Im in a little pickle with my truck. For a couple hundred more I could be in business with one or the other. However the auto has unknown miles, and unknown internal condition (and dont want to spend money on it but it has a pressure bleedoff problem-somewhere (maybe in the pump)).

Id like to hear from the guys that own or have owned zf5 and e4od trucks. Which one do you like, pros and cons of each (cost, reliability, ease of use, LONG TERM MAINT COST! what you use it for etc etc).

 

ZF 5, only way to go imho. Only thing I don't like is that 1st and 2nd are geared a little high for me, I kind of miss the gearing of the old 4 speed.

 

I like auto, but the stick is the best way to go for mpg and towing. Good luck,

Chet

 

ZF5. Do it. manuals are cheap to rebuild and more reliable. Plus better fuel economy

E4OD are junk unless they have been built. But better for town and taking the kids to soccer practice or W/e

 

My truck is a Tow Truck, I tow with it every day. It has the ZF 5 and I wouldn't have it any other way, the ZF 5 holds up alot better than the E4OD.

Any rebuilt transmission is only as good as the person that rebuilt it, IMHO beware of the chain stores.

 

an auto will out do the manual any day of the week. better mpg, towing.

 

All depends on induction to me. N/A is a wash. Non-gated turbo, ZF5 all day. Wastegated turbo, built E4OD with a tighter converter.

FWIW, dual mass flywheels are expensive, and ZFs aren't exactly cheap to rebuild either. Sure you can get a SMF conversion, but that alone is more than a well built converter.

 

i would take a good condition auto any day over a manual. even better would be a built auto and tight converter. also if you are just driving it daily and not towing heavy all the time you don't need a full tilt built auto. just a good shift kit, the upgrades, and a good converter will be fine.

OP, you will have to do some research and get a rough estimate of what it will cost do do the ENTIRE zf5 swap, including leaving some wiggle room for any unforeseen expenses during the swap process. i have no idea what the cost of zf swap is right now, but you might be in the same range as getting you auto fixed.

 

i love it, some say e4 has better mpg, some say manual.
in town i dont see the auto getting metter mileage as the converter is always unlocked.
woth the gearing i have (i dont know), i was at 1650 rpm in auto wen it felt like locking. buddy with a 250 manual is at 2000 at 60 mph. both n/a.
it just feels like more of a man truck with a manual. i personally hate having to give it fuel to downshift.
in my 5 speed stang i save so mich fuel by keeping throttle constant, and just gearing down going up a hill (lose speed tho).

I want to do manual simply because i dont know the condition pf the auto. a basic sonnax rebuild kit will run me 1-200$..ah fack..probably going manual.

94 turbo-i scored the entire zf swap for 260. Clutch is worn down, but found a good used setup for 60, and i bought the entire driveshafts for 200. still trying to find a crossmember.

 

pretty much a no-brainer then.

 

over 370k on the original E4OD here and no problems

 

i like manuels but that just me

 

I'm also a manual fan for a variety of reasons. I don't see how the E4OD would get better mileage, but I've not driven one so I don't know. For sure the ZF5 beats out the C6 for mileage. For slow starts, a torque converter is a lot better than slipping the clutch, so if you're doing a lot of towing in stop and go traffic, the auto might be the way to go.

Some pluses I can think of for the ZF5: Don't have to worry about fluid and filter changes (or overheating it), no electronics that can fail and leave you stranded, can be towed/push started if the batteries/starter crap out, engine braking, better control over what gear you want to be in vs engine RPMs, less people will ask to borrow your truck because they don't know how to drive stick...

Some pluses for Auto: just about any idiot can figure it out without destroying the clutch/tranny, easier for stop and go traffic, torque multiplier for easy starts with a heavy load, no need to go through the trouble of swapping it over

 

technically an E4OD on paper would get better mpg than the ZF5, as it's OD gear is a tad bit taller....


But in the standard you have direct power from the engine, all the time, so I guess that makes up for it, plus no load on the engine idling at a red light etc.



I'd go standard, if auto, has to be C6. I wouldn't touch an E4OD!

 

i wouldn't touch one of them newfangled electromagnetic E40D's if you offered me all the gold in the world.
a mans truck should be manual shift transmission.go Zf5,or go home!

i do like to take the kids to soccer practice with my E40D sissy truck though:
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ctureid=100134
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ictureid=96655
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ictureid=53838
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ictureid=53663

i agree seriously.you got such a nice deal on your trans.you should continue with the zf5 swap.what's a few parts left? you just need a cross member and a driveshaft right?
rebuilding an E40D is pricey stuff.i do not look forward to that day.