Hey AOD guys...

[88COBRA]

Hey all,

Well my plans for the 5 speed swap have fell through and so I will be tweaking the AOD a little bit.

I just won a Performance Automatic Street/Strip valve body for only $75! I wanted Lentech but at $75 I just could not pass this one up.

I am also going to get a remote filter system. I was also thinking of a larger pan and a hammer shifter. I think the Hammer is a good idea as it will allow me to keep up better with the 5 speeds.

My other mods will include:
Long Tube Headers
Cat H-pipe
373 Gears

Do you think I am going the right way? Any input would be great.

[HiFlow5 0]

a stall converter will make a big difference of the stock converter! also a trans cooler would be a wise idea.

[88COBRA]

Hey HighFlow!

I am not interested in dropping the tranny at this point.

I have a B&M trans cooler in there now.

Ian

[fiveohpatrol]

I never saw a point in wasting money on the Hammer shifter for the AOD. Mine used to be an AOD and I always did the 1-d-1 shift in it with no problem so the aftermarket shifter would be a waste.

One thing you don't want to skimp on is the converter and tranny cooler. I put in a cheap "2800 stall" converter and saw no gain at the track. I've heard of people with AOD cars going with the PI stallion converter and 3.73's getting as much as 0.8 - 0.9 seconds off their time. With just gears I cut about a half second off my best at the time. The T-5 swap was about another 4 tenths, so with the combination of gears and a good converter will set you in the same range as a 5-speed car. I realized this, but I wanted to have fun while driving too, so i went the swap-route.

Another thing is that I kicked myself for not going with 4.10's when I had the auto. So thats the gearset I'd reccomend for you. Don't worry about highway RPM unless you cruise at like 90mph for hours on end.

Your not gonna have very much fun installing longtube headers on an AOD car. I've heard horror stories about installing them on T-5 cars, let alone on ones with the wider/bulkier AOD

hope this helps

[NotchJohnson]

Hey Ian, could you let me know how that PA valvebody works out? I am getting readt to upgrade my aod with a coverter and valvebody also- Im getting a little tired of the grandma shifts. Thanks man - John

[88COBRA]

Hey sure can, but it will be 4 months, as my car is in winter storage.

Here is my plan for the AOD.

B&M Trannt Cooler (already installed, great upgrade)
B&M Remote Tranny Filter (Santa is buying that)
PA Valve body (got that for $75!! yeah EBAY!)
B&M 2400 stall converter (my motor is stock so 2400 is good for me)

I hope to surprise all the T5 guys. I will also be installing 373 gears. With this combo, people say I will get nice 14's and rubber 1-2, and 2-3 if wanted

Ian

[Mach 1]

Forget the b&m converter. Youll regret it and want to change it again. I went through two converters. Not fun. Just get the stallion from PI. Do it once, and do it right. If you want, Ill sell you my old GER converter, still have it. Its 2500 stall, 11 inch. Its cheap. e-mail me if interested.

And you wont be surprising any 5 speed cars with the mods you have listed, sorry.

[Jeff Chambers]

88,

Got your email, check your inbox for my reply.

I'd have to agree on the 3.73's. Its just not enough for the AOD in a heavy stock car. 4.10's at the minimum.

For the mostly stock setup, an off-the-shelf converter may work out OK, but I've never had a B&M so if others have had bad experiences you should probably take their advice on the PI. If you call one of these companies and talk with their tech department, they can probably hook you up with the best converter for your car. The worst thing is to over-do the stall. If its below stall all the time, its slipping and that means heat. Heat is the AOD's worst enemy.

I would think that the PA valvebody has got to be better than stock. For a street/strip I definitely have to throw my $0.02 in on the Lentech. They're 1,2,3/4 manual shift pattern saves the abuse inflicted by the AOD shuffle. With the TV cable, the Lentech still maintains full automatic operation as well. The best of both worlds for a daily driven, raced on the weekend car.

[Mach 1]

GER also has a 1,2,3-4 shift pattern in automatic, or you can shift it manually. You dont need the electric switch I think the lentech requires, and they are a lot cheaper.

but, being in canada, and with lentechs superior reputation, that might be the way to go.

[88COBRA]

Good thing I asked before going ahead and buying stuff.

If I cannot keep up with the 5 speeds, then I will scrap the whole idea. I will not touch the AOD at all. I will just sell the valve body I bought, no big deal, and forget about the stall.

I will still go for the FMS driveshaft, just because it smooths out the car, and a set of 373. I do use the highway so 410 is not good for me. I will do the 5 speed swap eventually so 373 will be perfect.

There is no way in hell I would pay $600-700 for a PI, I do not care if it is made out of gold, that is crazy! A Lentech is cheaper.

Thanks for the replies, saved me some $$$. I will just wait another year for what I really want, and do it right.

Ian

[fiveohpatrol]

good choice on the 3.73's if your sure your gonna do the T-5 swap eventually. Thats what I was debating when I bought my gears, because I knew that I wanted to do the swap but wasnt sure when or if it was within my price range.

Your right the PI converter is very expensive, but if you want to be competitive then you have to buy quality parts. Do you think Billy Glidden buy's parts for his Pro 5.0 car at autozone?

I ended up doing the whole T5 swap for CHEAPER than just the PI converter. Much cheaper when you factor in the money that I got for selling the AOD. I spent about $600 for parts (found a good cheap used T5) and sold the AOD for $425 so I made out pretty well. By far the best $175 i've ever spent

Actually I think you would be very competitive with the T-5 cars with a converter and some gears. I was ripping up 5-speed cars with mine with the stock converter. My stock headed/stock cammed/stock intaked/stock weight/ AOD went a best of 13.99@101.xx, not too shabby for a car that you will NEVER miss a shift in (nice when your street racing too)

good idea on waiting and doing it right. It sucks to have to do things twice. Good luck

[HiFlow5 0]

Right now I can hang pretty well with some 5 speed cars in my AOD. I can't wait to get gears to really tear things up! Hey Ian if you wanna get rid of that VB let me know. do you have any specs on it?

Craig

[Mach 1]

I feel that even with mods(converter,gears, shift kit, etc...), the AOD sucks up too much horsepower to be competitive with the 5 speeds, and this has been my personal experience as well. With mild to moderate engine mods, the 5 speed should beat the AOD every time, modded AOD or not.

They say the AOD sucks up around 30 horsepower, tough to make up for with converter, shift kit, etc...

If your goal is to hang with or beat 5 speeds, without spending a lot of money, I would recommend doing the swap as you suggested. Just get a tremec for a hundred or so more dollars, and forget the T-5.

[TheSloAod]

i'd keep the aod. my 93 gt ran 13.42 @ 103 with stock heads, intake and cam. it only had bolt ons like any other mustang, with a hughes converter. forget the 5 spd, it's really funny to beat 5 spd car with an aod - they cant believe it

[Mach 1]

wow, those are amazing times for a basically stock AOD car. I guess mine was just built on a monday...

[88COBRA]

What!! Those times are crazy for a 5 speed, not to mention the AOD! I think you forgot to add the 150 shot of NOS you are running

HiFlow: Once I decide for sure, you can have it for $75. Their website is down right now I will get some specs for you asap.

Ian

[Mach 1]

yeah, on second thought, I just can not believe those times, and have to question your integrity.

[88COBRA]

OK Mach and Jeff,

This stuff is driving me nuts! All this AOD talk. I went over to my buddies today to help get his Cobra intake off, and we started to talk. He will soon have a high 11 or low 12 second car. He is telling me to keep the AOD, because he is now at the point where he may need it.

OK help me compare.

RACE 1:

PA Valve Body 1-2,3/4
410 Gears
2500 GER stall (from MACH)
Exhaust (headers, h-pipe, cat-back)
Aluminum Driveshaft

VS.
1990 Stock LX
Exhaust (headers, h-pipe, cat-back)
5 Speed
373 Gears

Who would win in the 1/4 mile?

MACH, I may be interested in your stall, please e-mail me your asking price, and the stats. Would the GER be better then the B&M?

Thanks for all your help!

[Mach 1]

Ok, Ill look over my info. on the converter and get back to you. I never had a B&M converter, but generally consider the two to be roughly equivalent in performance and price.

[88COBRA]

OK thanks, the GER website is not very good.

What about the race? Would I be close/win/lose?

Thanks