anyone know if and which aod trans will bolt to a 351w motor out of 1972 grand torino thanks Mike

 

All small block 302/351w AOD's (and even some V6 AOD's) will bolt to your 351W.

I think you will require a flexplate for an '85 or '86 Crown vic with a 351w
and AOD. (28 oz. balance).

 

Be sure to get an AOD out of a pre 93 vehicle. The 93 and newer AODs are AODE for electronic.

You will need to match the flex plate for pre 82 Windors which are 28oz. In addition depending on the carb you may need a TV cable adapter. Lokar makes TV cables and adapters.

 

All 351W were 28 oz. balance, not only pre '82's.

The only time an AOD was used behind a 351W was in the '85-86 Crown Vic's and Grand Marq's.
That is the flexplate that is required.

You may use an AOD, an AODE, or a 4R70W.

An AOD is the easiest, and only requires a TV cable.

The AODE requires a TV cable and a OD button on the dash or shifter.

The 4R70W requires a transmission controller.

I'd avoid early (weaker)AOD's and aim for a later (90-92) F150, Mustang,T-Bird
donor.

You may also put the 4R70W internals into an early AOD, and end up with a wide ratio gear set and all the better internal upgrades, into a transmission that only requires a TV cable.

That's oversimplifying it, but that's my 2 cents.

 

Mid-'80's AOD's had the weak OD servo (mostly, cop cars were an exception) and had a throttle linkage (not cable), very UNdesirable from a tranny perspective, but may be easier for a carb. I think the change to a cable was in '89 - '90 (depends on vehicle again). Servo upgrade can be done to any of them.

Regardless of the model, proper TV adjustment is essential or you'll burn up the trans in no time.

 

Regarding flexplates : All AOD's ran 164 tooth flexplates and all 351W's had a 28 oz. imbalance. SO, you just need to make sure that you have a 164 tooth flexplate for a 28 oz. imbalance powerplant. C4, C6, FMX, AOD - it doesn't matter. Neither does the specific year or model. The flexplate in my old truck with a 351W/'92 AOD came off of a 351C/FMX combo.

 

Reguarding the use of other (C4,C6,FMX) flexplates.

You need to be careful with the depth of the torque convertor mounting lugs.
If seen more than a few AOD's fail because of improper flexplates.

Yes, all of the bolt holes line up, but the wrong flexplate will put pressure on the front pump and crack it.

 

OK, now I'm confused. I have a 351W/C4 from a '79 LTD II that was running/driving when I pulled it out. I have since bought an AOD from an '82 LTD w/302. What do I need to look for (or purchase) to remove the C4 and install the AOD? I am building a driver, so dependability and mpg means more than 1/4 mile times. Answers anyone? Thanks, Steve

 

Are you sure that's a C4 behind your 351W? I've had a couple '77-'79 T-birds and an LTD II. They all had 351W's with an FMX. Anyhow, the FMX always used a 164 tooth flexplate while the C4 could have had a 157 or 164 tooth plate. Split the transmission off of the 351W and count the ring gear teeth on the flexplate. If it has 164, then go ahead and bolt up the AOD. Just make sure when you go to bolt the converter to the flexplate that there is some in/out movement possible with the converter before the nuts are tightened. As 79Thunder mentioned, you don't want the flexplate pressing the converter into the front pump.

If your 351W has a 157 tooth plate, you'll have to locate a 164 tooth plate. DO NOT attempt to use the 302 flexplate on the 351W. The imbalance factor changed in 1982 on the 302 and it's different from the 351W.

 

Thanks for the info! I'm pretty sure that the trans is a C4. I ordered the car new in 1979 (bummed out that I couldn't get a cleveland) kept the car til 1991, then bought it back in 2004. It was the LTD II Sports Touring package which may have been why the C4 trans was offered - really don't know. I'm at work offshore now but in 13 days I'll be where i can drop the trans and find out for sure. Again, thanks for the info! Steve

 

i'm no expert here fella's but isn't the fmx the only ford auto with a removeable bellhousing ???? might be an easy way to id it . that's what i have in the back of my mind and how i alway's kinda sorta id'ed the ones i'm looking at . my cuz gave me a warning about the aod's . make sure the tv {?} cable is adjusted properly on them or you are going to burn it up fast !!!!!!!!!!! also he reccomends for performance use what was suggested earlier and put the 4r70w's internals in it as they are much better " geared " and stronger . it's what he's doing to his going behind the 347 in his 53 .

 

I will atest to this, when I first put the 351w AOD combo in my Fairlane I bought a flexplate off ebay, it was a 164 tooth Skat (I believe, crs sometimes) it was the right diameter and all looked good.

Long story short, tried to start motor, cranked hard, started and ran about 30 seconds then quit. pulled the trany back out (fluid was leaking out of the bellhousing). The flexplate offset was to deep and it pushed the torque converter into the pump which caused the pump to machine itself down a little shorter. Lot's of Aluminum filings throughout the tranny.

I ended up useing a flexplate that was attached to a 351w that I had bought that came from a 77 LTD II. All is good. I also used a Lokar TV cable.

If you go this route I would recommend the Transgo Shift Kit. Nice firm shifts and it will help extend the life of your tranny.

Mark

 

The C4 had a removeable bellhousing, too. The easiest way to ID an FMX is that it will have a cast iron main case and a wide, rectangular pan. A C4 is all aluminum and has a dinky little pan that's nearly square.

The TV cable is most certainly critical on an AOD. That's no joke. As for the wide-ratio planetary swap from a 4R70W, yes it will give you a stronger gear train and better performance, but it's really tricky to get the old hydraulic valve body in the AOD to shift it right with the lower first and second gears. I did this swap in my Falcon and never could get it dialed in. I eventually shipped my valve body off to a pro to have it calibrated.

Hmmmm. This warrants looking into. I don't want to be passing around bad information, but I've never heard of this, either. I've swapped stuff around for years and never ran into two flexplates that were different depths, but I've always dealt with OEM parts. I've got a stack of them in the barn from a dozen different applications and while some are 28 oz, some are 50 oz, and they are two different diameters, every last one of the has the same dish. Maybe it's an aftermarket thing?!?

 

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Hmmmm. This warrants looking into. I don't want to be passing around bad information, but I've never heard of this, either. I've swapped stuff around for years and never ran into two flexplates that were different depths, but I've always dealt with OEM parts. I've got a stack of them in the barn from a dozen different applications and while some are 28 oz, some are 50 oz, and they are two different diameters, every last one of the has the same dish. Maybe it's an aftermarket thing?!?[/quote]

My guess would be that it's a aftermarket (read Chinese) thing too, but I think it's worth looking at.