Possible Tranny Problems!

Hey guys, I recently starting hear noises when driving (usually on the highway) that seem to be coming form the transmission, which is only a guess. I have an '01 Taurus side mounted engine. The noise resembles that of a pulley that is failing and slight grinding (then again i am not good at reproducing sounds). This morning i accelerated several times and it seemed to happened during that. I have also heard it when i am driving at a constant speed. i checked the oil this morning and it seemed to smell a little burnt. I was considering changing the oil but am afraid that might make things worse. I would appreciate any help anybody can offer. Thanks for your time.

How long has it been since the tranny fluid has been changed?

If the transmission fluid smells burnt, get it changed along with a new filter as footballguy suggested. There are varying schools of thought regarding flushing. You can search this forum and read other's recommendations and warnings.

As for your noise, can you duplicate the noise if you rev the engine with the car in park or neutral? Keep in mind that the rev limiter will probably kick in around 3000 rpms. If you are able to duplicate the noise doing this, I would suggest removing the serpentine belt and inspecting the idler pulley, self tensioner, and alternator pulleys for bad bearings. You may also have a power steering pump that is failing, but that is a bit harder to diagnose.

If you can duplicate the noise in park or neutral, remove the belt, start the engine, and see if the noise can still be duplicated. If not, you can have high confidence the issue is related to one of the belt driven components.

-Rod

I have tried reproducing the sound while in park and nothing happens. It has been a while since i have changed the oil and i do drive to work 20 miles to and from. About the pulley sound, i thought it might be a pulley but the sound seems to be coming form my side (driver side) of the engine compartment in which there is no pulleys on the tranny. Thanks for your quick responses.

I have tried reproducing the sound while in park and nothing happens. It has been a while since i have changed the oil and i do drive to work 20 miles to and from. About the pulley sound, i thought it might be a pulley but the sound seems to be coming form my side (driver side) of the engine compartment in which there is no pulleys on the tranny. Thanks for your quick responses.

There is a chance that your filter is clogged which would cause your pump to make some whiney noises and if your tranny isn't getting fluid to all the parts then they could make grinding noises, especially when it’s changing gears. I would NOT flush your tranny. I would NEVER flush a tranny, but that's just me and some will disagree. Some who disagree about that are way more qualified to help you too. However, I would drop the tranny pan and change the filter and fluid and in my opinion it will fix your problem. The sooner you do this the better too. If you’re not comfortable doing it yourself then take it to a shop and get it done. It should cost you under 100 bucks. It will cost you about 40 bucks to do it yourself, as long as you have all the tools.

Hey guys thanks for the help. I am glad to say that it is the ac unit that is giving out. I tried revving the engine at much higher rpms this time and it was the compressor. It just stuck me as odd since it came from the driver side while driving instead of the passenger side. Boy is my face red. Im sorry for the trouble but i will take things you have to prolong the life of the ever expensive tranny. Thanks again and thank the Lord that it wasnt worse.
Axel

Congrats on the find, and thank you for the follow-up.

-Rod