Well, the time has come to get a new transmission, I believe mine is cooked. I'm weighing the options now as to which direction to take. I'm looking for opinions and experiences with the transmissions that are available.

BTS
John Wood
Suncoast
ATS
Local rebuild
Junkyard

I have them listed in the order I'd go with, just from reading here.
BTS, John Wood, ATS and Suncoast are all nearly the same on price for similar transmissions, what makes one stand out from the other? Warranty? Parts used? Customer Service?

 

well the top 2 are the best out of the list but the BTS has a lifetime warranty and all the BTS trannies are built the same. there are no stages like john wood's transmissions. i have a BTS and its the best money i have spent on the truck period......

 

how much is the BTS thinking im going to need one soon

 

I have the Suncoast, they all do the same things to them and all pretty much speak well of the other. Ultimately it comes down to shipping.

Each other, i mean BTS, SC, and Wood

 

I disagree.

I don't think anyone except John and Brian do as much custom machining to the internals of a trans. Nor do I believe anyone else really uses specific custom parts, like custom snap rings that are thicker and stronger than the norm, to hold the internals better.

I know John does that, and I can only assume Brian does too.

Everything mechanical will fail. It's a fact of life. But because ATS, Suncoast, etc are mass produced, they aren't as well built as a JW or BTS unit.

It's like getting a custom suit tailored for your body. It fits great and the stiches are almost always perfect. Get a suit off the rack and it may fit well, but because they're mass produced, the chances are greater you'll end up with a suite that has flaws, problems, or doesn't hold up as well over time, like the tailored suit would.

Mike, look at my sig. You can see who I prefer.

Stewart

 

Your budget is important. I bought mine from the dealer for $2,500 (possibly on sale) with 5years 75k miles warranty. It was well over 150k ago and still good. I had one rebuild by AAMCO on my 95, it failed about 16k miles later, all they said that it was out of warranty. Had one done by Red D Transmission (on my Chevy) it was never the same, but I got rid of it shortly after, so I do not know how long it held up. The price from the dealer was better then local rebuild shops. Good luck.

 

Bill, what did your BTS cost out the door?

Jay, what did the Suncoast cost? Warranty?

Stewart, what stsge trans did you go with from John Wood? Cost? Warranty?

 

I did an option that you didn't list. "DIY" I learned alot about these transmissions that way. I have had great results, logging over 30,000 trouble-free miles since the rebuild with TC, clutches, and VB upgrades. The only thing I need to do is drill out a hole, in the accumulator VB separator plate, for the third gear shift to firm it up a bit more. It's on my current "to do" list.

 

Hey Roland, I've thought of that too. Just forgot to list it in my original post. I've been inside a few different auto's(C-6, TH-350, TH400) and I'm not afraid to dive in. I may go this route, it is a lot more cost effective.

What specialty tools are needed to do the rebuild?

 

Here's a few of the main ones that I fabbed up. The others were just some metric bolts, C-clamps, large band clamp, feeler gauges, dial caliper, and such. Darrell (nissandoc) has a good write up on a rebuild. I don't have a link to it. I'll see if I can find it.

EDIT: Here's the link. https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/8...-progress.html Any other questions, just holler.

 

I didn't get one of the monster transmissions he custom builds for the desert racing teams down in his area. A transmission able to withstand monster torque, while at the same time perform in, and handle, 120+ degree weather, while racing in the desert.

I opted for his bullet proof tranny and billet converter that will handle towing 10K+ lb trailers, while also enhancing all the performance, "go-faster" mods I have on my Excursion right now, and plan on bolting on in the future.

I basically got his entry level 4R100.

John told me if I ever have a problem with his tranny, call him and he'd take care of me.

For the tranny itself, I paid just a tad under $4,000, but I know that price has gone up a bit.

Stewart

 

Yes, yes, my Suncoast is about to fall out on the ground. The two owners of Sun have been 'mass producing' race tranny's for over 30 yrs. They have literally thousands of passes on their tranny's from Fords, Chevy's and Dodge's producing well over 1k hp. But they probably don't have much experience...

Their mass-producers are their two sons and two more relatives that all work in a family owned business. In fact their 'mass producers' total about 4 family members that have custom designing torque converters and tranny's for just about every industry known for longer than the other two combined. BTW, all tranny's are tested on a run stand before they go out. Something that prob falls into the 'mass-produced' category. When i called BTS when my tranny **** on me, I asked Brian exactly what he does and what Sun does and actually spoke well of each other. I'm sure one sprinkles angel dust on one and not the other and one does ceremonial rain dances. I know what Sun does b/c I personally went and visited their shop and was comfortable enuff to drop the cash. BTW, the two owners wives and two daughters work in the 'mass produced' front office. The only reason i didnt choose BTS was distance from me and my wanting to turn my truck around quickly. That's it. But i certainly won't speak poorly of another (I know nothing about) to prop up the decison I made like the poster above ^^^^^

 

Wow, do you really wanna go there and start slinging BS at me?

I never said that or implied it. In my opinion, that was a jerk move for you trying to make it sound like I did.

I don't have to have production numbers to know they produce a lot more than JW or BTS do. So yeah, they are mass produced compared to those two guys.

Why the BS sarcasm directed at me? I never questioned their knowledge or experience. I never said they don't put out a good product, I never said they don't build a good trans, and I never said you don't have a good trans from them.

So? What does that have to do with my assertion that they produce more than JW or BTS? I'd be willing to bet they produce more than JW and BTS combined. Your statement actually backs my statement up. But it aint like my statement was a slam or slandered their work. Get a grip, will you?

JW spoke well of their trans too. What's your point?

WTH is with the sarcastic bull crap? You channeling PSN or something? You trying to stir crap up here? I'm mellow guy and I try and watch how I post things because even though I'm careful, I know there's a possibility it can be taken wrong, but I surely aint gonna take your crap and let it slide.

Well good for you! You wanna scooby snack?

I went to JW's shop just like you went to Suncoast and I watched JW build the 4R100 and answer all my questions. Where's my scooby snack?

And?? What's your point?? That because it's all family they can't be considered as mass produced??

Like I said earlier in my post, I didn't denigrate you for your choice or decision. I didn't put down Suncoast transmissions. I simply pointed out that with their numbers and the fact that ONE person isn't making them, that if something could go wrong with a trans, the chances are higher that it would go wrong with a company that produced the higher numbers.

Mass produced isn't a dirty word. Suncoast got to producing those higher numbers for a reason. Because people bought their products, and still do.

You're a funny man. An insignificant and small man in my opinion, for the attack you've leveled at me, but even through all that, what makes it so, is because you're wrong...again.

I didn't speak poorly of Suncoast. And I surely don't need to "prop up my decision" by taking a jab at them. In fact, one could surmise that you're taking a jab at JW's builds, saying that my decision needed to be propped up. The implication being that JW's builds don't stand on their own. But I won't accuse you of that, because I truly don't think you feel that way.

JW and Brian produce a great trans. Once someone else starts helping, even if it IS family, it's not a product built by them, so the chances of something going wrong increases. Plus, you can't possibly give a single build as much attention, on a regular basis, like a one-man show can. That's the very reason John has repeatedly refused to increase production and start supplying other point of sale outlets other than his own shop.

I wasn't putting Suncoast down, merely pointing out a fact. I didn't say they didn't put out a good product, merely pointed out that the chances are higher that something COULD go wrong with a trans, when compared to a single man with exacting standards. It doesn't matter who that single man is. It's just a fact of life. And because of that, I feel that JW and BTS, by the virtue of being one man, will make a better product.

Does that mean Suncoast is bad? Nope. Not in my opinion. It just means I'll chose the one-man-show with years of an excellent reputation, like JW or Brian, over a family business with an excellent rep, who produce a lot more units (does that make you feel better than me using the term mass produced?) than the one-man-show does.

I guess you won't be sending me a friends request....

Stewart

 

Please slow down and let the responses sink in. Stewart isn't dissing a SunCoast at all. He wrote a very reasonable response, and you need to to see what he is saying.

Pop

 

Put the "brother" back in the Brotherhood. Do we need to put y'all in a corner?
Someone want to criticize my decision to do my own rebuild/or the way I did it? J/K, guys!