Hey guys, his name is Adrian, treat him well:

"Greetings from Malvern, England,
I am the proud owner of a 1979 Ford F100 Custom, 302CI V8, Single cab, LWB truck. All my like I have been a big fan of Ford pick-ups & particularly 60's & 70's vehicles as they are so 'IN YOUR FACE!' Anyway, I bought mine about 18 months ago; sadly the forward transmission died on me about 2 weeks ago, & I have now managed to drop the whole gearbox from underneath the truck with the aim of rebuilding it. Based on the loss of all forward drive, I am reliably informed (I think) that the forward clutch has burnt out - I think that the kickdown arm had come off previously hence the burn out. If anyone out there can offer me advice on what parts I will probably have to replace & where to get them then I would be grateful. At present I am awaiting 2 specialist books on the dismantling & rebuilding of the C4 gearbox - hopefully they will arrive soon.
By the way, I wanted to post some photos but don't see how to attach .jpg files. Can someone tell me how to do this please?
Glad to be part of Ford-trucks forum!
Best wishes
Adrian (aka 'The Captain')"

I'll send him this way, so please post here.

 

Hi,

A C4 rebuild is not too difficult but you really should find the assistance of someone who can repair an auto trans. You need a couple of special tools to compress the clutch pack springs (you can work around this but it can be frustrating) that any auto trans shop will have. I am not sure if Ford used the C4 in anything native to the UK but parts are not expensive. You will need what is often called a "Banner Kit" rather than doing it piece by piece. It will save you in the long run. The kit comes with all new seals, new friction discs, reman steel discs (it is worth the few extra dollars in my opinion for these rather than trying to refinish them your self), a 2nd gear band, and a vacuum modulator. You will also need a front pump bushing and I always do a tail shaft bushing. You need to measure the input shaft endplay before dis-assembly to determine what size selective #1 thrust washer you need (if it is out of spec).

If you truly want to do it your self, hunt around ebay or the internet for an older US Automatic Transmission Textbook that includes rebuilding the C4, and of course the related Ford service manuals. You should also have your torque converter and oil cooler in the radiator flushed out so there is no contaminated fluid in there. You can buy a rebuilt torque converter if you see any damage to the shaft or if the one way stator clutch has failed.

Mike