lost every gear but reverse in 99 taurus

hi all im a little new here but i have been reading and though someone could help. we have a 99 four door Taurus. 6 cyl. 3.8L i believe. the car has been driving fine and all of a sudden i go to leave the store and when i came to a stop and went again, the car would sputter 4-5 times and then drive normally. i got about half way home about 5 min. of driving, and came to a sign and stopped. I heard a thunk when I stepped on the gas and then all of a sudden I had lost all but my reverse gears. Could back up but not go forward at all. If I stepped on the gas it would just rev. Tranny fluid full and good, no leaks....nothing. totally out of the blue.

We towed it Thursday but they cant even get it in to look at it till Wednesday and I have been trying to find SOMETHING about it on the net to no avail. I found this board and though I would try anyone here.

ever came across this at all. does it mean the tranni is blown completely. hubby is in the dark too. he said when he tried it later it almost felt like it was trying to engage in to gear while reving it but it just wouldnt. any help will do? thank you

first of all, all '99 non-SHO tauri were 3.0L's and yes, your transmission is more than likely toast. If your transmission is an AX4S this is incredibly common.

thanks for the quick reply. wasnt exactly sure on the liter number but you got it.