I'll be talking to Bill today to see if I can borrow a garage bay ASAP. I've put it off too long.

If I'm not here..you know the door can be left unlocked. (Get'* another key made for Pete)

4th gear clutches aren't notorious or even remotely common failures on a 4T60. That'* a '65 issue.

60'* are known for eating up the 2nd gear clutches first, then the friction material suspended in the fluid starts to wreak havok on the TC clutch'* ability to lock up and not slip.

What you have is one problem causing another. But you're in the very early stages. Keep in mind I've been through two of these. My symptoms were the same, and in the same order over time on both cars. Final failure on the SLE was a surprise, but all other failure signs were the same.

I bought over 6 months of time on both cars with a little care and attention to the trans.

I thought 4th gear clutches were more of a 65E problem , thanks Bill for that info!

My car shifts very well (for a tranny with 133K on it) 95% of the time. But I do get some quirks that worry me. I will be changing the fluid ASAP.

I am not hard on the car, I don't push it hard too much, and never until I've driven for at least 15 minutes, and I keep cruise at 65mph on the highway. I think once I change the fluid/filter it should last me quite some time driving the way I do. I'd be completely happy if it lasted for another year. By that time I should have 153,000 miles. It would be nice to be able to give it hell whenever the time called for it though, without worrying about it failing

4th gear shaft guys..aka splines, not clutches

I serviced my trans today (dropped the pan and changed the fluid/filter). Since I have been getting some issues with the TCC, I was curious to see just how much metal was in the pan. I knew the fluid was decent, but I also was certain there was too much fluid in the trans as I never got a reading inside the hatched area, only above it.

After dropping the pan, I immediately looked for the magnet......ummmm, WHERE IS IT!? I felt around in the pool of fluid (didn't expect to find it but I searched). I figured the pan was dropped before at some point, it was overfilled with fluid (by a quart or less I think. I lost about 7 [dirty] quarts when I dropped the pan), and a certain Canuck mechanic forgot to put the magnet back in. A phone call to Bill W resulted in the same conclusion.

I'll see how my issues seem to go for the next several weeks. I plan on going easier on the tranny than normal to be safe. But at least this should help a bit I'd hope!

Things to mention.

Overall..the fluid was due for a change, the amount of material in the pan was fairly low. (Why didn't we take a picture?)

Also replaced was the front (smooth) pulley on the double pulley setup. We were going to replace the rear ribbed pulley as well, however the metal one (Advance) had a ridge where the washer etc sat and it would rub/bind if used. A plastic one is on order. This took a Ford like power steering whine down to almost no sound at all. There were questions about the power steering pump w/o pulling out the stethescope, but this concluded the pump is good.

Yep, as Bill stated - some may remember (highly unlikely) - I had a very whiney, loud idle that people could hear from several feet away...behind walls. I listened with long screwdrivers, took belts off, and found some noisy pullies. I figured the idler pullies were the culprit. Taking them off yesterday I could hear the bearings were definitely bad. Thankfully that WAS the problem and my idle is now silent. It'* amazing how loud those can be at 1000rpms.

I noticed since Sunday after the fluid/filter change that above 75mph the car seems pretty bumpy. It'* very similar to symptoms I got earlier last year after swapping wheels, which I figured was from unbalanced wheels, and also bad suspension parts which have since been replaced.

I did not get these symptoms the day before yesterday.

Is shuddering at those speeds common on a tranny with issues? I can't imagine I have some suspension/brake issue that came up out of nowhere, so I'm thinking it is trans related. I have kept the car under 80 since the fluid was changed (besides one romp on the highway with Bill yesterday), but up to that speed the ride is pretty bumpy. :? I even got the Valvoline ATF with shudder protection! lol