Kodas going to rebuild a transmission on his own? WHAT?!?

[koda6966]

Wow

Sorry, never took a carpet off before. I thought that's why people ask questions?

 

[Danger FX4 Ranger]

Just remove the trim pieces holding the carpet down and pull it back.

+1. Start by removing the trim under the door. Find a corner and start pulling SLOWLY and you won't rip it. I removed the carpet and shifter plate (which everyone is talking about) in my 90' so I could access a cooler fighting on the side of my A4LD which was leaking (wasn't the best way to get to it).

Also, +1 to reading a shop manual first if you are determined to keep an A4LD in your truck. My auto tech class disassembled an auto tranny when I was in high school. Trust me, they are very complicated with lots of parts which must go back precisely, often with close tolerances. Keep plenty of pics if you still decide to!

 

[Psychopete]

Take out your seats when you're going to pull your carpet back for the swap. It's easy enough to take them out than it is work on stuff with them in the way. That will also insure that you do not get your seats greasy. Carpet isn't too painful to replace price wise, that's just throw away cosmetic stuff.

I am with everyone else on this, I'd most definitely swap in a j/y M5OD-R1 over trying to rebuild an A4LD trans. It would be a fun experience, but I'd expect the first one I did to fail because I really don't know anything about them. Even some shops can't even get it right on some transmissions.

+1 to simply dropping the pan, drain converter, and replacing the filter on your auto and see where that gets you. Lack of trans maintenance will get expensive.

Pete

 

[dogboy]

The carpet in mine, is just set on the floor and the trim pieces/ seats hold in in place.
Auto trannies may seem simple, but there is a reason they fail, there's more parts. I wouldn't think about about rebuilding an auto unless I had an expert with me.
The m5od swap on the other hand, is simple. The hardest part, is the pedal bracket, and it is not hard, just kind of a pain because of lack of room to turn a wrench. I actually ended up just swapping the pedals, and using the bracket from my Ranger (the donor bracket was slightly different). putting the clutch/ brake pedals on the automatic's bracket was easy, just a mater of taking off a clip, pulling the shaft, and putting it back together.

I did the m50d swap, and I would do it again in a heat beat, hands down, no questions about it! You cannot beat the reliability of manual transmission!

And, I did my m5od swap in 12 hours, but about 3 of that was just bullshitting with my cousin, and about 2 hours was spent figuring out the wiring for the transfer case, which you would not have to worry about. Granted I was using a 2-post lift, but oh well, it can be done on the ground with a floor jack.

I would HIGHLY recommend draining the fluid and doing the fluid and filter! Chunks of stuff WILL NOT help keep a tranny alive, it will kill it even faster. Trannies have a little magnet on the bottom of the drain pan to help remove as much of the crap/ metal shavings as possible for just this reason.

 

[old409]

I rebuilt my A4Ld and it didn't work well enough to suit me. Besides that, I got a bad torque converter. I had done TorqueFlites and a couple old Packard UltraMatics and I don't remember them being anywhere near the pia the A4LD was. After all the messing around I found a M50 on Craigslist and ended up getting the whole manual shift switch over for $150.

Switching over to the M50 was a lot easier than messing with the A4Ld and now I don't have to worry about getting stranded because my tranny went south on me. I've had my Ranger 2 years and it had 3 different A4LD's in it and I'm 66 years old and don't beat my truck.They flat out quit on me while cruising down the hi-way. I don't think the A4LD would even make a good anchor. The M50 made all the difference in the world for my truck. I love it now. A very easy to do conversion.

 

[Ozwynn]

I've had my Ranger 2 years and it had 3 different A4LD's in it and I'm 66 years old and don't beat my truck.They flat out quit on me while cruising down the hi-way. I don't think the A4LD would even make a good anchor. The M50 made all the difference in the world for my truck. I love it now. A very easy to do conversion.

Another reason to hate the French. They gave us the A4LD.

 

[94STXRanger]

Ok i just had an entire class on automatic transmissions. So if your not that "skilled wrench wise", you might want to consider whether rebuilding an automatic is something you can take on. If you really think you can, like someone said, check to see if you need Ford specific tools. O and you really really really should GET A BOOK specific to rebuilding this trans. Good luck.

 

[cocoasranger]

"O and you really really really should GET A BOOK specific to rebuilding this trans. Good luck." 94stxranger

I got a rebuild manual and it scared the hell out of me regarding trying my hand at rebuilding the A4LD.

 

[mortazure]

rebuilding a manual transmission could be conciderably more expensive that modifying your truck for a manual transmission. You got o-rings,clutch plates/bands, worn or grooved hydraulic cylinder walls, hydraulic pump repair/replacement, sticking valve body, which that by it's self is very complicated. I hope you are prepared for the challanges of rebuilding one. A manual transmission involves gears, bearings and the housing. I am a professional mechanic and I dread the rebuild of automatics. Most rebuilt automatic transmissions have a shorter life than a new one. Not telling you what to do, just informing you.

 

[F150hybred]

Your task of rebuilding a transmission can be a daunting task. But, if you're only gonna pull apart a known to be working transmission to "refresh" it, it's not all that hard. The key thing is to get a transmission that was working in the first place. Also, try to get one from a 94 model year as it will have the available Ford upgrades already done.
In my case, I have a 94 Explorer that literally broke on me this winter when the transfer case piled up... don't ask, it's a long story. When I tore my transmission down, I found no appreciable wear on any of the clutches or bands making it a viable transmission for refreshing and replacement of the broken parts.
Parts for these aren't all that expensive either. A gasket and seal kit is $70.00 CDN and the part I broke is $35.00 CDN.

The part I broke:

So if you're serious about it, it's not all that hard. Pick a transmission that was working, has decent fluid in it and when you get it, check the converter hub for ANY wear... that a key area to watch for. Good luck and let us know how it goes!

 

[koda6966]

The last post in this thread besides today was over a year ago. My trucks transmission is fine. And I haven't even drove my truck for almost six months..

 

[low_five]

good job updating your thread

 

[koda6966]

Well since it was a year old thread.. I didn't really expect it to pop up.