Hard shift into reverse from drive. Normal?

[Nox_Vulpes]

Hey everyone!

I've had my 2023 Ranger Tremor for about 3 weeks now. Enjoying the truck so far but I'm having a bit of an issue with the truck slamming into gear when going from drive to reverse.

It happens regardless of whether the truck has been allowed to warm up or not, and will still do it even after I've been driving for a while. It's pretty consistent if I shift between drive and reverse it just kinda slams into gear. I usually remote start the truck. It doesn't seem to do it if the truck has been sitting for a minute and I get in and shift either directly into drive or reverse. It's a pretty harsh engagement, the whole truck shakes and if I don't have my foot solidly on the brake, it wants to move lol

I'm still under warranty but I'm genuinely getting concerned I spent 37 grand on something that's going to give me nothing but headache. I just greased the slip yoke after my local dealerships "couldn't replicate the issue". Truck is at 49k miles as of right now.

Any input is appreciated.

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[ScarzRanger21(2.0)]

Mine does this if I’m not pressing the brake firmly. Sometimes I get lazy and feather foot the brake pedal when shifting into reverse, that’s when the engagement is harsh. I’m sure you know this but never shift until the truck has stopped moving. A lot of people will shift to reverse when the truck is still slightly rolling forward. That’s terrible for the transmission. Other than that, I got nothing…

 

[mtsoxfan]

Are you trying to do candy canes?

 

[Nox_Vulpes]

Are you trying to do candy canes?

Haha, no sir. Not with brand new tires anyway

 

[GhostStrykre]

My 2019 periodically does this. It doesn’t do it often enough for me to take action about it tho. That being said, I’m fairly convinced it is not the transmission and is instead the two piece drive shaft.

I know many ranger’s are severely under-lubricated from factory at that slip joint on the drive shaft. You said you already re-lubed it, so hopefully that really helps. If it DOES improve things for you then you’ve at least identified a variable.

Lots of folks on here get the Tom Wood’s one piece driveshaft. Everyone who does marvels at what it does for smoothing out the drivability of the truck. It’s not terribly expensive either. Below $1k IIRC.

Anyway, best of luck determining the source.

 

[Woodman_73]

When my 2022 Tremor starts doing this repeatedly, I clear the transmission learning tables and it resolves it for me. I also noticed that if I try to throw it into gear before the truck hits its warm idle, it is more likely to do it. So I now also let it warm up first.

 

[mtsoxfan]

Haha, no sir. Not with brand new tires anyway

lol, wasn't sure if youngins got that.

 

[Rrrr-Anger19]

its transmission related... as mentioned previously warming up has a lot to do with it. The ULV fluid is crazy thin but and with no pressure built up from compression of moving parts & heat what you're experiencing is thermal pop.

I realize you wrote it happens regardless of warm up, that is a clear sign your fluid needs changing! ULV fluid is SO thin I have no idea how FORD says it'll last 100K miles... I change mine out every 30K so by your mileage you're waaaay past that and need to either do it yourself or have it done ASAP.

 

[Nox_Vulpes]

its transmission related... as mentioned previously warming up has a lot to do with it. The ULV fluid is crazy thin but and with no pressure built up from compression of moving parts & heat what you're experiencing is thermal pop.

I realize you wrote it happens regardless of warm up, that is a clear sign your fluid needs changing! ULV fluid is SO thin I have no idea how FORD says it'll last 100K miles... I change mine out every 30K so by your mileage you're waaaay past that and need to either do it yourself or have it done ASAP.

Do you do the lan drop method or the transfer pump method when you change yours? I don't have the time or equipment to do a pan drop so I'm thinking of swinging by the dealership today and grabbing some fluid

 

[Rrrr-Anger19]

Do you do the lan drop method or the transfer pump method when you change yours? I don't have the time or equipment to do a pan drop so I'm thinking of swinging by the dealership today and grabbing some fluid

I did a full pan drop to change the filter along with a PPE pan upgrade to make future fluid changes quicker and cleaner.I also have a Mike's Build dipstick which I highly suggest. All of the above make a trans fluid change a breeze to the same tune of what a dealership trans service would cost!

You could go the pump & tube method but it's just not as thorough for all the work involved. Also checking the fluid with the factory dipstick is a chore. I recall seeing a thread on the topic but I have no experience with that procedure.

If you have roughly $620 you could get everything you need.

Mike's Build Dipstick
10R80 PPE shallow pan
7 bottles ULV (the refill with the PPE pan I dump 6 bottles in and then go for a drive to get the trans hot and use the last bottle to dial it in exactly which is about 70-80% of the last bottle
10R80 filter
concrete mixing basin (makes a great catch for the fluid unless you have something else)

inch pound torque wrench, 13mm/10mm/8mm sockets i believe, some extensions, one tricky bolt I had to use a stand 8mm wrench, and about 2-3 hours. it's a messy job, but super easy.

The hard part is the fluid refill needing to be at a very particular amount which is why I went all in after I was quoted something like $600 from the dealer. Once done you'll have spent about the same amount... future drains and fills are quicker than oil changes... the aluminum pan adds a slightly larger amount of capacity as well as tougher & cooling fins. You can't go wrong.

If you really are going to get under there... do the job right the first time. As long as your not neutral dropping the shifter into drive at stop lights or trying to break land speed records you should be ok if you need some time to plan things out.

 

[Nox_Vulpes]

I did a full pan drop to change the filter along with a PPE pan upgrade to make future fluid changes quicker and cleaner.I also have a Mike's Build dipstick which I highly suggest. All of the above make a trans fluid change a breeze to the same tune of what a dealership trans service would cost!

You could go the pump & tube method but it's just not as thorough for all the work involved. Also checking the fluid with the factory dipstick is a chore. I recall seeing a thread on the topic but I have no experience with that procedure.

If you have roughly $620 you could get everything you need.

Mike's Build Dipstick
10R80 PPE shallow pan
7 bottles ULV (the refill with the PPE pan I dump 6 bottles in and then go for a drive to get the trans hot and use the last bottle to dial it in exactly which is about 70-80% of the last bottle
10R80 filter
concrete mixing basin (makes a great catch for the fluid unless you have something else)

inch pound torque wrench, 13mm/10mm/8mm sockets i believe, some extensions, one tricky bolt I had to use a stand 8mm wrench, and about 2-3 hours. it's a messy job, but super easy.

The hard part is the fluid refill needing to be at a very particular amount which is why I went all in after I was quoted something like $600 from the dealer. Once done you'll have spent about the same amount... future drains and fills are quicker than oil changes... the aluminum pan adds a slightly larger amount of capacity as well as tougher & cooling fins. You can't go wrong.

If you really are going to get under there... do the job right the first time. As long as your not neutral dropping the shifter into drive at stop lights or trying to break land speed records you should be ok if you need some time to plan things out.

Gotcha. It's going to be months until I have the ability to buy the trans pan and all that, not to mention getting to a place where I can actually do the work.

I'll probably just have the dealership do it for now or something, idk. I did a lot of research on these trucks before I bought mine, also why I specifically ended up with a 23 so I didn't have the CDF drum issues. I'm just irritated with having to do this maintenance 3 weeks after buying the truck but I should have expected it on a modern vehicle

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