Transmission Swap Help

[RICH MUISE]

Not an expert, but I believe all AODs are non-electronic. That's where the AODE came in, then the 4R70W. The 4R70W is what's in my car behind a 4.6.......no tunnel mods. Just thinking out loud here, but maybe tranny's that require an adapter possibly are the instances that require tunnel mods because of adapter thickness?

[brushwolf]

Yes, I think you are right about the designation of AOD being all the pre-computer versions.  But sometimes people not real familiar with them use names for components that are slightly off, like the combination valve vs proportioning valve discussions recently.

[Wirenut]

I purchased an 86 Mercury station wagon similar in appearance to the one in the Chevy Chase family vacation movie. The ugliest wagon I think ever made. It had 60k miles, I paid 600.00 dollars for it and bought it to transplant the motor and drivetrain into my 57.  The rear end was too wide but I was happy with the original Ford 9". I had a local engine builder go through the block and add a  thumper cam, upgraded heads and intake to get rid of the emission items. The tranny was an AOD but had Metric stamped on the oil pan. I was not familiar with the transmission at the time and didn't think much about it other than it had overdrive, which is what I wanted.
Once I installed the AOD I was worried I'd burn it up before I got it adjusted correctly. I did not use the factory linkage or cable. Everything I read about getting them set right to shift properly indicated using a pressure gauge in setting them up and how easy it was to burn up if out of adjustment, even on a short test drive.
I made several attempts and test drives to get it shifting right. Initially it was short shifting and needed minor linkage adjustments to finally get it set.  I am not running a high horsepower engine so it fits my needs and is great for cruises.  I've had it in the car for at least 10 years and it has performed well and been trouble free. I would recommend them.