AOD hop-up

[mrltd]

the A was a bit much on a small band also.

I like those VB's Gadget, might have to get some more info on them.

[Southern_Pride]

I told my trans guy to make my trans shift hard and its wide ratio. Curious as to what servo's are going in now.

[Lincolnmania]

b&m convertors are crap according to my builder........when you are back in florida look up ebay seller morandon for a good convertor at a heck of a good price too

[Pirate]

Okay... I'm dumb again...

After poking around a bit I now see that the kit I'm looking for is the transgo AOD-HP.

Also, no one has much good to say about B&M converters...

I've installed eleven of them, of that particular model. I have another one in the garage here waiting to go into my T-bird (#12).

I haven't had any problems with them. I think the issue is people adding a blower, nitrous, or a turbo, and putting a lot of HP through these units. While they will handle a lot of abuse, I wouldn't recommend trying to run more than 500-550 hp through it. If you need a race convertor, you buy a race convertor. Other than that, I like the B&M 2400 Holeshot for the money involved.

[Pirate]

clickclickracing.com has a sticky with a big list of assorted AOD upgrades written by a guy who builds them. He also sells an overdrive lockout type valve body for something like $250. I'm strongly considering buying one, but it will probably depend if I can move my current valve body from the Towncar to the Mark VII to fix a wonky shifting problem the VII has.

http://silverfoxtrans.com/silverfoxt...om/VB_AOD.html

I thank you for putting this link in, as I was looking for a cheaper VB alternative to LenTech...I don't know if I'm keeping the AOD in my Bird, but I sure as heck don't want to spend over $400 on a VB if I'm not...

[moneypit]

I've installed eleven of them, of that particular model. I have another one in the garage here waiting to go into my T-bird (#12).

I haven't had any problems with them. I think the issue is people adding a blower, nitrous, or a turbo, and putting a lot of HP through these units. While they will handle a lot of abuse, I wouldn't recommend trying to run more than 500-550 hp through it. If you need a race convertor, you buy a race convertor. Other than that, I like the B&M 2400 Holeshot for the money involved.

True, but I'm probably not going t be running more than 500 hp out of a stock 302 block without serious carnage anyway.

I'll have to check out that link sometime... it's blocked for me right now.

Pirate- do you have personal experience with the B&M converters? A lot of word on the street is that they're crap. Do you say otherwise?

[Pirate]

True, but I'm probably not going t be running more than 500 hp out of a stock 302 block without serious carnage anyway.

I'll have to check out that link sometime... it's blocked for me right now.

Pirate- do you have personal experience with the B&M converters? A lot of word on the street is that they're crap. Do you say otherwise?

Their 'cheap' convertors ARE crap.

The Holeshot 2400 is one of their better convertors, however.

With my experience with B&M equipment, what usually happens is that guys try to use their lower-end convertors (usually with Chevy big blocks and TH350 trannies) for damn near anything and everything, trying to go freaking cheap (as if a $129 convertor is going to hold up behind a 400+ HP big block chevy) when they should have bought a better unit, and of course, after it fails, it's always B&M's fault.

If you are looking specifically at the 2400 Holeshot for the AOD...as I said, it's not a bad convertor for the price. I like it because it gives a nice stall increase and eliminates the 2-3 shift bog that AOD's are hideously famous for. In addition, they aren't built too badly, either. I'm still in contact with a couple of the customers that own cars that I've installed this particular convertor into....no failures as of yet, and those two have been working fine for going on a decade now.

There are a couple of things to remember, however.

1. Use at least a Mercon V fluid, synthetic would be better. Why? read #2.

2. With the 'locking' mechanism eliminated, the AOD runs hotter with this convertor, as it's in constant 'slip' just like an old C4 or C6 unit. Modern tranny fluid (the mineral-based stuff) isn't anywhere near as good as the older ATF, because almost all modern transmissions run lock-up convertors...not as much heat generated as cruising speed.
However, once you put an older style convertor in...the fluid begins to break down immediately. This is a phenomenon not caught by the bulk of transmission builders out there; if they had any clue as to just how bad modern ATF is, they would recommend synthetic fluid ONLY, and even void the warranty of a rebuild if they couldn't provide proof that they used only synthetic ATF....the regular modern crap ATF is that bad. And once it's used in an older-style tranny without a lock-up convertor, the heat kills the fluid almost immediately.
Whatever fluid you decide to use....if you are going to run this convertor, install the largest stacked-plate tranny cooler you can find. Stay away from the aluminum-finned garbage, get the steel unit like B&M sells.

[RunUoveR]

clickclickracing.com is a good place to check out too for aod info

[Pirate]

clickclickracing.com is a good place to check out too for aod info

Yep, it is....

clickclickracing.com has a sticky with a big list of assorted AOD upgrades written by a guy who builds them. He also sells an overdrive lockout type valve body for something like $250. I'm strongly considering buying one, but it will probably depend if I can move my current valve body from the Towncar to the Mark VII to fix a wonky shifting problem the VII has.

http://silverfoxtrans.com/silverfoxt...om/VB_AOD.html

[moneypit]

Good info, Pirate!
That's the sort of substantial information I need to make my decision... not just "I knew a guy who bought one once."

So, you're saying use Mercon V at least? Does this mean that I should use mercon V or lower? as in Mercon 3 or 4? Here's something I've always wondered: can you un type F fluid in an AOD? It's all really just gee whiz information to add to my brain bank anyway as I'd probably end up using Mobil 1. I've heard good things about B&M trick shift, but it's horrendously expensive.

[moneypit]

Here's another can-of-worms type question:

Constant pressure valve bodies. What's the deal? Are they the shit or a piece of shit? Do they lead to longevity issues?

Example:
http://www.jegs.com/i/TCI/890/436020/10002/-1

[gadget73]

I think he means use Mercon V or a superior fully synthetic fluid. Mercon V is semi-synthetic, a Merc V full synthetic would be better.

I suspect type F is too thick. Possible it would work, but thats not what the trans is supposed to be using. I know it works great in the power steering pump to shut up that Ford whine tho.

[Pirate]

Here's another can-of-worms type question:

Constant pressure valve bodies. What's the deal? Are they the shit or a piece of shit? Do they lead to longevity issues?

Example:
http://www.jegs.com/i/TCI/890/436020/10002/-1

No, the constant-pressure valve body is a drag-only piece. It works fine for the strip, but sucks ass on the street after a while. So far as 'life' issues are concerned, believe it or not, but the tranny lasts longer if it has none of the slip associated with a 'street' transmission (soft shifts).

The problem with having it shift at full pressure is that nobody wants to drive it very long, as the up/down shifts are incredibly violent with no 'slip' engineered into the VB.

I think he means use Mercon V or a superior fully synthetic fluid. Mercon V is semi-synthetic, a Merc V full synthetic would be better.

I suspect type F is too thick. Possible it would work, but thats not what the trans is supposed to be using. I know it works great in the power steering pump to shut up that Ford whine tho.

Ditto on the Mercon V. If full synthetic is out of the question, then Mercon V is the next best substitute.

Concerning type F: It has the wrong 'grit' in the fluid for the AOD. If I recall correctly, Type F is too grabby.

[cld783]

I've heard good things about baumann http://www.becontrols.com/products/aodcat.htm

I was thinking about picking up one of their shift kits

[Tiggie]

Concerning type F: It has the wrong 'grit' in the fluid for the AOD. If I recall correctly, Type F is too grabby.

You got it. Type-F has different friction modifiers, making it more "grabby." People used to run Type-F in old Powerglides and Hydramatics to make them shift quicker and more firmly. I've heard rumors of B&M Trickshift being very similar in composition to Type-F.

BTW, Type-F is recommended in most pre-1997 Ford power steering systems, so it's always good to have some around.