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A442F transmission solenoids

markcann26

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hi guys got some bad gear shifting going on not as smooth as it should be so I'm going to remove the solenoids and clean them out and aswell as the filter if that doesn't make a difference I will replace them.

what would you recommend cleaning them with??

2000 100 series 4.2 diesel a442f auto box with overdrive

cheers guys
 
Smooth shifting? From my experience if the solenoids go then each gear function becomes obsolete. In other words the gears do not bite to transfer power. Mine in first and second were bad enough to rev hard and have little go eventually getting to 3rd where if became useable to drive.

I changed mine out not long ago. Cleaned and soaked the four old ones in petrol and then attempted to blow air through them to see if they improved to work. Mine didn't and so changed over to a good used set i was given off another used transmission.

Obviously changed the oil and filter with a new gasket.

P.s check the throttle cable from the gearbox to the engine / fuel pump as if thats worn like mine was beforehand it also prevents the gearbox from engaging. I did have a small write up on here somewhere.

Best wishes
 
P.s check the throttle cable from the gearbox to the engine / fuel pump as if thats worn like mine was beforehand it also prevents the gearbox from engaging. I did have a small write up on here somewhere.

do you mean the pressure cable that can be adjusted??


I did have a problem this morning when I out the car in reverse it took a little while for it to engage !
 
Needing two people one pressing on the gas and the other checking on the cable going to the fuel pump from under the engine bay. If it shows little play or movement then the cable needs changing. If it's stuck you may temporarily take this end off and drip some mechanical oil into the wire to free it up and then check again upon the same method. Not a rush job if this is the case so take your time.
 

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thank you for your reply

where would that cable likely to be on a 1hdfte engine??

cheers Mark
 
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thanks very much ill check this out
 
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so after looking for a cable and referring to my haynes manual a number of times it looks like mine has a kick down switch which I'm assuming it's not adjustable like it says in the book, don't get me wrong it does go through the gears up and down its just abit clunky sometimes and also when starting from cold if I select drive or reverse nothing happens for around 30 seconds but when it's warmed up and uou start the car and select drive or reverse you get engagement straight away

any ideas??

TIA any help very much appreciated
 
A442F transmission has kick down but its nothing to do with a button if not mistaken. What switch are you referring to?

Also if the vehicle after warming up to 30 seconds then is able to move through the gears and change smoothly would put this to not being the solenoids. Once they go they don't engage very well at all and thats how they stay. This is my experience.

Whats the history of the vehicle i.e mileage, and when was the oil, filter changed on the gearbox?
 
I personally think its down to the solenoids.

some a442fs have cables for the kickdown and from my understanding on several posts and the haynes manual

mine has a switch that sends a signal to the ecu to tell it when to kickdown instead of a cable so it's electronic and can't be adjusted
 
Yeah there are wires connections that connect to the solenoids and it very rare circumstances these can break / tear. Ultimately it’s all about eliminating all possibilities before taking the gearbox under pan off to check and test accordingly. This is what happened to me.

Checking the oil and filter condition is also important.
 
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I have a new filter on the way which I will change

I dont think any wires on the solenoids are broken as it goes through all the gears its just abit harsh so I think it will be the solenoids them selves
 
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100 Series A442F has electronic Line Pressure control. Kickdown / Throttle Cable relevant for 80 series and 105
 
"I dont think any wires on the solenoids are broken as it goes through all the gears its just abit harsh so I think it will be the solenoids them selves"

A solenoid is an electrically operated hydraulic valve that has two states .......... open or closed .

If they are sticky then it will be due to contamination from the oil in the box and the small wear particles within it .

Remove them and clean them with brake cleaner .... change the oil and ideally flush the box and system before refilling and fitting new filter.... this may solve the issue.

I'm no expert on auto boxes so don't know how the shifts are modulated on these boxes but it seems that it may be by something other than solenoids .

I'm well used to full power shift transmissions and we use PWM valves that operate the clutch packs but are capable of feathering in and out packs under severe load ( Pulse Width Modulation )

Maybe the so called "solenoids" are PWM's and they could cause harsh shifting .

Another possible is does the auto box have a gearbox oil temp sender that's letting the ECU know how warm the oil is so that it can alter shift rate as the oil viscosity changes ? I have known FPS trans that behave harshly due to the sensor wiring corroding and the ECU thinking the trans was operating at -22 degrees oil temp
 
Again thanks for your reply

I actually changed the solenoids for brand new ones and i cleaned alot of crap from the filter and from the pan

It has made a difference but sometimes it is still harsh

So i think ill do a flush with fresh ATF fluid and try that

Don't get me wrong it does shift through all gears and if you nail the gas pedal from a standing start all the way to 80mph it does shift smooth its just under normal driving its harsh

Thanks again
 
On the Valve body on the electronic throttle bodies it often has an adjustment setting to stiffen or soften the line pressure to adjust shifts.
from memory it has three setting.
the information generally well recorded for the A340 boxes.
 
That's good information to give a bit of a tune up to adjust irregular gear changes etc.
 
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