[Lazarus]

I havent done anything to my car (95 Taurus GL) since i fashioned my own CAI. One trip to the Shenandoah mountains later and my automatic transmission was nicely toasted. Needless to say i swapped the stock airbox and all back into the car but alas within a few weeks the tranny had completely died. I had it rebuilt but it still really leaves a lot to be desired. My concern is that now that i have the car running again if i want to go for some performance gains how much can the tranny really take? The automatic transmissions on these cars seem to be their achilles heel. Assuming I install an inline filter and secondary transmission cooler, and perhaps an apten chip which will supposedly give me a more "agressive shifting pattern", how much can the tranny take before it gets overwhelmed? I mean down the road a relatively easy approach to performance gains would seem to be installing a nitrous system. This is DOWN the road mind you...given that the vulcan engines seem to be beasts of burden the tranny is my real concern...does the car really have a future in performance given the limitations of a weak ATX? Opinions?

Brian

 

[slider5634]

Well, I don't think the CAI had anything with its death, but I'm not sure how much it can take before overwhelming it. Speed wise mine took 110mph and died 1 hour later.

 

[MrBooMY]

I must be lucky then, because I took a trip from Jacksonville, FL to Orlando, FL and did about 100 mph all the way on the highway, about a 2 hour trip, and my tranny still shifts the same way it did when I got it. I do however have a 10,000lbs. GWV tranny cooler that I added shortly after I got the car. It had 59,738 miles on it when I got it, and it now has about 112,000 miles. It's a 1999 Taurus LX with 3.0 Vulcan Engine in it. I believe it's an AX4N tranny. I even did the resistor mod on it for a little while, but ended up destroying my motor mounts so I had to remove it.

 

[shifty]

ford just makes crap transmissions...second to dodge of course!
im one my second tranny i have the infamous AXOD and it is specific by what year your car is. i had a really hard time finding one for a 91 cause thats the only year that works for it. i guess it is some sensor thing or the type of sensor plug. but needless to say i regret neglecting my tranny so take care of it.

 

[tmonster]

Hmm.....

-1993 Ford Taurus 100k Tranny Never Serviced...I went 80-100mph in it on a weekly basis...
-1996 Ford Taurus LX (Duratec, AX4N) 132k miles 80-90mph on highway ever day, 12k overdue for service, no problems. <~~My Car
-1990 Ford Tempo GL 3-speed ATX 108k Ran on bad mounts, never serviced, tranny fluid went dry 3 times (bad mount = cracked tranny line) And silly neutral drops in the high school parking lot...Tranny never skipped a beat.<~~ My previous car
-1998 Ford Taurus SE Vulcan AX4? 80k 70-90mph non stop from NY to SC, no problem.
-1991 Ford Tempo GL 3-speed ATX 60k when wrecked, 1st gear stuck here and there (assumed to be bent throttle body linkage)
-1994 Mercury Villegar 170k Tranny Syncro's on there way out
-1997 Ford Aerostar 4.0 w/ F-150 Auto Trans. 60k when traded, towed 4k lbs trailor, no issues.
-1991 Ford Aerostar 150k Tranny toasted at 135k (after towing project car)
-1989 Ford Tempo GL 238k tranny assumed dead, was really a busted tranny line(again bad mounts)
-1985 Mercury Grand Marquis 5.0 C4, 135k, tranny slips in and out of first when driven in weather below 40 degrees, works fine after heated up.
....theres many more where that came from, never had a ford tranny problem outside of towing a mustang with an aerostar

. However our luck with Chrysler corps trannys has been limited...esspecially in the family Carvan (rebuild at 55k, then axels, then diferential, then new sensors...)

I highly doubt the CAI did anything, if I'm correct the ATX was also bolted up to the SHO...thats alot more power than a vulcan, and we know it didnt boost you 60-80 hp

If you had your transmission rebuilt and are worrying about it failing again...get the shift kit and run some Amsoil tranny fluid, add a cooler too...the math would ad up to a tranny that will run over 200k...I'd like to test those numbers tho...

And dont worry...My tranny is 12k overdue for service...but springtime is coming

 

[sixfofalcon]

Heat is what kills 90% of the ATXs. If you install a tranny cooler and get a chip which firms up the shifts, you can get away with a lot more before the ATX craps out. There are some people out there who think that firmer shifts will shorten the life of the ATX, but there is no evidence to support this. Soft shifts=long clutch slip time=more friction=more heat. Most shift kits improve fluid flow and therefore lubrication and heat dispersion, so they are highly recommended at rebuild time.

 

[Lazarus]

Interesting...so with proper maintenance and the preventative measures I outlined i should be able to get away with throwing way more power at my tranny...best news iv heard in a while

!

Brian

 

[Lazarus]

ohh and mr boomy, whats the resistor mod, iv read only breifly about it? ...It sounds dangerous for some reason...playing a trick on my car would probably cause it to play a much nastier trick on me.
Brian

 

[mykej27]

Originally posted by Lazarus@Jan 13 2004, 10:07 PM
The automatic transmissions on these cars seem to be their achilles heel. Assuming I install an inline filter and secondary transmission cooler, and perhaps an apten chip which will supposedly give me a more "agressive shifting pattern", how much can the tranny take before it gets overwhelmed?
Brian

Yes, it's a weak transmission, but if you do all of the above your trans should go a long way before you need to overhaul it...if at all. It should last as long as your engine.

Use the correct fluids and don't drive like a maniac and it will serve you well. If you like to down shift during every take off, you may cause unneeded stress on the tranny. And, don't down shift to slow down! You'll find a pile of metal shavings at the bottem of the oil pan stuck to your magnet and you may clogg up your oil filter. That trans oil filter is crap. Don't drive sporadically and don't torgue rev your engine prior to launching. You'll burn up your torgue convertor. Lots of people talk about torque reving when racing someone. It's really a stupid thing to do to our cars.

A chip will improve the shifts, a Transgo shift kit will help firm those loose power bands, and a cooler will help it from over heating. You have the right idea.

 

[mwt]

Originally posted by mykej27@Jan 14 2004, 06:46 PM
. That trans oil filter is crap.

Could you please expand on this statement?
Thanks

 

[mykej27]

Have you seen a transmission filter? It's nothing more than a piece of foam. I've heard of a inline filter, but I've never seen one.

Anyone care to show me one? Or it's even available for our vehicle or is it something that is fabricated?

 

[sixfofalcon]

Originally posted by mykej27@Jan 15 2004, 05:03 PM
Have you seen a transmission filter? It's nothing more than a piece of foam. I've heard of a inline filter, but I've never seen one.

Anyone care to show me one? Or it's even available for our vehicle or is it something that is fabricated?

Magnefine

As SHOZ123 has recommended, you can get the 1/2" filter for the PS and ATX lines. I found out the hard way that the 1/2" model doesn't fit the stock ATX line. The 3/8" model should fit the stock ATX line just fine. I got mine through Emerging Enterprises.

 

[Lazarus]

haha...funny follow up. I just drove in a buddies car, a 90 taurus wagon that has 325,000 miles on the original drivetrain with one tranny fluid flush in its lifetime...some folks get all the breaks...

 

[BMWevo600]

Sorry buddy the mercury villegar is a nissan product. nissan engine and tranny. but dont worry if u had one i had one and never did anyhting to it except change the oil for 130k and nothing ever happened too it. i beat the crap out of it in first and second tilll red line all the time i and i swear it still wasnt broken it mine was a 93

long live the shaggen mobile

 

[High_Octane]

Originally posted by Lazarus@Jan 16 2004, 09:06 PM
haha...funny follow up. I just drove in a buddies car, a 90 taurus wagon that has 325,000 miles on the original drivetrain with one tranny fluid flush in its lifetime...some folks get all the breaks...

 

[taurus8916]

the resistor mod is crap, but onto tranny's I had my car at 79,000 didnt have it flushed until 105,000 mistake.....like 5,000 later had to get a minor rebuild( pressure regulator solenoid) and a new pinions, but honestly I TELL EVERYONE, get a full flush and a new filter once a year, dont go any longer, maintain it and it will prove out to last a lot long than u can expect......IMO

 

[jason8225]

All I have to say is Gen 4 Transmissions are awesome

*knocks on wood*

 

[BMWevo600]

fluch the tranny once a year what are u doing to it

 

[High_Octane]

Originally posted by BMWevo600@Jan 20 2004, 09:04 PM
fluch the tranny once a year what are u doing to it

He is just being a cautious Taurus owner. Better safe than sorry. I always have mine done alteast 1-2 a year. But keep in mind I also get free full tranny flushes whenever I want

. But if I had to pay I would still have it done once a year.