Master overhaul kit for the Ford 5R55E, 4R55E and 4R44E, 1997-up: frictions, gaskets, seals and filter, no steel plates included.
If your Ranger, Explorer, Mountaineer or Mazda B-series is slipping between gears, flaring on the upshifts or leaking from more than one seal, and the transmission tag says 5R55E, 4R55E or 4R44E, this is the soft-parts package for the overhaul. It is a 1997-and-up master kit sold less steels: the friction plates, the complete gasket and rubber seal set, the Teflon and metal sealing rings, the lip seals and O-rings, and a pan filter are in the box. The steel reaction plates are not, so you reuse good steels and only buy the packs that actually burned. Manufacturer part numbers on this kit are W56004L and RHT96-107.
Ford introduced this family as the four-speed 4R44E in 1995 behind the 2.3L and 3.0L, beefed it up into the 4R55E for the 4.0L in 1996, and for 1997 turned it into a five-speed by applying the front servo to get an extra overdriven ratio. That history is why one kit covers all three units from 1997 on. Every clutch pack is fed through a seal or a sealing ring, and every servo apply depends on a piston seal holding pressure, so a master kit is how you renew all of those leak points at once instead of finding the next weak seal a month after the job. The new frictions restore holding capacity in the direct, forward and overdrive packs.
Do not order a full overhaul kit on a flare alone. Sonnax documents that leakage in the EPC circuit of this valve body causes 1-2 or 2-3 flares, harsh shifts after a forced downshift, and in bad cases broken bands and blown servo piston seals. A leaking coast clutch valve can also take out 4th, 5th and engine braking without any clutch wear. Pull the pan: clean red fluid with nothing on the magnet points to the valve body or solenoids, while a black, gritty pan means the packs are gone. Our 5R55 harsh or delayed shifts walkthrough lays out the pressure and electrical checks. If the valve body is the cause, a replacement 5R55E valve body fixes it for less than a teardown.
This kit fits Ford 4R44E, 4R55E and 5R55E transmissions from 1997 on, which covers the five-speed Ranger, Explorer, Mountaineer and Mazda B-series trucks using this case. It does not fit the earlier A4LD-based units or the 1995-96 four-speeds, and it is not for the 5R55N, 5R55W or 5R55S, which are a different design despite the similar name. Read the transmission code on the door-jamb label and the tag on the case before ordering, and if anything is unclear send us the year and VIN. All of our parts for this family are on the 5R55 transmission parts page. If you would rather not reuse your old steels, the 5R55E master rebuild kit with steels is the same idea with the plates included.
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Doing this repair right usually means replacing these at the same time. Same transmission, ships together.
No. It is a master kit less steels: frictions, gaskets, rubber and Teflon sealing rings, lip seals, O-rings and a pan filter. Reuse your steels if they are flat and not heat-marked, or order the version with steels.
No. This kit is for 1997-and-up 4R44E, 4R55E and 5R55E transmissions only. Earlier units use different friction and seal geometry.
No. The 5R55W, 5R55S and 5R55N found in later Explorers, Mountaineers, Lincoln LS, Thunderbird and Mustang are a different transmission. Check the door-jamb code and case tag before ordering.
Mercon V ATF. Flush the cooler and lines so old fluid and debris do not contaminate the new frictions and the solenoids.
Any steels that are blued or warped, worn bushings, a scored clutch drum, and the valve body or EPC solenoid if pressure testing showed leakage. Inspect the servo bores before closing it up.
