transmission rebuild

[jtate]

ive been planning a rebuild for quite some time for the e4doa. ive been looking around on the inet at different places that sell high quality parts at a cheap price. i would love to swap over to a zf5 but guess im going to just beef up the auto with all the upgrades and high quality alto red eagle clutches and steels. after locating all the parts and geting prices everything comes to a whopping $2200.00 in parts. now to the best of my knowledge thats every wear item, clutch, bearing, seal ,pump, torque con, and kits to cure and reprogram the valve body. the only problem is after spending all that money it wont have a warranty because im rebuilding it myself. ive rebuilt automatic transmissions before and quite a few marine transmissions with good luck as to the outcome of each. im probly like alot of you on this site, i would rather do it myself and messup than let someone else rebuild it and mess it up and still cost me out my a_ _. i knew these transmissions were expensive to work on but jeeze.

 

[Alex S]

well it sounds like your going to be spending $$$ no matter what, so why not put that towards a ZF

 

[RLDSL]

You could get a seriously rebuilt one from Brians Truck Shop ,They warranty any HP any Torque no fuss, , but when you break out your check book, better have your BIG pen They aren;t too horribly far from you,just up by the AR/ MO st line

 

[punkmechanic]

I would think you could find a good zf, get a new upgraded clutch and flywheel and still come out under 2200. For that kinda money you could find a truck that has one, drive it home, pull the trans, sell the stuff you dont want and break even.

punk

 

[Diesel JD]

^What he said. That's a very good possibility. Or...why not swap in your C6 with DNE2 overdrive from the 6.9 and sell the E4 as a core.

 

[sle2115]

I would think you could find a good zf, get a new upgraded clutch and flywheel and still come out under 2200. For that kinda money you could find a truck that has one, drive it home, pull the trans, sell the stuff you dont want and break even.

punk

Not to hijack, as this might be pertinent to the original poster as well, but what would be the best flywheel and clutch setup?

I know some use single mass, but then deal with the "noise"

 

[Alex S]

Not to hijack, as this might be pertinent to the original poster as well, but what would be the best flywheel and clutch setup?

I know some use single mass, but then deal with the "noise"

what is this noise you speak of ;p I have a luk SMF and the only time it makes noise is when you lug it under 1000 rpm

 

[jtate]

diesel jd i was planning to swap over to the c6 just long enough to get the e4od rebuilt then put the e4od back in. im going to do some more checking around and see if i can find a good used zf5 trans to put in it. what all year trucks did they offer the zf5 to fit our trucks and does it have to be from a diesel to fit. the reason im asking is i dont know alot about the zf5 and didnt know if it had a changable bell housing or made in one piece housing.

 

[snicklas]

jtate,

I am not sure on the years, but it does have to be a diesel specific ZF-5, it is an intergral bellhousing (like an automatic). The gassers do not fit, someone has made one fit, but had to do some machining to the bellhousing to make it work.

 

[jperecko]

If you want to go the aux. overdrive route, I can offer my completely rebuilt and painted T19 and all the parts you need to hook it up for a decent price...

 

[Diesel JD]

Only the T19 won't bolt up to his DNE2 box for a C6. They have a different spline count, if I remember correctly. Any ZF 5 from behind a n 87-97 IDI or Powerstroke should work. You could machine the bellhousing from a gas model to fit in a pinch but you better be good and know what you're doing. I think typ4 did it, it sounds like you have advanced fab skills and aren't afraid of a big project so I suppose it might be an option for you. Personally I'd much rather have a T18/19 and some sort of auxillary trans for overdrive than a ZF, but having said that, they do shift mighty smooth and easy, after having driven Drew's truck.

 

[jtate]

i called a couple wrecking yards today to see what inventory they had and located 4 zf5's. looks like all the prices are about the same for the 4 of them of $850.00. thats just the trans thats not the pedal ass and all the other stuff to make it work, plus if im going to do a changeover theres no way that i would use the clutch plate and pressure plate from the yard. i also dont mind buying a new slave and master cylender for the swap. so back to the price is 850 a bad price for a zf5 or should i just look around and see if i can find a complete truck with everything for about the same price?

 

[typ4]

I have been building automatics for many years and I will NEVER do another E4OD. I have some of the special tools to do them and I am going to gather them up and sell them. If I wanted one I would get it from Troyan trans in Canada.

 

[david85]

Jtate,

Why did you include the red eagle clutches? I didn't bother with them in my truck and I am running a turbocharger with tall gears. IMO, you only need to start considering upgraded clutch packs after you exceed 300 Hp or more and even then I have my doubts its really needed.

What you have to remember about the E4OD is that it is C6 at its core, and C6s are legendary for taking insane amounts of horsepower in stock form with stock clutch packs. The slipping problems with E4ODs usually comes from the valve body calibration from factory that doesn't leave enough safety margin for higher load conditions. The E4OD was designed with electronic precision to shift smooth. The C6 was designed to shift crisp for durability, but both use essentially the same clutches and hard parts.

The only real weak clutch pack I feel you might want to upgrade in the E4OD is the overdrive clutch pack, and you can get the backing plate and friction from a ford dealer or aftermarket source. That upgrades it from a 2 friction to a 3 friction, although I've seen some put a 4 clutch pack in there. As it is, the 3-4 shift can sometimes be harsh in my truck at light throttle .

Its also possible to get an upgraded direct drum that allows you to run 5 friction elements instead of the 4 friction that most medium E4ODs came with (this is for the 2-3 shift). Usually you have to find those second hand but again, I didn't seem to need it with my turbo 6.9

F5 front pump can be picked up off Ebay for under $100 (got mine for $70 + shipping). Depending on what upgrade/ shift kit you get, it will include most of the valves for the pump anyway.

3 clutch billet TC is optional unless you want to turbocharge the engine and even then, you can get them for under $400 these days.

You can get the 6 pinion steel forward planetary gears for $60 last I checked, and the 4 pinion overdrive steel set with imput shaft is around $100. Don't bother with reverse because you will never wear those out especially with 4.10 gears. Again, the C6 was all aluminum carrier 3 pinion gears AFAIK, so the steel gears are an overkill for a N/A diesel application.

 

[Alex S]

Has anyone looked into getting a spicer 5 speed OD out of an international 5 ton (uhall truck)