I just baught a very clean 1994 F-150 with a 302 and auto trans. It shifts very hard from 1st to 2nd. Is this the way they were desgined or is my trans in need of adjustment? Thanks for the info...

 

You either have the E40D, which is an electroncially controlled tranny or the AOD which is not. Most likely you have the E4OD. If you post your VIN # I can tell you which one you have. If it's the E4OD, there's very little you can do to adjust your shift points. One common thing that will adversely affect your shift points with the E4OD is if you put different size tires on your truck that what originally came with it. The different tire size throws off your speedometer (which is electonic) and will throw off your shift points because speed is one of the things the computer uses to determine when to shift. If you do have other than stock tires you can easily reprogram your speedometer module.

 

if shifting hard means having difficulty going into second, you could easily have burned clutch discs. An old trick is to smell the tranny oil, and see if you notice a burned smell, and of course see if it is brown instead of a redish color. Do you know if the previous owner pulled a trailer, esp a heavy one? or a camper? You can also have the oil changed with the recirculated method--if the pressure reading on the machine is good, should indicate your filter isn't stopped up which is good. but if presure is low, there's stuff clogged up on the filter which is metalic particles etc. which is not good. The way I understand it, with good pressure, your filter is prob. o.k. which means there's no need in dropping the pan. So your in and out in a matter of minutes. On the contrary, you could be reaching deep in the ol' pocket book. Dropping the pan is best, but with this new equipment, it does a quick oil change and pressure check for indication of the filter cleanliness. I'll stop....good luck