Ford C4 vs AOD, imput?

May be off topic, if so kill it.

Going to be swapping a 04 crown vic front end into my 61 unibody here soon. I'd like to ditch my 351M C6 combo at the same time and put in a 302, but I'm unsure of what trans to use.

Obviously I'm wanting to drop to the smaller motor for gas mileage, as well as more ability of parts from aftermarket for it

Anyone care to chime in with pros or cons of either trans or setup?


And no, I'm not going to go with some wild off motor, or to any sort of 6 or smaller in the name of mileage. Just want something better all around so that I can have a nice now and then driver that's able to go down the highway and pass a gas station every now and then. Oh yeah, and blow the tires off every now and then too.

 

302/C4 is a proven setup and with the right rear gears and carb will be good for 15+mpgs no problem while still having the fun factor.

AOD affords you OD, BUT is a garbage trans and really tough to set up properly with the kickdown.

 

Thats what I figured on mileage, but unsure about quality of AOD. Forgot to add in I plan in the near future to swap in a Ford Explorer rear end, for the 3.73 gears, posi trac and disc brakes on all 4 corners then.

 

I'm running a 302/C4 in my next shoebox....


Ill save the mileage for my Honda Ruckus.

 

I had a c-4 rebuilt to run behind a mild '69 302 in my '51 Ford Coupe. Found a deal could not pass up on a upgraded AOD. Ya, going to cost more for good shifter, etc. and ya gotta go with 3:73. But, when you run an AOD out on the HWY you will be so glad that you did. Wife's got a '50 Chevy PU that we swapped out a 350 for a 700R4, great improvement. PS A 302 with right cam, etc will go like a bat out of hell-if that is what someone is looking for. Do Online search-lots of info out there.

 

Another reason I'm favoring 302 over the 351 thats in it. I know they can be built to fly, and much easier than the M can

 

Actually,they are really good trannys. The bashers are the ones that fail to adjust the TV cable properly.

 

If you want 15mpg, or less, and don't mind getting passed by Hyundais on the freeway, go C4. AODs had a bad reputation early on (like all the overdrive autos), but there have been plenty of improvements from the factory and aftermarket since then. With your car's new found handling and braking ability from the '04 Vic suspension (you will love it), why saddle it with an obsolete 3 speed auto and the requisite weenie gears?

 

I run a 302/5.0 GT with AODE 3.73 gears in my '40 SD - driven it hundreds of miles with no problems but could do with a little more oomph from the engine. A 351W would be a better choice for a few more ponies....

 

I have a c-4 in my 33 pickup with a 289.... runs great and the small bellhousing and trans fits well...... if you have the room put which you should put in the AOD...

 

Another question, any chance the AOD bolts to the 351M? Might be another route to go.

FOMOCO i'd love to pick your brain more, doing a lot like how your truck is.

 

X2 for the AOD. 55' ford customline with a 300hp 331 stroker, 3.55 rear and an AOD. Back and forth to Austin for me is about 360 miles and I get really close to 20 mpg moving along about 80-85. The only drawback is the TV cable but I took mine to the tranny shop that built the trans and they set it up for free. OR you could buy the constant pressure valve body from TCI to take the TV pressure adjustment out of the equation.

 

AOD has a .66 overdrive. 3.73 x .66 = 2.46 final drive. Fun without overdrive, highway long distance speed friendly with overdrive.

 

AOD, no question. Have c4 in my 46 coupe and aod in my 53 F100. Both 302 motors. I now have another AOD ready to go into the 46. No comparison in driveability. As far as reliabilty of AOD, the one in my 53 is original with at least 70,000 miles and works perfect. Yes you do have to set up the TV cable properly, but so what, it is a simple deal with a pressure gauge.

 

I put plenty of miles on a AOD and had no problems,the only thing I dont like about them is the shift pattern 1 D and o/d but there is someone modifying those valve bodys so you can turn off the o/d and shift it 1 to 3 and flip the switch and you are back in o/d.

 

I have to disagree with bill on this aod is a good tranny set the pressure properly and it will be great and when you geton the highway and hit od and you get 17mpg you'll be happy too.
Quick break down
My roadster pu:
Originally
302/c4/462 with a spool
10 to 12 mpg
65mph at 3100rpm's
Then:
347/aod/462 with a spool
17 to 19 mpg
65 mph at 2000 rpm
These are all hwy ratings no such thing as around town ratings when you drive it like you stole it there are none. Also I never drove under 75 mph with the aod idled to low.
I suggest a good tranny shop to rebuild it,plenty of aftermarket parts to make it stronger too
This is just my opinion.

 

Then your missing the T-5........

 

Been using AOD's forever....Not hard at to set up the TV and the AOD will take a ton of horsepower as well

 

Yah, fomoco, iknow you've got a manual, i like them a lot, but for driving in this town a auto is much nicer.

 

Much like the 700R4's there are good years and bad years for a build core with AOD's,the best years for AOD's are from 1988 to early '93 these had all the upgrades and a better valve body than the earlier years.The best site to learn about the AOD is www.clickclickracing.com an almost all AOD site.The AOD from 1988-93 is also non-computer which makes for an easier swap,if you are running a Carb get the Lokar TV cable it makes for an EZ install (love mine)

 

15 years ago I went through 5 AOD's in about 2 years time. They were junk back then and there was minimal aftermarket support. That was in a 5.0 Mustang with bolt-ons. But these days they've shown that they are worth their salt and the aftermarket finally has goodies to toss at em. Personally, I would choose a C4 and a Gear Vendors OD unit. My cousin has a 302/C4/GV in his '56 F100 for almost 10 years as a daily driver and never a problem. Even just running a C4 and a matched gear set will do great for you.

 

The normal 351m/400 has the 429/460 pattern, there are some super rare 400 blocks that had the standard 302 bellhousing pattern. They were used with FMX transmissions around 1973 I believe, they also had dual 302 style and 400 style engine mounts. A search on Google will turn up some pics of these blocks.

 

AOD !!!! Like JeffB2 said, easy set up with Lokar cable. 57 Ranchero with 302 tripower / AOD /3.56 Rear ... NY to Daytona, FL and back.... 22mpg @ 75-80mph

 

I have both combinations currently. My 46 has a 302 making 388 hp with aluminum heads roller rockers and roller cam with a C-4. I started with a 350 gear and was getting 12mpg and then built a 308 and currently getting 18.8 to 19 mpg consistantly and have plenty of hiway passing ability
I have a 51 Truck with a 302 roller motor and AOD and it gets 14 MPG on the hiway and 12/13 town average. With a proper adjustment on the AOD there a good transmission but costly to overhaul. Both vehicles have airgap intakes with holley avenger carbs.

 

I have an AOD behind a 302 in my coupe--2300lbs.
I run 3:80 gears with 235-75-15 tires. The engine purs around 2200rpm at 70mph.
24 mpg

c4 is smaller than an AOD

 

Well, I have a C-4 in the race car, big block making almost 800 horsepower. I dumped a C-6 for it & have never looked back. I know a guy here with a '91 Mustang making close to 700 with an AOD-E & it lives very well. If I thought an AOD-E would live in a #3700 car I would switch in a nanosecond.

 

I have a C4 in mine and wish I had the AOD - but now don't have enough tunnel room after building my '31 so will continue with the C4. I wasn't happy with what I could find out about longevity with the AOD when I had a choice - now I have a C4 in the car and a spare, with all the good hard parts installed in them so it is what it is

 

aod all the way! aftermarket companies like lemco have been putting over 1000 hp through them, with a little work that is! i`ve had a few trucks with them and 2 of them had over 400 000k and not a stich of problem, but like someone here said, the 88 and up aod`s are better.

 

well I did the same thing when I first built my roadster I dropped the engine and tranny down 1 " and gave it enough room for the aod

 

What he said!^^