Getting ready to check out my buddies 302 and aod set-up. Car will only shift 1 and 2. It has an after market valve body with a on/off switch for the o/d. Everything has worked fine until pulling it out of storage and while driving this problem came up. It has all the factory brackets and t/v cable the only alteration is the valve body. Anyone had this problem? Thanks in advance.
The first thing to check is the TV pressure. You will need a pressure gauge and the proper block to be inserted in the cable. This is the most important thing you can do with an AOD. Without the pressure being set correctly you will have delayed, no upshifts, and the trans will be very short lived
Just to add, I wouldn't be driving it at all until it is checked out (TV pressure). Very short lived means hours, not days in most cases.
I have a pressure gauge set up left over from putting the AOD in my Fairlane so that's not a problem. I just didn't know if this was a common symptom of a improperly adjusted t/v cable or not. I'm headed out to crawl under it and have a look around now. Thanks for the replys.
Well....the grommet/spacer was missing up at the intake which would allow 1/4 inch of movement on the t/v cable. Fixed that readjusted the cable and still only has 1-2 shift and reverse. Dropped the pan and the fluid looks and smells torched. Some black in the bottom of the pan but not much. Noticed he didn't have an extension on the trans filter and maybe just ran a little extra fluid in it since it has a deep pan. Think I may swap the stock valve body back in it and see if it likes that. Maybe he burned it up by driving it with the bushing missing? Oh, also found what looks like a large bracelet bead floating in the pan.....?
It sounds like toast. Some even trailer their car to the tranny shop for adjustment because it don't take hardly any distance to hurt one. You didn't say what valve body is in it, tci has a constant pressure valve body that still requires the TV cable but takes the gnat's ass adjustment out of the picture.
I used to build aod's. and that symptom very likely is in the governor.. Simple to get to and clean.. Remove driveshaft and tail housing 1 snap ring and gov slides off the output shaft. Watch for the ball that goes in shaft that locates gov... disassemble and clean the moving parts of the gov and reassemble in reverse order.... worked on several for me... Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
With burned fluid and parts in the pan, you have no choce but to pull the trans and overhaul the unit. The governor cleaning will not help this problem. Good luck
Thanks for the help guys. The valve body is a Lentech. I have been reading a few blogs that mention the governor and I think I will give that a shot. 59ratgasser, does the tail housing just use an o-ring seal or a gasket. The only transmissions I have rebuilt are drag race power-glides so I guess its time to learn a little something. I think the part in the pan is an assembly line item like a plug or something.
The part that looks like a spinning top is what I'm used to finding in the pan. The black rubber grommet is what I found. I put the chrome tire valve cap next to it for size reference. Beats me?
If the TV was out of adjustment and it was driven any distance at all it will require a rebuild. The other things you are trying are a waste of time. Guess it's worth a try, but when the TV bushing goes, the transmission is close behind. It lets it run with low pressure and burns up the clutch plates and the band, that is the smell and the black stuff in the pan. Most likely any addition attempts to drive this transmission will increase the damage!
Your 3-4 clutch pack is toast so it's rebuild time pure and simple.My advice is buy this: http://www.badshoeproductions.com/aod.html and hang out here for a while: www.clickclickracing.com this is an all AOD site that plastic bushing failure will kill an AOD when you do the rebuild there is a bronze replacement available.There are some good videos on youtube you may want to check out.
I worked nearly 20 myears in a Ford dealership as a mechanic, doing nothing but engine and transmission overhauls. If the fluid smells burned, and there is black residue in the pan, the damage has already been done. You are simply going to waste time with any other repairs. Normally when a governor sticks you will have no upshifts at all. AOD's are bad for the governor sticking, and it doesn't take much at all to stick it, but when they stick, you will have only the gear that the tran s was in when the debris went into the governor
Thanks Ratgasser and OLDSMAN. I just got home from Lucas Oil Raceway and thought I would do a quick swap back to the stock valvebody. At this point I'm sure that I'm just spinning my wheels but at least I can say I've taken an AOD valvebody out. Had to quit for tonight as he forgot to bring the stock pan bolts along with everything else. Also.....there was a little screen/filter laying on top of the paper gasket when I dropped the valvebody. About the size of the spring in a ink pen. Pitch it?
the screen goes into one of the holes at the rear, and is a screen for the governor feed, without it you will have nothing but problems with the governor
Just click on this: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=ford+aod+valve+body Tons of videos on the AOD.
Thanks for the help. All of the searches that I've done shows the trans upside down on a bench and no one mentions the screen. Seems odd that they leave that part out. I will do some more searching after work.
Well I tried all of the suggested remedies and it still won't shift. Thanks for the help though. All is not lost, I know just a little more about AOD's than I did before and that is a good thing.
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