I am a firm believer in proper diagnosis before determining a course of action. It could be a problem in the valve body that could be cured with a pan drop. Or it could be a larger issue that would require that the transmission be rebuilt.

 

check the tranny oil filter, if its clogged it will do exactly what you described. your truck has OBD1 ports so there is very little sensors to tell you about anything.

 

To remove the transmission pan you will need to remove the trans cross member. Two bolts at each frame rail and the center transmission mount bolt. Twist the crossmember untill you can drop it between the frame rails. You need to support the transmission at the tailpiece so you can remove the pan. The new filter comes with a 0-Ring for the filter tube. When you remove the old filter the O-Ring tends to stay in the valve body. A scribe or simular tool can reach up and remove the old O-Ring. I hope it turns out to be a simple fix.

 

thanks everyone for your input. i finally get some time tommorrow to start my trek into the unknown and see if i can come up with a solution. i have been talking to friends of mine who are knowable about vechiles and maintainence, they tend to agree with me and i think i will try the least of the repairs as far as cost and time, i'm going to replace the tranny filter and whatever comes with that situation and see what happens. i talked to a autozone associate who i trust with his opinion, not many of them i do but his i do, he thinks it could be a front pump that is located in the front part of the bell housing of the transmission, he also thinks i can get the pump at a reputable transmission shop. i guess if the filter change doesn't produce a positive result that might the way i go next. in his opinion, it controls line pressure, when cold the fluid is denser, when heated up, its thinner. makes sense to me but we'll see i guess. i would be ecstatic if it turns out to be a simple filter change. well wish me luck and i will let everyone know where i end up on this part of the journey. if anything someone else can benefit from my mishap. have a great day and i will talk to everyone soon.

 

so im in the middle of removing the trans cross member and i don't see anywhere to drain the transmision? i've read thats just done thru the pan itself, is this true? seems pretty messy and hopefully it goes well. can anyone enlightened me?

 

The best way is the remove the rear bolts, Side bolts and loosen the front bolts enough to allow the pan to drop at the rear with a catch pan of some sort to catch the fluid as it flows over the edge of the pan. Once most of it is drained out you can support the pan with your hand and remove the last few bolts and and tilt the pan toward the container to catch the rest of the trans fluid. If you are lucky you will catch most of the trans fluid. Yes, It can be messy. When you install the pan after you replace the filter do not use any sealant on the the gasket or pan. You are just asking for leaks. Just tighten all the pan bolts evenly.

 

thank you very much, i didn't want to miss a plug and make a mess if i didn't have to. i guess i just thought most trannys had a plug of some sort, lol. well wish me luck, it might be a long nite, been working on my daughters car and i think i left some needed tools there and my wife has the other car, she decided to go shopping and i can't get ahold of her. murphy's law is messin with me again, lol, oh well, i will get it done sometime tonite. again thanks for the information, as always its been a help.

 

well to update everyone, i did the transmission filter change and it worked for about a day. word to the wise, it is a much easier job if you can have another person help u line up the cross member. my truck has since taken a total transmission break down. my biggest problem was time, i just didn't have the time to make the repair. there was so much to remove and the place where i found the replacement transmission wanted a trade-in, so i had to be able to remove the original to get the replacement transmission. saddest part about it is i needed transportation now, the truck would fire up and run like a kitten but i didn't have the time for the repair, 4X4 transmission repairs are pretty involved and i didn't have the time to do it. i had to send it to the truck bone yard and get as much money as i could for it. again i thank everyone for the comments and time, your advise and help was greatly appreciated. hope everyone has a great day!