"Master A4LD rebuild kit" for $100 - Good Deal?

[Forder]

I found this "Genuine Ford A4LD Master Trans Rebuild Kit" CL and offered this guy $100 and he said that'd be fine. I'm not even sure what's in this kit, hah. I'm wondering if this is a good deal or not. My tranny has 200k+ on it right now and still shifts perfect, but I wouldn't expect it to go too much longer even though I just did a fluid change today (as you can see a few threads down). Can someone tell me if this would be worth it and what exactly it should contain? Thanks!

 

[BrooklynBay]

Ask him to send you a picture of its contents. You could compare the price of the kit to WWW.TransmissionPartsUSA.Com, but keep in mind that this is an OEM kit, and not an aftermarket kit. Get the part number, and call a Ford dealer to see how much they sell it for.

 

[Forder]

Thanks BrooklynBay,

I actually just google'd it and found this listing at that site. So it should come with just a "gasket kit, metal clad seals, sealing rings, friction plates and steel plates"? Is this usually all a tranny needs when they finally die to revive them? I just e-mailed the guy with those questions and I'll post what he replies with. Even if it has all these parts and is OEM, are the OEM parts that much better to make it worth the extra $$ over the aftermarket kit?

Thanks again!

 

[BrooklynBay]

Don't get a cork pan gasket. Get a neoprene/rubber gasket. These transmissions usually need more than a soft parts rebuild. Get bands, servos, modulator, inspect the governor for wear (and get a new one if the stalk is worn). Inspect the one way sprags, and the planetary gear sets. There are various upgrades such as Kolene steels, Kevlar bands (debatable), and the kit that adds extra plates. Some things that you could upgrade are the thrust washers, and the planetary gear sets. Don't over look the valve body. You could get a shift correction kit, Sonnax upgrades, and thicker than stock gaskets. Read the A4LD rebuild diary, A4LD valve body rebuild diary, and Project Frankentranny for more information.

 

[Forder]

Well I actually just replaced the fluid, filter and gasket in it today since it had been about 50k since the last one. The filter kit I got came with a rubber gasket, so that's good (I was wondering if the cork gaskets were better). I don't plan on doing anything to it until it actually dies on me. I plan to keep this thing pretty much until the frame rusts through though, hah, so it's only a matter of time before the trans goes on me and with over 200k so far, I figured it'd be sooner rather than later. But given how it runs now, it seems like it's still gonna last quite a while as it's shifting perfectly still and hasn't shown any signs of dieing yet (knock on wood). I just figured I would be pro-active and get this re-build kit if it was a good deal and save me a little money for when my tranny actually dies. Thanks though for the tips and references for when it does actually die. I'll definitely reference your reply for when it happens .

 

[pteepee69]

There is a rebuild kit offered on http://www.transmissioncenter.org/a4ld.htm it is an A4LD combo kit for $264. Does this kit include any and all upgrades for the A4LD? I would like to know from some of the masters on this site. I will be purchasing a '94 Explorer that has already had the tranny replaced once and I would like to be prepared in case it needs to be replaced again.

 

[BrooklynBay]

You might be able to get a better deal on WWW.TransmissionPartsUSA.Com.