What Causes a Valve Body To Go Bad and How To Fix It

What causes a valve body to go bad could be fluid contamination, poor oil pressure, and build-up of sludge and debris in the body.

When they fail, they can cause serious problems in your vehicle. Our automobile team will share reasons why valve surfaces go bad and how to fix them.

What Are the Reasons Why Valve Bodies Go Bad?

The most common reasons why valve bodies go bad are the accumulation of dirt, fluid contamination, and low oil pressure. In addition to these, other reasons for this problem include general wear and tear, overheating, low lubrication, and even electronic transmission problems.

The valves in the valve body can cause a loss of power if they become stuck, clogged, or do not open or close correctly. These issues can prevent the transmission from shifting correctly, causing your vehicle to lose power and accelerate slowly. This is why it is essential to get your vehicle checked out as soon as you notice any signs.

Take note that if you drive with a defective and bad valve body, you can experience issues like delayed shifts or failing to shift at all. This can put you at considerable risk and further damage your transmission. It could also lead to the use of the wrong gears.

– Accumulation of Debris in the Transmission Valve Body

Dirt can easily build up in your valve over time when sludge and other debris accumulate in the fluid moving through the transmission valve body. If this happens, it may cause the valves to stick or become clogged.

If it clogs long enough, it can cause the valve to malfunction, resulting in transmission problems. The dirt build-up can also restrict fluid flow through the valve, causing it to operate inefficiently or not at all. The valve can also become stuck or break in extreme cases.

– Contaminated Fluid

Your valve can become faulty if the transmission fluid gets contaminated with dirt. This will consequently lead to issues with the body. The impurities can cause the valves to become stuck, thereby causing you to experience problems when shifting gears or stalling the engine.

Fluid contamination can also cause corrosion or deterioration of the valve surface, leading to leaks or failure of the valve. Contaminants such as dirt, debris, water, or chemicals can damage the valve surface and other components of the valve.

– Low Oil Pressure

Your valve body may easily go bad if the oil pressure in your transmission is too low. Low oil pressure can cause the valve body to stick and prevent the transmission from shifting gears properly. If this occurs, the valve surface may not be able to move correctly, leading to problems such as sticking or leaking.

The problem of low oil pressure is usually due to insufficient transmission oil levels or leakages in the engine system. Also, vehicles with high mileage or gasket failures are more prone to oil leaks. This problem, if not fixed quickly, will make the valve surface rust and eventually get damaged.

– General Wear and Tear of Components

All mechanical parts wear down over time. The repeated stresses caused by shifting gears and heat breaking down the fluid can cause damage to the valve surface. Eventually, the valve body may become worn to the point where it fails to function correctly.

General wear and tear can cause the internal components to wear down, leading to problems such as slipping gears, harsh shifting, transmission failure, or any other valve body failure. Hence, it is important to frequently check your valve for any signs of wearing and tearing.

– Overheating of the Valve Body

Overheating can cause the valve body to fail in several ways, including warping or distortion, which could prevent the valves from opening and closing correctly. When this occurs, the hydraulic fluid may not flow smoothly, leading to shifting problems or transmission failure.

Overheating can also cause the valve body to crack, causing the hydraulic fluid to leak out and leading to a loss of oil pressure in the transmission. Another effect of overheating is severe contamination of the valve surface, which can clog the fluid passages and cause the valves to stick or become blocked.

– Poor Lubrication of the Valve Body

You must properly lubricate your transmission valve body to ensure its smooth running. You should note that the valve body is composed of several metal components. Hence, the valves that open and close to facilitate the flow of hydraulic fluid require adequate lubrication to function properly.

When the lubricant deteriorates or leaks out, the metal parts inside the valve surface rub against each other, leading to wear and tear. This can cause tiny metal fragments to enter the transmission fluid, resulting in gears that may stick and fail to operate correctly.

– Electronic Transmission Problems

Although not as common as the other causes, electrical issues can also lead to valve malfunctioning. This is because an automatic transmission valve relies on solenoids and other electrical components for electronic control. It controls how the transmission fluid flows and is responsible for shifting gears.

If the transmission solenoid or other electrical components like the shift solenoid fail, it can cause the valve body to malfunction. It could cause the transmission to shift randomly or even stop moving. It can also cause the solenoids to receive incorrect signals from the TCM, which could lead to the check engine light blinking.
When you notice your check engine light blinking, and you’re experiencing some signs of a malfunctioning valve body, you should check the vehicle’s electronic transmission system.

How Can You Fix a Bad Valve Body?

You can fix a malfunctioning or bad valve body by replacing parts or the entire valve or rebuilding the valve, depending on the extent of the problem. You can also change the contaminated oil, fix the low oil pressure, lubricate the valve body, and reassemble the valve body.

– Change the Whole Valve Body

Valve body replacement is usually the last option when it comes to fixing malfunctioning valves because of the high replacement cost. You should look out for the common symptoms that show that you need a total replacement.

If your valve body is damaged beyond repair or cannot be safely rebuilt, replacing the entire valve surface may be necessary. This job should be done by a professional who can ensure it’s installed correctly to work with the rest of the transmission.

– Repair the Valve Body

Bad transmission valves may not always require a full replacement, as the problem may be minor and only need simple transmission repair. This may help you avoid the body replacement cost.

If the damage to the valve surface is minor, or if you want to save money, rebuilding the valve body could be a good option. A professional can disassemble and inspect the valve body, replace any worn or damaged components, then reassemble the valve body.

– Fix Low Oil Pressure

If you are experiencing low oil pressure issues, you should first check the oil level and ensure that the oil is enough. If you notice that the oil pressure gauge is not reading correctly, you should have a mechanic fix or replace it.

If the oil filter is very dirty or clogged, it may also restrict oil flow. Hence, you should also clean out any clogs. If it doesn’t fix the low oil pressure, you should consider having it replaced. If doing these measures do not resolve the issue, it is best to have a qualified mechanic diagnose and repair the problem.

– Change Contaminated Fluid

Contaminated transmission fluid easily causes slipping transmission. When your engine experiences transmission slip, it is a sign that your valve is going bad. You can easily fix contamination issues by replacing the fluid. Sometimes, all you need to do is to top up the fluid.

In some cases, however, a top-up could be a bad idea. If that’s the case, take out the pan and replace the gasket. Once you’re done, clean out the gasket and add new fluid. This will fix the issue by providing clean oil for the valve.

– Change Worn Parts

Another way to fix a bad transmission valve body is by replacing worn parts. Whether you’re using an automatic transmission or a manual transmission vehicle, wear and tear could present some serious issues, including problems with the torque converter.

Although someone could do this job with moderate mechanical skills, it’s always recommended to consult a professional to help replace any part that needs changing. Whatever method you prefer, always ensure you fix your valve body.

– Reassemble the Valve and Test the Transmission

Once the damaged parts have been replaced, fixed, or rebuilt, it is crucial to reassemble and reinstall the valve body to get it up and running again. However, the job is incomplete until you have tested the transmission to ensure its proper functioning.

This step is highly essential to ensure that the transmission is operating smoothly and all components are working together as they should. Therefore, it is important to perform a thorough testing process to ensure that the vehicle is safe and reliable.

Conclusion

What causes a valve body to go bad is essential information for car owners.

Here’s a handy summary of the key points discussed in this article:

• A malfunctioning transmission valve body could lead to many issues, including damaging your transmission valve and causing your engine to misbehave or even stop working.
• Electrical issues can cause the electronic valve body and automatic transmission to malfunction, which could lead to difficulty in gear shifts and other valve body symptoms.
• When your transmission valve body malfunctions as a result of wear and tear, you may experience issues when changing gears. You may also experience shift gears and hard shifting.
• You can fix a malfunctioning transmission valve body by rebuilding it, replacing condemned fluids, replacing worn-out parts, or fixing low oil pressure issues.

With the information in this article, you can identify the different causes of transmission and hydraulic valve body problems. You should also be able to fix the various issues in the transmission service.