Shift kit time!

[grandpaslincoln]

Yep, gonna happen today if everything goes right. I got this shift improvement kit, been sitting here for a year collecting dust, might as well put it in. Is there anything I need to know before I do this? Pitfalls? Suggestions, stuff like that?

Also, somehow during my move back to my dads house, I seem to have misplaced my lincoln book, what type of transmission fluid do I use, and how much for a complete fluid change (convertor too)?

Anyway, if I got more questions, I will ask

[Grand Marquis GT]

12 quarts of dextron 3.

[p71towny]

Your gonna get messy. What type of kit is it? a transgo, b&m? I think its regular mercon III, all I know is that they say mercon V doesnt work well in aod's. I think its like 12quarts with the converter drained, but do aod's have a drain plug in the converter?

[Blaze86Vic]

Mercon III, make sure to get new valve body gaskets before doing the job. Get both, there is one between the plate and the VB and the plate and the tranny. Have a VERY clean place to do the work on the valve body. DO NOT FORCE ANYTHING! Things should move well enough on little force. You will find some that fight there way out, but just do you absolute best not to scratch or damage any of the guides of surfaces. It would be best to have a torque w.rench that reads in inch lbs. The torque spec for everything on the VB is 60-80 inch*lbs Do it in stages, first to 20-40inch*lbs, then to the 60-80 inch*lbs. When re-installing the VB, make sure the dipstick is not in the tranny, this will prevent you from getting it caught between the VB and the tranny. Torque the VB bolts from the center outward. I usually snug them all in order, then initially torque them in order, then do the final torque in order. Biggest note is to have a very clean area when you start working on the shift kit.

AODs stock have a drain bolt in the torque converter, I would suggest draining it, it will make your job a little less messy (not much but worth it). V does not work in a AOD, V is for eletronicly controled trannies.

Good Luck, hope this helps.

[grandpaslincoln]

It's a Transgo NoYoYo SysKo Kit, has the valve body gaskets with it too

[2kool]

thats the shift kit i put in my car. i second what blaze said about having a CLEAN work space for this because i found that out the hard way. when i finished installing mine it didnt work right, then the next day it would not shift outof first gear at all. took it to a transmission shop, the problem? the damn valve body was DIRTY! so i ended up having to pay 200 dollars for them to clean it.... so yeah i cant stress it enough...
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A CLEAN WORKSPACE
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A CLEAN WORKSPACE
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A CLEAN WORKSPACE
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A CLEAN WORKSPACE
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A CLEAN WORKSPACE
other than that everything went fine.

[83tc]

anyone know a price and benefits of havin this kit in my 96000 mile car?

[grandpaslincoln]

You can get the standard Transgo on Ebay for around $30, I got mine for 20 somethin a while ago.

With these transmissions, they were set up to be as smooth as possible when shifting, so the clutches slip alot before they fully engage. This creates wear on the clutches. The transgo kit fine tunes this and makes it slip less. Personally, I don't care how sloppy and smooth the shifts are, I want them to be firm, screw luxury lol

[Archangel]

That's a good kit, I have it my tranny. I installed the parts that will give me the shortest shifts, and also drilled the separator plate to police/taxi specs - don't know how that affects the shifting, but I like the result. Actually my kit is not 100% properly installed, for the reason there is a hole in the plate that TransGo recommends being shut closed, but in my case it's just too damn huge for anything short of welding it over (something I opted to not try). Tips: when you take the servos off to install new springs make sure you're not standing directly under them, there is some ATF over the pistons that will leak as soon as you break them free. Also take your time with the OD band, it's not hard to get it hooked back up, but it may take several tries. And since you are at it do the spring tab mod Blaze mentioned in one topic, if it applies to your tranny of course.

[Blaze86Vic]

Here is a link to the spring tab mod that Ivan is refering to.

http://www.grandmarq.net/vb/showthread.php?t=6242

[Blaze86Vic]

Maybe this should be moved to the 5.0L/5.8L Tech area?

[grandpaslincoln]

What about this Smart Act thing that is included, it says in order to know which capacity spring to install, I have to look at one of the clutch plates, can this be done without taking the whole trans apart, can you even see them? How did you guys deal with this?

[RugerP97DC]

Maybe this should be moved to the 5.0L/5.8L Tech area?

*POOF*
Now were cooking with ATF!

[Archangel]

What about this Smart Act thing that is included, it says in order to know which capacity spring to install, I have to look at one of the clutch plates, can this be done without taking the whole trans apart, can you even see them? How did you guys deal with this?

Nope, can't see the clutches and bands, so just go for the spring that gives you the shortest shift (blue) - see the revers side of the instructions sheet.

[grandpaslincoln]

Thanks mang!