COMET CENTRAL

Hi
I have a 67 Caliente with a mild 351W C6 and 9” with 3.55 gears.
Gas mileage is not great. Performance is where I want it for the kind of driving I do.
I am thinking of swapping the C6 for an AOD.
I’d like to do this on a pretty limited budget.
Has anyone done this swap? Any thoughts about the most economical way to go about it?
Has anyone rebuilt an AOD themselves using a TCI kit?
Thanks

The AOD is a good transmission and will handle a lot of power. Nothing too complicated in the trans itself but you do need the seal protector kit (and the book) to get it back together. The valve body is fairly complicated but if you buy a Transgo kit,follow the instructions and check and double check every move you make here,not that tough. You might check out the Sonnax site for some options.There will be some drive shaft and cross member work but you will love it when done. I have a 4R70W and a US Shift controller in a car but there's just too many functions to mess with for my tastes. Wish I would have gone with an AOD.
Limited budget and economical? Can't comment on these....

vicegrip wrote:The AOD is a good transmission and will handle a lot of power. Nothing too complicated in the trans itself but you do need the seal protector kit (and the book) to get it back together. The valve body is fairly complicated but if you buy a Transgo kit,follow the instructions and check and double check every move you make here,not that tough. You might check out the Sonnax site for some options.There will be some drive shaft and cross member work but you will love it when done. I have a 4R70W and a US Shift controller in a car but there's just too many functions to mess with for my tastes. Wish I would have gone with an AOD.
Limited budget and economical? Can't comment on these....

Thanks Vicegrip. Did you install your transmission in a Comet/Fairlane? If so which year?
Thanks

I took an 87 AOD and Installed the guts of a 93 Lincoln 4R70W into it. That way you get the wider overdrive band and more disks in some of the clutches. I also used the tail piece from the 4R70W with the wider tail shaft. I then bought a valve body from Lentech and a special converter for the set up. The converter was welded up so that both input shafts would work as one shaft and be real strong. The Lentech valve body will let you manually shift through the gears also. It came with a electric delete solenoid for overdrive so that if your drag racing it won't shift into overdrive automatically.
The only parts used from the AOD were the input shafts, governor and the pump and I removed a check valve in the pump so that it wouldn't limit the amount of pressure. So far it's working really good.
The reason you have to use a 93 Lincoln 4R70W is that it still has the output shaft drilled for the mechanical governor which shifts the AOD. I got all this information from a book and the internet.
The only reason I went down this trail was it cost me a lot less than just buying a new AOD that's been upgraded for 500 HP.
Tom

Wow. I'm impressed. I really admire this kind of ingenuity but don't know if I could pull it off. Sounds like it is one hell of a good transmission.
On my best day, I think my 351W would be putting out 325 hp. I don't expect to do any racing--just the occasional bit of illegal street action.
Doesn't sound like you use a shift controller with your setup. Is that right?

Tom,love those mods you did! Back in the 90's,there were some big HP cars running real fast with the AOD having your setup. With the power that mason is making and the fact that economy will be a big factor,A basically stock AOD would be fine.I'm sure the converter lock up feature would be part of the deal which most high perf mods eliminate. Try to find a trans with an E7 casting number on the case as that is the last update and best case.
Mason,the 4R is in a 93 LX with a big block. Has about 500 hp but not a race car. I wanted OD so the motor wouldn't scream going down the road but I haven't got my shift points set to my liking. You kinda need a computer whiz with a laptop to ride along but haven't got it done.

masonjarz wrote:Wow. I'm impressed. I really admire this kind of ingenuity but don't know if I could pull it off. Sounds like it is one hell of a good transmission.
On my best day, I think my 351W would be putting out 325 hp. I don't expect to do any racing--just the occasional bit of illegal street action.
Doesn't sound like you use a shift controller with your setup. Is that right?

No shift controller. I have the high horse power goodies in a AOD case using the mechanical governor to automatically shift the transmission in drive. If I want to drag race the car I can turn on the overdrive delete switch, then shift it mechanically 1 thru 3rd. Works great. It shifts hard.
I agree with vicegrip that if your looking for economy you should stick with a stock AOD. There only down fall was the over drive band was to narrow and that is what usually goes out first if you abuse it.
Tom

I wasn't a fan of the AOD before I exchanged it for the T5. Weird shift pattern, 1-D-OD. Can't manually select 2nd gear without doing the D-1-D shuffle, which tends to wreck them.

Make sure you replace the pressure regulator boost valve. becontrols.com has lots of parts and info on both AOD and AODE trans.

Thanks for the info. I’ve thought about a T5 too. Any advice?

T5 is a good choice. Really happy with mine. Tons of info available with a google search.

redhotcomet wrote: Can't manually select 2nd gear without doing the D-1-D shuffle, which tends to wreck them.

I use a Hurst Quarter Stick and I don't recall if I installed a shift-kit or not, but my 2nd gear shift from 1st is 1-D-1.

I installed a lentech valve body in my AOD which allows a 1-2-3 shift in manual positions with a overdrive delete button so it doesn't go into overdrive automatically.
I use a B&M ratchet shifter. Works great.
tom