[8notch8]

Ok, heres the situation...I have an 88 notch (2.3/ A4LD auto, 160,000 mi.), last night I drove out of town to a friends house, when I left I had no probs., got on the highway and hit 70 no problems. I drove about 60 miles, but when I got to the exit ramp all was still good until I stopped to make my turn. As I gave it gas to go first gear shifted fine, second shifted fine but as I got into third it acted like the trans was slipping (reving up to 3000, and felt like it would catch occassionaly...but just didnt feel right) manually shifted down from od to d and still wouldnt fully catch. I limped the car home like this and immediately checked fluid level which is good, I smelled the fluid, not burnt.

I checked again this morning, fluid is good. I took it for a little spin...manually shifting the car first gear is perfect, and second gear is perfect, but soon as I shift to drive the problems come back? WTF

I recently changed the fluid/ filter (5000 miles ago), I made sure the new filter had the o-rings installed correctly and topped off with Mobil 1 synthetic...my question is- has anyone else had this problem? Could this be a fluid compatability problem since I didnt drain the converter? Could this be a vacuum or maybe electrical problem? Or is the transmission finally giving up the ghost?

Any suggestions are appreciated since I dont want to dive too deep into the car yet since its only 15 degrees outside. (and please dont just say T5 swap...although I really want to, the moneys not there)

[ReverendDexter]

A4LD is a horrible, weak, prone-to-breaking POS. I had mine crap out on me twice in 1 year of normal driving.

I know you don't want to hear T-5 swap, but you'll be MUCH happier once it's done; the A4LD just isn't worth it at all.

[Racinjason81]

do a visual inspection of the trans.make sure nothings diconnected.maybe you should
drop the pan and check for metal in the pan maybe something let go.If its internally
damaged you could repair and upgrade it with 4.0 a4ld parts but it wont be cheap. I know you dont want to hear it but you should consider a t-5 swap since it could be done for half the price of a rebuilt 2.3 a4ld.IDK unless you dont know how to drive
a car with a manual trans.LOL.

[92silvercoupe]

Same thing happened to me recently and the overdrive band had broken. You should have seen some metal in the pan. Now I have a T5 and I junked the 4ld (P.O.S.)

[GeneticRehab]

Or you can get a adapter plate to put the 5.0 a4ld on the 2.3. That would make your life a lot better. You would need the converter and flywheel and the trans. I'm not sure but probably the starter too.

[LXpat93]

Hey how much power are the 4 banger t-5's good too?

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by GeneticRehab Or you can get a adapter plate to put the 5.0 a4ld on the 2.3. That would make your life a lot better. You would need the converter and flywheel and the trans. I'm not sure but probably the starter too.

5.0 had the AODE, which is based off the C4, not the A4LD which was based on the C3.

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by LXpat93 Hey how much power are the 4 banger t-5's good too?

5.0 T-5s are the strongest, and are only good to somewhere between 300 and 350 lbs of torque. The f-body T-5s are slightly weaker, and the 2.3L T-5s are slightly weaker than the f-body versions.

[SpeedSicks]

the f body t-5.. that could be either the 5.0 or the 2.3? as both were fox bodies.

but yes the 5.0 t-5 is stronger, however for normal driving the 2.3 t5 is probably more than fine. and can bolt right up.

but with the 5.0 adapter plates being less than $200..i think the 5.0's t5 would be the last of your tranny troubles, plus the clutches are cheaper i believe. and bigger!

5.0 t5's can support well over 500 ft-lbs, well over

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by SpeedSicks the f body t-5.. that could be either the 5.0 or the 2.3? as both were fox bodies.

Neither, F-body as in GM... Firebird and Camaro. T-5s weren't used exclusively by Ford, they were also used by at least GM and Nissan, maybe more.

[SpeedSicks]

oh i gotcha! lol i totally spaced on that, i know nothing about the GM t5's!!

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by SpeedSicks 5.0 t5's can support well over 500 ft-lbs, well over

The TKO-500 was specially built to hold 500 lbs of torque. The Mustang spec T-56 is a *much* stronger tranny than the T-5, and it's not even spec'd to 500 lbs (you need the Viper-spec T56 to handle that much). T-45s aren't considered good past 400 lbs, if even that much. The Tremec 3650 is so named because it's designed to take 365 lbs of torque. T-5s are weaker than any transmission I've listed here.

Can they be built to handle 500 lbs? Sure. But they're nowhere near that strong out of the box.

Originally Posted by SpeedSicks oh i gotcha! lol i totally spaced on that, i know nothing about the GM t5's!!

Heh, no problem.

[SpeedSicks]

i'm not saying its spec'd for it lol,

for handling max power in a 2.3 motor buy:
t5 trans
and convert to a cobra 10.5" clutch

thats if you want to go manual, otherwise c4 auto . as it will be faster!

i like the idea of a 6spd too, t56, but $$$

[8notch8]

well, the car has been sitting awhile now...still thinkin how nice the t5 would be, but i dont want to get too carried away here. If i do a swap there, next ill swap out for a 2.3t then up the boost, then 8.8, then cage it then more boost...before too long ill be running 9's in the quarter and have dumped 20 grand into the whole thing (i think i have a bit of a problem) oh well, its just a daily driver so i think ill just run through the tranny with some new guts.
i do have a full manual, reverse pattern c6 sittin on the shop floor...too much?

[Cool Bam]

I had to replace my trans....

[batlaxe]

will the auto out of a 3.8L Mustang fit the 2.3L? What would i need to do?

[97fordsixer]

i dont think the 4rw70 outa the 3.8 like mine will work. any one else>?

[ReverendDexter]

Originally Posted by batlaxe will the auto out of a 3.8L Mustang fit the 2.3L? What would i need to do?

The input shaft would have to be the same, and you'd have to have the right bellhousing.

[LXpat93]

i would just go for a t5 the 4banger just comes alive with a 5spd.

[8notch8]

well....it happened- I got sick of looking at the mustang collecting dust in the garage, so I checked the craigslist and found an 86 turbo coupe for $500 (of course i bought it!) anyways, for now I just wanna do the T-5 swap to get the notch back on the road (and rebuild the turbo engine later, other project??) anyways, now my question is...will the driveshaft from the TC work in the mustang? or will I have to find a different driveshaft? the rest of the stuff I have I know will work (clutch pedals, x member, etc...)

by the way, if anyone else is considering this swap...be prepared to get pissed off while swapping the pedal assemblies....DAMN!