Is the AOD to weak

[lil oregon guy]

I am running a 88lx with an AOD and my transmission took a dump on me. I had it rebuilt and the trans shop that did it was telling me what a weak transmission the AOD is and that there was no way to beef it up. So I am asking is the AOD that weak, how does it handle with increased horsepower and information on tranny strengthening.

[DaveR_GT]

They can be beefed up. Here is a site with lots of info.
http://www.baumannengineering.com/aodcat.htm

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'92 GT conv.
TFS heads, GT40, Powerdyne 9#, AOD, 3.73...

[Jeff Chambers]

They can be greatly strengthened. Lentech is putting AODs behind eight second Outlaw cars with more than 1100HP and even make a Pro5.0 version that can handle more than 1400HP. I'm running their Pure Street Terminator Lockup AOD behind my N/A 306 that's probably making between 425 & 450HP at the crank. Its all in the power flow and how the internals are strengthened. Its more costly than an AAMCO rebuild, but its worth it.



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Jeff Chambers
Trophy Stock #3
11.611 Seconds / 116.7 MPH
Chambers Racing Team

[Capri306]

I agree with Jeff and Dave. They can be built to withstand tremendous torque & power, just as any automatic can be. The reason that a LOT of tranny shops don't think they can handle the power has a lot to do with that damn TV cable grommet going bad. When that grommet goes bad, it literally fries the AOD to death. I rebuilt the one in my '87 Notch by myself with some considerable upgrades. You can do it yourself or just go with a Lentech. I've heard they're the best on the market so far. If mine blows, that's the one I'll be getting.

You must absolutely visit the Baumann Engineering site that Dave gave you the URL for. I learned a TON of info right there, especially the effects of TV pressure when I tore mine down (don't you just loooove the smell of burned clutch packs???). Read up, have fun, but spend your $$$ wisely. Good luck.

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Capri306, Moderator, The Mustang Works Online
1979 Mercury Capri, 5.0L -- C4 -- 2.73
1987 Mustang LX Notch

Last season, Bill Richardson & Tim Forbes ran in SSO class with Lentceh AOD's. They both have mid 8 second cars. Neither of them had to do any repairs to their trannies throughout the race season!

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91 coupe
3.73's,long tubes,2 1/2" exh,ported stock t-body,ProM-77mm
cobra intake,edelbrock heads,B303,1.72 rr's
36lb inj's,tremec, & a Paxton NOVI 2000!!!
11.020 @128.95 on BFG Drag Radials (275/60/15)

[rel3rd]

Originally posted by lil oregon guy:
[b]I had it rebuilt and the trans shop that did it was telling me what a weak transmission the AOD is and that there was no way to beef it up.B]

I would stay far, far away from a tranny shop that obviously doesn't have a clue...

My "WEAK" AOD car in action

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1986 Mustang LX
LenTech'ed & Vortech'ed
10.72/129/1.55 60ft.
You must be FAST...
cuz you wuz FLYIN'...
when I PASSED YOU!


[This message has been edited by rel3rd (edited 05-13-2001).]

I have a built AOD in my "new 89" that ran a 6.1 at 114 mph in the 8th mile,=9.50's in the 1/4.Built by M.V. Performance in commerce Ga. I chose them because at a race last Sep't I met a guy who drove 100 miles, ran 1/4 mile times all day in the low 9's high 8's, and drove home. His car has the stock shifter...so does mine now!

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[Fostang]

How much for an exceptional AOD?

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67'fastback-Edelbrock carb,intake,cam,valve springs.Rhode lifters, CompCam rocker arms, windage tray,cerama coated headers,dual flows with H-pipe, modded c-4,tci stall converter,perma cool electric fan,aluminum water pump,griffen aluminum radiator,accel 8.8 cable,wide cap distriburator,magnetic pick up,v-matic hurst shifter,edelbrock performer nitrous, carter electric fuel pump,ignitor coil,solid motor mounts,magna racing suspension,poly urathane bushings,under rider traction bars, comp. eng. s

[TheSloAod]

i paid 1,700 for mine including installation

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My slo aod- 3.73s, pullies, flowmasters, h-pipe, bbk cold air, and 13.42 in the 1/4 @ 103 mph

[NOS_Notch]

Originally posted by rel3rd:
I would stay far, far away from a tranny shop that obviously doesn't have a clue...

My "WEAK" AOD car in action

I would stay far, far away from someones opinion who doesn't have a clue.

Well here we go again...sloAOD is gonna bite my head off in a minute.
They are absolutely NOT strong.
Unless your content spending 2K-3K every other year and never go quicker than 14's....keep it.
I went through 3 in 5 years.
One of them had the FMS "wide ratio kit"
2200 TCI converter, Transgo shift kit, synthetic fluid, and some other stuff....in all, it was about a $2700 rebuild. "bulletproof" to mid 11's claims ford...it lasted 8 months in a GT going 14.40's.
Those trannies that are in 8 second cars cost about 6 grand...if that sounds like a good deal, then by all means..go for it.
But you will not see most automatic cars w/ an AOD....they use c-4's
If you keep it...along with all the other stubborn AOD user's(and i was one too...)
You will soon regret it.
Learn your lesson before you waste a ton of money. I wish i did.



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4.10's,long tubes & 75 shot...Goes 12.50's
Check it out at http://www.burnouts.stangnet.com

11's coming soon!!!!
Heads,intake and cam are all here

[TheSloAod]

grrr (bites nos-nothch's head off)
its crazy that your aod only lasted 8 months and cost that much. i've heard of $750 rebuilds doing that. did you run the aod at constant high speeds? your actually making me worry about my tranny. its been in 3 yrs without a problem. i'm sure my new engine will cause it to die but i'll rebuild it. o well its only $$$$


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My slo aod- 3.73s, pullies, flowmasters, h-pipe, bbk cold air, and 13.42 in the 1/4 @ 103 mph

[Jeff Chambers]

[soabox on]

If you want to learn the truth about AODs, the don't listen to NOS, call Lentech. The AOD was/is weak because of its power flow as the Ford engineers have designed it. But it doesn't HAVE to be that way. Lentech has redesigned the power flow so that it avoids the naturally weak areas of the AOD, such as routing 3rd through the inner shaft. I'm telling ya, if you spend a little time on the phone with Len you'll be convinced that they make a far superior product. I'm running the Pure Street Terminator Lockup behind a 306 N/A motor that's probably making 450+ at the crank. That's a mild combination compared to Lentech's standards. They've warranted it for a year (no questions asked) knowing full well that it'd be an all-out race transmission. It snaps second gear like a stick car. Right off the trailer, I ran a full two-tenths quicker than last year and nearly two-MPH faster. Since then, I've run a best of 11.61 at nearly 117mph and just watch what happens this weekend in Montgomery.

ITS THE BEST SINGLE INVESTMENT I'VE MADE IN MY MUSTANG. If you're spending $2700 on AAMCO rebuilds, they're not going to get you anywhere. That's all they are is rebuilds. Go for a re-engineered AOD and put an end to your problems.

[soapbox off]




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Jeff Chambers
Trophy Stock #3
11.611 Seconds / 116.7 MPH
Chambers Racing Team

[NOS_Notch]

I drove low miles and mostly e-way. Never too fast....around 70 e-way.
I only went to the track 2-3 times a year, made 5-10 passes each trip.
I was the original owner. I didn't race it all all until about 50k-60k(when it got payed off)
At about 5 years..i lost OD.
The complete rebuild was going to be $1800
So i got the motorsport "low gear set"
(another bad thing about the AOD..2.40 1st gear compared to 3.35 T5)
and TCI convereter.
I stopped doing the 1-D-1 shuffle(you should too, you will smoke it waaaaay quick)
And also only drove in town in D..no OD(weakest link in the AOD is The OD)
It lasted 8 months. Started slipping OD again.
I sued the trans shop....i knew it was nothing they did..but they originally told me 1 year warranty..when i picked it up they said" your probably gonna beat on it so we changed it to 6 months" thinking it was "bulletproof" i didn't care (the first one lasted 5 years right???)
So they settled out of court....agreeing to completely rebuild a bone-yard AOD w/ new converter and shift kit.
After about a year and a half, that one started whining( people made me pop the hood...thought i had a charger in there)
The whole time..the car is only worth 14.40's???
At this point my buddy is going 12.60's for waaay less than what i have invested in trannies.
I didn't even rebuild it...I traded it for a 3 thousand dollar snowmobile.
I hated that car....it was about 7 years old w/ 105k on it and i had to get rid of it for 3 grand!!!! couldn't sell it the way it was and definitely wasn't going to rebuild again.
I think for the 3-4 grand you can spend on truly bulletproof (and still weak geared)AOD you can have a real auto trans to race with...a c-4 or power glide....hell, i thought about doing the art carr 700r4 swap.
I'm not just bustin balls...And there are people who love them....But not me.

[TheSloAod]

mine has lasted 3 yrs doing the 1-d-1 shuffle and keeping in overdrive the whole time, your tranny shop must suck

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My slo aod- 3.73s, pullies, flowmasters, h-pipe, bbk cold air, and 13.42 in the 1/4 @ 103 mph

[MTU 50]

NOS_Notch, you made some good points and if my AOD blew up I would put a 5-speed in, but you are a little off in the ratio department.

Not about the numbers, but about comparing apples to oranges. The T-5's 3.35 ratio may seem better than the AOD's 2.40, however a torque converter in an automatic tranny not only transmits power, but also multiplies the amount of torque, whereas a manual tranny does not, so the gear ratio comparison is a little misleading.

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1991 GT, AOD, Moroso Cold Air, 3.73s, Pulleys, 3-chamber(the left one fell off-NO time+No Money=College), FMS c-springs, and KYBs

[rel3rd]

Originally posted by NOS_Notch:
I would stay far, far away from someones opinion who doesn't have a clue.

They are absolutely NOT strong.
Unless your content spending 2K-3K every other year and never go quicker than 14's....keep it.

But you will not see most automatic cars w/ an AOD....they use c-4's
If you keep it...along with all the other stubborn AOD user's(and i was one too...)
You will soon regret it.
Learn your lesson before you waste a ton of money. I wish i did.

NOS Notch: You obviously should have saved some of that hard earned cash, you spent on bogus transmission work, and bought yourself a clue...and if there was any change leftover, some correct information.

I run nothing more than a STOCK rebuilt 1992 AOD out of a Stang, with a LenTech Street Terminator Lock-Up valve body, and a Precision Industries Stallion Lock-Up converter rated at 3800rpm stall speed. Total investment: $1500. It's been in my car, which is much quicker, faster, and evidently more dependable than yours, for three years now.

I'm sorry that three seperate times, someone took advantage of your shortcomings, and sold you supposedly bad parts, trannys, etc. I know that people like you, aren't as intelligent as me, and therefore don't take the time to check all of the facts, and gathering information, before spending alot of money on something that will surely handle whatever you can throw at it. Heck, when my car was as slow as yours, I couldn't even break a T-5, muchless the bullet-proof AOD setup like I have now.

The weakest link is not the AOD itself, but the small inner input shaft and the OD band. Overdrive isn't, nor was it ever meant to be, a gear to be "putting the power" to. It is meant for highway/higher speed cruising. Also, my 2.40:1 1st geared AOD has 60 footed several times in the 1.55-1.58 range. My AOD is strong. I am content, as I have a total investment of $1500, have had it for three years, and have never had to put another penny into it. Best of all, I have never gone SLOWER than a 12.0 with it. That was three years ago, when I first installed it. I'm rather confused as to why you tried to start a flame war with me, but....
Next time you want to have a battle of knowledge with me....please ARM yourself!




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1986 Mustang LX
LenTech'ed & Vortech'ed
10.72/129/1.55 60ft.
[b]You must be FAST...
cuz you wuz FLYIN'...

[NOS_Notch]

rel3rd...your "intelligence" shows clearly....that you think an AOD is the Best trans in the world.
I think we are all talking about street cars here....and a $1500 investment will cover parts only. Most people don't rebuild their trannies.
You don't have a street car...you can't, or you would have rebuilt by now.
I am expressing my feelings toward an AOD...you like yours....keep it...and continue getting smoked by EVERYONE else that is comparitivly modded as you are.
MTU50...I heard gratiot is a camaro fest now...not many stangs.
Better go out there and stand up for the cause...
I'm not there anymore to hold down the fort.



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4.10's,long tubes & 75 shot...Goes 12.50's
Check it out at http://www.burnouts.stangnet.com

11's coming soon!!!!
Heads,intake and cam are all here

[rel3rd]

Well, I never said I think the AOD is the "best" transmission in the world. But, I did say it can definitely handle alot more power than a 14 second car can dish out. That is a fact. Sorry that you got slammed on yours a few times. FWIW, I didn't rebuild my tranny. I wouldn't know where to start in a AOD rebuild. I bought mine used for $300. A feat that almost anyone can duplicate, as there will always be doubters that go with a different choice. My car is absolutely a street car before anything else, in fact I was surprised it ran as well as it does. I built the engine in my laundry room. Last year, my goal was to run 11's on radials. I ran 11.60's at 120 on 235/60/15 BFG drag radials, the same tires I drove to the track on. This year, with my new 306, I hoped to be able to coax a 10.80 out of it before the end of the summer, still on the tires I drive around on, which now are 28x11.5 ET Streets. I ran a 10.80 at 125 second pass. Still on the same stock internal'ed AOD. BTW, My car hasn't been "smoked" yet...In fact, it runs quicker, faster than alot of cars with MORE mods. That's probably why at the recent SuperStallions of the Net Spring Nationals, out of 5 supercharged AOD fox body Stangs, mine took the title of AOD-KING of the HILL"
I don't want to have a flame-fest with you. Like I said, I'm sorry you have had some bad luck with your AOD's, but they can definitely be made to handle higher horsepowered usage. My street/strip car puts 465 horsepower to the dyno rollers, which figuring a 22% loss through the AOD equates to a tad less than 600 at the flywheel. Not very weak...

Peace,
BOB
http://88gt.5liter.com/friends/rlun/

[TheSloAod]

alright i'll respond to that one
i hardly ever get beat my a similar modded 5 spd car. usually i take on cars with a little more mods than mine... MOST 5 SPD CARS THAT HAVE THE SAME MODS AS MY AOD GT WONT RUN ME.. and if they do 9 out of 10 times they lose

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My slo aod- 3.73s, pullies, flowmasters, h-pipe, bbk cold air, and 13.42 in the 1/4 @ 103 mph

[82 GT]

{82GT adding fuel to the fire}

To be honest, I know absolutly NOTHING about automatic transmissions. I prefer a good 5spd myself, but have nothing against a well working auto with all the goodies.
I was reading the June issue of MM&FF last night and they built a 4R70E and put it behind a 392 stroker engine.

They got STRONG internal parts from FORCE 10
and they claimed it was good through 800hp
I've heard a lot of good things about this company.
I just thought it might be worth checking out the article.
Like I said before, I am by no means an automatic expert or manual expert for that matter but just thought I would pass the information I found to this post.



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'82 GT 351W C-4,BBK headers,Carter 625 carb,Comp.Cam,Flowmaster exhaust.
1988 GT...T-5,bone stock