When it is cold and you put some force into it will it crunch(as opposed to grind) or does it feel "normal"?
Mine is exactly like you describe. I warm the car in neutral for five minutes and granny first to second a few times and no grind. But if I take off normal the first few minutes it will grind. So my choice is to do this "adaptive shifting", if you will, in the winter and live with it (which is not so bad) or go for the TSB which may fix it for good, or fix it for a while or risk them screwing something else up. Since it is not grinding if I do my granny procedure for the first few minutes I think I will hold off since I have till April 2008 on my warranty. If it gets worse I can do it. If all else fails I will get a TKO 600. I don't want to sound like a mental case about it but it just seems that the TSB that everyone rejoiced over turns out to be... so so. Also, to answer your question, the TSB calls for new 2nd and 3rd syncros ,shift fork and new fluid and new fill capacity. I just installed the MGW and it is great. You can put the stock shifter back on in about 45 minutes if you decide to go to the dealer. As well as getting rid of your CAI, subs, tune,exhaust, shift light, and anything else the SOBs will try to use to void warranty work.crapola
Always a trade-off with a mechanic. I'd like to have mine fixed if that's what it is...but I'm not sure if I can trust the dealer I've used lately (its taken 2 months to get a cat converter in..still not in). I know I can try another dealer, but don't know anything about other dealers, so its still a gamble. But then again...I got almost a year on my warranty, you got more...if they screw something up, should show up within that time.
Mine was so bad that you could actually hear the clicking sounds when shifting. It's been 18,000 miles after the TSB and so far no problem.
Mine was "notchy", more so when cold out. Going into second would sometimes slightly grind, and sometimes I couldn't go into third at all without letting off and going back to second before going back to third. Since the TSB, no grind and no issues into third. But this was done three months ago and I only have about 500 miles on the car since then. The "notchyness" is still there, so I think I am going to change the shifter next to see if that gets rid of that. Also, while they had it apart I had them put in a clutch for me. They only charged an additional $40 labor to resurface the flywheel and install it.
I had an 02 Gt and at 3000 miles had the tsb done, 1500 miles later problem was back. Took the car back to the dealer and they installed a new trans, 800 miles into it it started again. Car was sold, later I purchased a 01 Gt with the 3650, this car has about 50,000 on it and has the same problem, I have the extended warranty. I changed the fliud to Amsoil with a little friction mod problem is a lot better but there. Just saving my money for a tko or maybe a t56.
I had the TSB done. It hasn't grinded at all this winter. The noisy throw out bearing and whine in 5th gear is another story........ Pearl02.
Is the TSB for all 3650 tranny's...which is what...2000 up? Or did they ever get a clue and fix it after a certain year.
I haven't read the TSB in a few months, but I believe it specifically says "Some 2001-2003 models equipped with the Tremec 3650 blah blah blah." I specifically asked a connection of mine at my local dealer if it applied to my '04, and was told the issue was corrected by the time the '04 models were being produced. I've never had the same problems the TSB addresses in my 04, so I believe them for now. Also, whoever above said you have to have a valid warranty to get the TSB, that's only true if you want the TSB performed for free. A TSB can be performed at any point in the vehicles life, so long as the dealer can still acquire the parts and the information, and you're willing to pay for it all.
I had the TSB done. When I got the car back it shifted pretty rough, and 3rd gear was grinding. I wasn't happy. A day later I checked the tranny fluid.. removing the fill plug, nearly a half quart of fluid came out of the tranny. I've read in a few places that Tremec now recommends 3.2qtrs to fill; I filled the tranny to about 3.5 with regular ol Dexron III, and the tranny has shifted like butter ever since. I was pissed at first, but I'm happy now.
I had the Tsb done early on when it first came out. It did not fix my problem. After 2 transmission replacements its good now. I think they added new parts to the TSB after mine was done. So it may be ok now.
Thanks for all your replies. I posted the same question on some other forums and I have gone through about a hundred results. About forty percent of the answers said that the problem was either not corrected or was corrected for a short time and returned. Of the other 60 percent I can't say they were all good because many were low miles since the repair and many did not drive in cold weather. So my half ass analysis is that if you get the TSB done you have a 50/50 chance of solving the problem. Since I can solve the problem by adapting my driving for the first 10 minutes in the winter I will wait. The following quotes are from someone else but they sum it up nicely. “I took mine in due to the 3rd gear Synchro going bad on me. Dealer tried to fix it, but broke the transmission in the process. It took 3 weeks to get a new transmission. This new transmission has held up good, but finally the input shaft split in half on me. “ ”Tranny never got the rebuild with the proper parts, but those who have gone, for some reason go back. Tranny is stronge, and id just shift like a granny when the tranny is cold. Not worth the effort to take it in, IMHO. “ ”The Mach1Registry has countless of members who had the TSB on the TR3650. Some have been lucky & some...well, it never fixed the grind when the transmission is too cold.” “Had the TSB done on the Mach Xmission. Was better for a while but eventually went right back to the same BS. Took it back and they put a new "upgraded" 3650 in and it's starting to do the same thing. Think I'll pull the Lemon Law thing on Ford and make them give me a GT500 since they don't make the Mach anymore. ”3650s just plain suck. Had one in the Bullitt and now one in the Mach and they were both a POS from square one. If you want a decent tranny, put a TKO in it. (BTW, Not a T56 lover here either.)”
Mine's an 04...and I'm not really sure if its a TSB thing I have going on or just normal mustang 5 spd. Today is really cold, and although I didn't really warm up the car, before starting I rowed it through all the gears, and then drove off...no grinding from 1-2. Still a little rough at times from 1-2 and 2-3...but from everything I've read...I'm thinking that's really common...and it seems like its normal for this tranny, and not actually a problem if its minor. So who knows what actually constitutes a problem and what doesn't. The way it drives doesn't really bother me...but thinking something might break down the road because something is damaged worries me a bit. Also, other 5 spds I've had were hard to shift when cold, so that is somewhat normal too. ANyways, I would think they would have fixed the problems before the 04's since the TSB came out so early...but like you said...I'll believe it for now.
I had the TSB performed on my car at 35K miles after they replaced the tranny and then the shifter. My 3650 still grinds and now they refuse to do anything else to it because it is out of warranty. NEVER take your car to North Central Ford in Richardson.
Seems like the warranty should still apply since it was a preexisting condition. Threaten small claims court.
