Art Carr rebuilt A4LD - any experience?

[pgrey]

Hi all,

I called Advanced Adapters to talk to them their 700R4 conversion and they suggested I talk to Art Carr about having a 700R4 built. During my conversation with Steve at Art Carr, he commented that they are doing rebuilds on the A4LD that have been sitting behind 400HP motors and in various off road race vehicles.

I am not a transmission guru so my knowledge about what they change is minimal, but he talked about changing/modifying the converter, using upgraded clutches, and futzing with some other things to make it perform better and last longer.

I'd much rather bolt in an A4LD that is stout enough than deal with the hassles of installing a foriegn gearbox. The question is: is the modded A4LD stout enough?

Anybody have any experience with this unit? Any thoughts? I did a search and couldn't come up with a thread that discussed this.

Regards,

Peter

P.S. BTW, I've had plenty of engine swap experience (current daily driver is a Volvo wagon with a 347ci Ford motor and Tremec 3550) so I come by my aversion to transplants honestly...

 

[SteveVB]

No persoanal experience wiyth Carr.

But if you can get a detailed description of what they do there are a few on the boards that can evaluate the mods and let you know. The more specific the better.

let us know

 

[pgrey]

SteveVB,

I talked to Steve at Art Carr again and he briefly described the mods they make to the A4LD. He's not the guy that does the work but was able to give a basic rundown of what they do... Since I am no trans guru and I don't have specific knowledge of what typically goes wrong with an A4LD, I didn't know what questions to ask. I'm assuming he could get specific info on exactly what is done to address A4LD problems. Info he provided:

The clutches are upgraded- they use better quality plates (and he thought, more plates in each clutch pack).

The valve body is recalibrated and the oil passages are enlarged to provide better cooling.

The TC is cut open and reworked including changing the angle of the vanes.

He thought that the upgraded gearbox nis more durable and performs better.

He commented that since the trailer tow package trans cooler on the Explorers are a dealer installed piece, he's seen some lousy choices of mounting locations for the cooler (he cited the back of the bumper as an example) and he says they've found that location and air flow make a huge difference in the longevity of the gearbox. Getting cooling to these gearboxes is the key to having them live, he felt.

It should be said that my Explorer has 196,000 miles and has 150,000 on the trans. The car has a trailer tow package and has seen a fair amount of towing. The trans still works fine.

These units aren't cheap at $2700 but it's still cheaper than a rebuilt 700R4, plus Advanced Adapters kit, plus shifter, wiring, etc... and a lot easier to install. Obviously, if it isn't anymore durable than the stock piece, it's not money well spent...

Anyhow, if anyone has any thoughts about this, please let me know.

BTW, when I asked him about group purchases he said that they knock 10% off the top for three or more units. This doesn't make that much differnece to me, but I thought I'd mention it in case there is interest.

Thanks,

Peter

 

[SteveVB]

Pete I would ask specific questions about:

The overdrive planet and drum- retainer upgrades, planet welded at neck, replace sprag

The center support- upgrades some bushings to bearings, new drum

The bellhousing and the bushing/seals - they should be new and the bell housing should be replaced (line bored bushing). The installer should replace the crank spacer. Everyday I research about these trans it becomes more and more appearant that everything from the pump forward - pump, bell housing,bushing, seals should be replaced with a new unit. The

Clutches can be upgraded and number of plates increased to 7 on the direct, Alto makes a kit, or custom machined.

In the valve body ask about the boost valve.

Govenor sleeve

Im going through mine at the moment and those are some of the areas to ask about. I dont have all the answers- I just started getting into mine, but that should get you started. Quite a few other threads on the board about the upgrades and the tranny.