loose tranny bolts

[Scott Tanner]

from a new member:

Quote:

My Wife has a friend with a 2002 SportTrac. A while back she told my wife that needed the trans rebuilt. My wife told me the other day that the problem turned out to be that the bolts between transmission and the transfer case keep coming loose. Is this a common problem? It seems to me like Loctite would be something to try but I would think they would have tried that if it is possible. Any suggestions? I guess she can't even drive it anymore.



Thanks,

Bob



any ideas?

 

[Kevin Palmer]

It is not common for the Trac.



I am guessing there is a vibration issue as an underlying cause.



And yes, Loctite will certainly help as far as keeping the bolt in. But I do think you need to look a bit deeper and try to find out WHY they keep loosening.



A very common issue was a defective drive shaft that Ford put on the Tracs.



The 01 and 02's were built with steel shafts that had a vibration issue. Normally noticeable in the 60 to 75 mph area.



They put a TSB out and replaced the shafts for free with aluminum shafts if the vehicle was still under coverage.

So the real difference is, is the shaft steel or has it been replaced with an aluminum shaft.



Also, not all of the steel shafts were defecting, but a large percentage of them were, thus, the reason Ford did the TSB.

 

[EddieS'04]

I would think that the bolts have been over torqued. Stretched the the trheads in the aluminum housing. Loktite may be the only answer.

 

[Bob Tilton]

Thanks for the driveshaft info. I'll let her know about it. As least it gives her somethingto talk to the dealer about.



Bob