Last night I noticed a metallic kind of chirping sound when I was stopped at idle near a wall that reflected the noise.I put it down to maybe a fan blade noise (sounded kind of like it.)
Tonight on a multi stop shopping run,when I’d sometimes idle waiting while the GF went inside,I seemed to notice the noise was only happening when I’d release the clutch to pull out (backwards or forwards) slowly.Never noticed it at higher speeds going thru the gears.
After about 2 hours of our shop hopping my Ranger didn’t want to go into gear except for a double clutch,also between gears.
Then it stopped going into gear completley,complete with a grinding sound when I managed to get the gear shift moving towards reverse.
I turned the truck off,then I could get it into 1st gear with no trouble.It took me about 3 of these stop the car move the gear shift,then start and it would shift reluctant y into a higher gear.Once or twice in this fashion the car lurched when I first turned on the engine with the clutch pedal on the floor,like when a clutch is slipping (I know that feeling,but this comes complete with no more or less pedal travel/slippage than before,either engaging or disengaging the clutch)
We stopped at a restaurant and after eating I decided to try to get home in it,(about 6 miles).After the intial startup accompanied by that chirping sound and a little slippage lurch in reverse,it ran fine the whole way home,shifting thru all gears,stopping at lights,etc,and when I got home I tried to see how the clutch was working while idling and the metallic chirping sound has disappeared.
Sounds and feels exactly like when it was new.
Yes I plan on taking it to the mechanic,but being Saturday with no advance warning,it’s doubtful he can do anything to it until Monday (he’s closed Sunday)
What I’ve written is what I plan to tell him,but if it gets there with no symptoms,what’s the MO for him.
Rip apart the clutch/tranny to look?
There appears no leaks from the trans.case and the clutch reservoir seems fairly full(if I take that rubber thing thing out that shows level to here I see the fluid)
What’s going on here.Could some vibration have shaken something loose then retightened it?
I mean this thing acted like a car with a frozen trans/clutch,then after a rest it acts normal.
Could heat make the trans fluid bubble or something (that fluids been changed in the lat 10k miles or so),with Mercon,according to the Lube joint tech what a '95 Ranger calls for.
I’m absolutely not making this up I don’t know if I should drive it to the mechanic (assuming the thing’s shifting normally in the morning) or have it towed.
How about it you auto repair mavens.Ever heard of anything this strange?
One more thing.Is there a chip/electrical thing in a '95 ranger that controls any of this.My dash trouble lights were doing their periodic weird thing of either lighting up the ABS and brake light,or shutting off the turn signals.All I have to do when that happens is turn the thing off,then back on the warning lights go off and turn signals work.Guessing that’s some electrical/chip glitch that Fords/Rangers are prone to
