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Shift Kit and Tuner

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Old Feb 18, 2007 | 07:15 PM
  #1  
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Shift Kit and Tuner

Hey..
It was suggested to me that if I put a tuner on my 05 fx4, that I should also put a shift kit in. I was doing some research on here and another opinion was that if you put a tuner, it acts like a shift kit. Because of this, it was suggested that I don't put on a tuner AND a shift kit because it may cause a problem having both.
Any thoughts?
I have a 05 fx4 with 3.73. Everything else is stock.
I just want something to wake the truck up.. I'm not racing and have no inclination to do so.. Just like to have the extra power when I need it.
Thanks again folks...

Chris
 
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Old Feb 18, 2007 | 11:30 PM
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Do both, but don't let the tuner adjust the trans. I had used my tuner to bring up my line pressure, and it was ok. I installed a factory tech valve body, and it's a major difference. The shift kit will help extend the life of the trans by meshing the gears faster so they spend less time on the clutches. They also provide more fluid to the trans (volumetrically), so it runs a little cooler, the tuner can send more pressure, but it seems like that is hard on the pump.
 
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Old Feb 19, 2007 | 09:22 AM
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Originally Posted by ReAX
Do both, but don't let the tuner adjust the trans. I had used my tuner to bring up my line pressure, and it was ok. I installed a factory tech valve body, and it's a major difference. The shift kit will help extend the life of the trans by meshing the gears faster so they spend less time on the clutches. They also provide more fluid to the trans (volumetrically), so it runs a little cooler, the tuner can send more pressure, but it seems like that is hard on the pump.
So in essense, putting a shift kit only would be a pretty smart thing to do in order to prolong your tranny.. That just about sum it up?
I suppose this is an extensive process?
 
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Old Feb 19, 2007 | 05:46 PM
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The shift kit is a smart move.. especially with these trannys... not known for durability... especially around 45K miles.....it only takes a few hours to install a shift kit... its widely used by taxi's and police cars... it prolongs the wear and tear for those cars which get abused....i installed my kit when i had my tranny rebuilt at 49K miles...i'm assuming you are going to adjust the shift points (reason for your tuner)... im told by our mechanic at the police station.. he orders our vehicles tuned and with shift kit... he said he would never do a tuned veh. w/out a kit... hope that helps
 
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Old Feb 19, 2007 | 08:10 PM
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Originally Posted by dynamis5
Hey..
It was suggested to me that if I put a tuner on my 05 fx4, that I should also put a shift kit in. I was doing some research on here and another opinion was that if you put a tuner, it acts like a shift kit. Because of this, it was suggested that I don't put on a tuner AND a shift kit because it may cause a problem having both.
Any thoughts?
I have a 05 fx4 with 3.73. Everything else is stock.
I just want something to wake the truck up.. I'm not racing and have no inclination to do so.. Just like to have the extra power when I need it.
Thanks again folks...

Chris
Yes, to use both is redundant. If you want the tuning abilities of a tuner, as well as a stronger shift... a modern "tuner" will do both. There is no need to install a shift kit these days. I personally run an Edge tuner, and I love it. I had a Superchips in an 04 F150.. and it wasnt quite as nice as the Edge. Of course.... just my opinion. Good luck.
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 06:35 AM
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Originally Posted by Ford-Five-0
The shift kit is a smart move.. especially with these trannys... not known for durability... especially around 45K miles.....it only takes a few hours to install a shift kit... its widely used by taxi's and police cars... it prolongs the wear and tear for those cars which get abused....i installed my kit when i had my tranny rebuilt at 49K miles...i'm assuming you are going to adjust the shift points (reason for your tuner)... im told by our mechanic at the police station.. he orders our vehicles tuned and with shift kit... he said he would never do a tuned veh. w/out a kit... hope that helps
Sorry for all the questions, but I'm not very mechanically inclined...
You said a shift kit takes only a couple hours to install.. Would any local mechanic most likely be able to do this? Should I be looking for something special?
From what I'm reading, some think it's worth putting a tuner and a kit, and some say they are 'redundant'...
Decisions...decisions..
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 07:42 AM
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You WILL damage your truck if you install both (and use the transmission tuning of the performance tuner). Guess I wasn't clear enough.
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 07:44 AM
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Originally Posted by Ford-Five-0
The shift kit is a smart move.. especially with these trannys... not known for durability... especially around 45K miles.
I realize that you have had to replace your transmission around that mileage figure.... but that is NOT the norm. If it was, you would see this forum absolutely littered with transmission problem threads. I would love to see some proof to your claims that these transmissions are not durable, because I see and know otherwise.
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 08:22 AM
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I know it's not a ford, but on my 06 jeep liberty, I read on the jeep forum to do both, I got the trans go shift kit and tunner. The tunner only did so much, but the trans go made a huge difference. Some of the guy's on the forum have been running this combonations for a few years now and it's the ticket on and offroad with no addverse effects as some guy's are at over 100,000 miles. This is a jeep and not a ford, so I can't tell you if it will hurt your tranny or not, but I can tell you it made a big difference on the kj, I even noticed a slight increade in mpg, it holds low for prolonged periods offroad, especially down hill. Tranny runs cooler and the shifts are tight, it feels like a different rig. Thats one of the beefs with testers of the 150 in the offroad mags, the tranny sucks up to much power, it doesn't feel like the engine has 300 hp. Part of this is due to prolonged shifts. I would say whatever method would improve shifting, would be a worth wild upgrade. I don't know if doing both would hurt the fords tranny, so I would listen to the experts, cause tranny's aren't cheap.
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 09:13 AM
  #10  
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Originally Posted by dynamis5
Sorry for all the questions, but I'm not very mechanically inclined...
You said a shift kit takes only a couple hours to install.. Would any local mechanic most likely be able to do this? Should I be looking for something special?
From what I'm reading, some think it's worth putting a tuner and a kit, and some say they are 'redundant'...
Decisions...decisions..
Any mecahnic can probably do it... and frankly if youre not mechanically inclined youre probably better off having the mechanic do it.. the kits are usually $150.00 and a mechanic will probably charge one hour labor to do it...
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 09:19 AM
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Originally Posted by WheelMA1
I realize that you have had to replace your transmission around that mileage figure.... but that is NOT the norm. If it was, you would see this forum absolutely littered with transmission problem threads. I would love to see some proof to your claims that these transmissions are not durable, because I see and know otherwise.
There are actually quite a few threads indicating the transmission problem at 45k miles.. I didnt pull a random number out of a hat... I understand being a die hard Ford Fanatic its not nice to hear negatives about a product we love.. But the truth is the truth. Especially for the 04 year models... Anyway... Im glad you SEE and KNOW otherwise... You must be driving something other than an 04 with 45k miles...

almost 10 years of police work in L.A. driving nothing but Fords pounding the engines and trannys tell me something.. Ford engins are superb.. Trannys cant take a beating without mods... All of the cars we used for patrol while I was with the L.A. sheriffs dept (which by the way carries the largest patrol car fleet in the country) and with my current dept. El Monte P.D... are tuned AND have a shift kit... Its the norm in the industry.. as well as taxi companys... which all have us abusive drivers...

Hope this helps
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 09:26 AM
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Originally Posted by Ford-Five-0
There are actually quite a few threads indicating the transmission problem at 45k miles.. I didnt pull a random number out of a hat... I understand being a die hard Ford Fanatic its not nice to hear negatives about a product we love.. But the truth is the truth. Especially for the 04 year models... Anyway... Im glad you SEE and KNOW otherwise... You must be driving something other than an 04 with 45k miles...

almost 10 years of police work in L.A. driving nothing but Fords pounding the engines and trannys tell me something.. Ford engins are superb.. Trannys cant take a beating without mods... All of the cars we used for patrol while I was with the L.A. sheriffs dept (which by the way carries the largest patrol car fleet in the country) and with my current dept. El Monte P.D... are tuned AND have a shift kit... Its the norm in the industry.. as well as taxi companys... which all have us abusive drivers...

Hope this helps
I am completely willing to take in both positive and negative. There is no sense in walking around life with 'blinders' on. With that said, not only being the moderator of this forum, I am also an owners of this series trucks. I have read almost every thread that has been created here, so I do have a grasp on the breadth of product issues we have (more than a few threads over the 4+ years ). I can only repeat what I know. It would be interesting to see what a tuner manufacturer would say about stacking these products.
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 09:51 AM
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Originally Posted by ReAX
The shift kit will help extend the life of the trans by meshing the gears faster so they spend less time on the clutches.
To clarify, automatic transmissions don't "mesh the gears" as the gears are planetary gears and are in constant mesh. They shift by tightening and loosening the bands and clutches. The shift kits reduce the amount of slippage of the bands and clutches when engaging by raising the line pressure.
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 11:39 AM
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I was curious about this same issue about a year ago. Fordtrkpuller replied to my original question about running the Edge tuner with a shift kit after talking to the techs at Edge. I believe Fordtrkpuller is one of the gents from Dicsount Power Parts who sell the Edge tuner here. Here is the post, my question appears on page 4.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/4...edge-vs-4.html

Needless to say, I have not installed any of these products yet, but hope to have the funds to do so this summer.

Shawn
 
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Old Feb 20, 2007 | 06:19 PM
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Originally Posted by dynamis5
Sorry for all the questions, but I'm not very mechanically inclined...
You said a shift kit takes only a couple hours to install.. Would any local mechanic most likely be able to do this? Should I be looking for something special?
From what I'm reading, some think it's worth putting a tuner and a kit, and some say they are 'redundant'...
Decisions...decisions..
I sell transgos at work and was going to get one for my truck and do the install my self. They aren't that hard, you just have to take your time and put things back together right. However, after some research, I found Factory tech. They offer a complete bolt on kit, no drilling, small parts or reaming. Just pull the pan off, pull a dozen bolts that are all the same size, pull two nuts. Remove the stock valve body and replace with the factory tech. It's as simple as changing a radiator.
 
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