dipstick, located at the back of the engine. The ATF dipstick is often shorter than the engine oil dipstick but otherwise looks similar. If you're lucky, it will be labeled.

Step 3
Pull on the dipstick and completely remove it. It may be very long.

Step 4
Wipe the dipstick with a rag, replace it in the engine, push it all the way in and remove it again.

Step 5
Look at the dipstick's tip. Observe whether there are two different full markings: one for cold readings and one for warm readings. If so, read the one for 'Warm.' If the ATF does not come up to the line marked 'Full,' add ATF.

Step 6
Add ATF (see Tips) into the hole that the dipstick came out of (yes, that little tiny hole). Use a funnel with a long, narrow neck. Add only a little at a time, and check the level with the dipstick after each time. It's easy to add ATF but fairly difficult to take it out if you add too much.

Step 7
Put the dipstick all the way back in when you are done.

[Jack17]

wow, thank you so much.

I honestly don't remember checking if I shifted to "2" instead of "D" by accident, but oh my god I would be so relieved if that was all it was. lol

If it happened in an isolated incident and I haven't had any issues since about 150 miles (including about 100 on the highway), would that suggest that it is less likely the whole tranny is going? Like, if it was going completely, would the problems be consistent, or on and off?

[Jack17]

Maybe I'm being optimistic because I'm trying to avoid a $1800 transmission job, but does accidentally shifting into second gear instead of drive make perfect sense based on what I described and what you guys wrote back?

Reconstructing day:

I drove to my destination without noticing any problems. Then when I left, I accidentally shifted into second gear instead of drive. I didn't notice on the surface roads because I was going at a speed were second gear was appropriate. When I started speeding up onto the highway, the car made more noise than usual and had double the RPMs because the car was working hard to keep highway speed at second gear. I pulled off the highway into a gas station because I was scared, and when I pulled out of the gas station, I shifted into drive as I normally would and haven't had problems since.

Does that make sense?

[shorod]

What you could try is to duplicate the day with the car in second gear. Of course I wouldn't suggest much highway travel in second gear, but the in-town driving should not be a problem if it's not for long distances. What I think you'll notice is the car feels more sluggish accelerating from stops since it will be taking off in second gear rather than first, and when you let off the throttle the car may engine brake and slow more quickly than usual. However, if you aren't the typical high school kid that takes off from stops quickly then you may not have noticed an issue with acceleration.

I was going to say "...the typical Boston driver..." but the only time I've driven in Boston was when I had a Prius rental car. All traffic seemed to be accelerating quickly compared with that car. I wished it had bicycle pedals when trying to merge on to the freeway to help out.

-Rod

[Jack17]

I tested it today. I'm almost certain that's what it was.

Thanks so much guys. I would have never thought of that, and would be out of a lot of money!

I feel like an idiot for doing something like that, but it's still better than the money for a new transmission.