Hi all,
I'm planning to upgrade my "classic car" (Reliant Scimitar GTE '75) from C3 to A4LD. Making it work is of course part of the fun since not many such conversions exist but of course the OD speed is nice to have on highway...
I have two 2wd A4LD's already, one is a 1987 single solenoid type and the other is a toasted 1992 two solenoid box which I stripped to bare shell. The intention is to use that as a template when figuring out the tail support, shifter, driveshaft etc. Since A4LD was originally never mated with the english 3.0 Essex V6 (they missed each other by 4-5 years), I need to see if the C3 bellhousing can be modified to suit. One of my boxes was already fitted with a conventional kickdown cable so that is no problem, the TCC solenoid is, somewhat.
I have a 1984 technical description of the A4LD and that version is fully hydraulic, the only electrics are in the inhibitor/reverse light switch. I haven't been successful in finding that early transmission or valve body so I'll have to live with the solenoid operated TCC version.
Which brings me to the subject: If I have understood correctly, the solenoid is a later design add-on that inhibits the operation of the TCC hydraulic circuit when the current is not live. This has allowed Ford to fine-tune the operation and add some refinement to the driving feel. There is a paper discussing a way to make it more or less work without a ECU, using a thermo vacuum switch and other stuff.
I was thinking a more simple approach since mine is a simple car and I don't want to clutter it up with stuff like that
The converter clutch modulator spring in bore 202 of the valve body is probably very light to allow applying TCC the instant that the override solenoid allows it. What if this spring was stiffer? Now we could arrange a continuous feed to the solenoid or modify it it be open at all times. Beef up the spring in bore 202 like it's done in the
"lockup shudder/chugging" fix but maybe with a slightly heavier spring still and let it do the work like it was probably intended in the first place when this transmission was designed. I don't mind the TCC coming on later than otherwise but is it possible that it would start shuttling or something else funny happens?
Any thougths or opinions? Am I on the wrong track here?
I'm planning to upgrade my "classic car" (Reliant Scimitar GTE '75) from C3 to A4LD. Making it work is of course part of the fun since not many such conversions exist but of course the OD speed is nice to have on highway...
I have two 2wd A4LD's already, one is a 1987 single solenoid type and the other is a toasted 1992 two solenoid box which I stripped to bare shell. The intention is to use that as a template when figuring out the tail support, shifter, driveshaft etc. Since A4LD was originally never mated with the english 3.0 Essex V6 (they missed each other by 4-5 years), I need to see if the C3 bellhousing can be modified to suit. One of my boxes was already fitted with a conventional kickdown cable so that is no problem, the TCC solenoid is, somewhat.
I have a 1984 technical description of the A4LD and that version is fully hydraulic, the only electrics are in the inhibitor/reverse light switch. I haven't been successful in finding that early transmission or valve body so I'll have to live with the solenoid operated TCC version.
Which brings me to the subject: If I have understood correctly, the solenoid is a later design add-on that inhibits the operation of the TCC hydraulic circuit when the current is not live. This has allowed Ford to fine-tune the operation and add some refinement to the driving feel. There is a paper discussing a way to make it more or less work without a ECU, using a thermo vacuum switch and other stuff.
I was thinking a more simple approach since mine is a simple car and I don't want to clutter it up with stuff like that
The converter clutch modulator spring in bore 202 of the valve body is probably very light to allow applying TCC the instant that the override solenoid allows it. What if this spring was stiffer? Now we could arrange a continuous feed to the solenoid or modify it it be open at all times. Beef up the spring in bore 202 like it's done in the "lockup shudder/chugging" fix but maybe with a slightly heavier spring still and let it do the work like it was probably intended in the first place when this transmission was designed. I don't mind the TCC coming on later than otherwise but is it possible that it would start shuttling or something else funny happens?
Any thougths or opinions? Am I on the wrong track here?
