A4ld Tranny Guttless On Hills! Help!

[Lex]

I have a 1990 2.3L Stang with A4LD tranny. When I'm on the highway and I get on a hill (passing lane of course) my car just dies out . I see it dropping to like 65 to 75 km an hour and once I reach the top I then coast to 120 km an hour (but can't get higher then 130km). My RPMs are like 3000 so I know my engine wants to push (for a 2.3L) but its like the tranny doesn't. If I tramp down on the pedal , my tranny upshifts and reves to like 4500 .

I changed the Modulator valve (it did fix the hard shifting problem, more smoother now) but I thought it was the cause of my guttless performance on the highway. I checked to make sure my fluid level was topped.

Any suggestions? besides a new tranny. Could it be a tourque converter? any help would be greatly appreciated. It seems all my problems is transmission related. Everything else works fine.

Thank You
Alex

PS: It was kinda embarrasing knowing my girl friend who was once behind me on the highway, passed me with her Cavalier...

 

[Stinger]

It's not the trans...it's the gutless motor...that's what happens when you don't have enough power.

It also sounds like you aren't giving it full throttle though. Just floor it and let it rev up...it should pull the hills fine then.

Stinger

 

[kiddiccarus]

Do as the rest of us do for now, Drop that thing into D instead of OD and climb the hill a little faster at 4500 and then at the top go back to OD. Other than that you can get out and push it may help some.

 

[Lex]

Thanks guys for your input. I do drop it in D and when I hammer it . It actually acts like I'm putting the brakes on with the gas pedal floored.

I remember the car back in 96 (used to be my x-fatherinlaw) and When I drove it then it had more power on the highway. I know that the person who drove it before me drove the crap out of it without tranny fluid. There was a servo leak that since then been fixed. Whats a good price I should look for for a A4LD tranny?? Beside this problem, I love the car.

Thank You

PS. I'm Canadian so let me know if your speaking US or CAD dollars. Thanks

Alex

 

[Stinger]

Well, he couldn't have drove it with no (or close to no) fluid because it physically wouldn't move. An auto trans needs fluid to function at all.

I'm still not convinced it's the trans. A rebuilt A4LD is around $1000 (US)

Stinger

 

[Pro-Hawk]

Well, he couldn't have drove it with no (or close to no) fluid because it physically wouldn't move. An auto trans needs fluid to function at all.

I'm still not convinced it's the trans. A rebuilt A4LD is around $1000 (US)

Stinger

I agree! If a auto is a qt low you will know it and its more than a few you will barely move. I bought a truck that they said the gear box was out so I got it for cheap. The dang thing floor at a stop light would take all the time a green light would give before turning red again, just to get to the other side of the intersection. I got it home and checked the fluid just for the heck of it and it was low 3 qts. Once I added the fluided the truck could spin the tires through a intersection

If it was me I would do other stuff like maybe a tune up or drop in a T-5 before I rebuilt a A4LD.

 

[Lex]

I apologize for the above statement. I ment to say, He drive it until it wouldn't go any where due to no tranny fluid. It had a bad servo seal leak. But thanks for the advice. I'm going to put new plugs and cables first. (cheap things to try but will help anyways for engine) . Is it alot of MORE work to drop a T5 instead of another A4LD?

Alex

 

[Stinger]

No, it's about 1/3 the price.

 

[Pro-Hawk]

Stinger do you think a T-5 would help out on his N/A 2.3L in climbing hills?

I know the T-5 frees up some power and allows you more controll over your gears but I wonder if that would be a waste of time for him to swap it in. I mean my 2.3L w/auto only has trouble if I start at the base of a hill at like 5 mph. Then its the gultless wonder (motor) that is slowing me down, other than that I never have a issue with hills and that was on 3 year old plugs

Does this guy live in San Fransico

 

[Asha'man]

Yeah, it'll help. You can downshift easier and stay in your powerband (such as it is) with the T5 better than with the A4LD. Plus there's more power going to the ground through the T5, and that's definitely noticeable.

Ash

 

[Lex]

Thanks for your input guys. I'm just putting the past driving experiences this car went through before I got it. And she was abused, and I'm treating it like a baby now. I live in Nova Scotia Canada. What vehicles had a T-5 in them? I have a feeling I will be doing a swap soon. Its weird. If I'm just city driving I have pretty OK acceleration (not the best) but its those damn up hill at 100+ KMPH drives. I would suspect an engine problem but my engine is reving high 4000 + rmps. and I can watch my speedometer go from 110 to 75 . I'm no mechanic, but I have learned alot.

Oh another thing I discovered last night is that if I'm at a pictular speed like I think around 60 km per hour It shifts funny (up and down shifting) , with a small nodge feeling in the tranny. I don't know. Maybe I'm trying too hard to make a 14 year old car feel new.

Alex

 

[Lex]

I have a feeling I asked a stupid question. But is the T-5 a 5 speed manual tranny? I would love to have a standard anyday over a auto.

Alex

 

[Anthony M]

yup, a T5 is a 5 speed

 

[Pro-Hawk]

I live in Nova Scotia Canada. Its weird. If I'm just city driving I have pretty OK acceleration (not the best) but its those damn up hill at 100+ KMPH drivesAlex

Well that maybe your problem there...Canada I mean you got some pertty hilly turain around you.

I'm with Ash' Man go with the T-5. These usualy can be found pretty easy in 83-88' Thunderbirds ( get a 87-88 Turbo one and drop the whole motor and gear box in your car hehe its only 190hp) and the Fox body mustangs from like 79-93 but look for a 2.3L car with the T-5. You can use a 5.0L box but that is better for a powerful 2.3 turbo type car. You will need a cross member from a mustang for a T-5. The shifter/boot etc can come from any T-5 car almost. The best thing to do is log on Stinger's web site, its got step by step on how to do the swap.

Http://projecthp.ford23.com/dailydriver.html

 

[ZeroCulture]

Get rid of the auto ASAP! ... mine is a 5 speed, and until a couple weeks ago I hadn't driven an auto 2.3. Man do I feel for whomever is dealing with the auto. It is a huge difference. The motor is still gutless, but having control over the RPMs is much nicer.

 

[G-90]

Well when I kickdown mine going uphill I notice the speed slows down too, so what I do is leave it in OD and lug it.
If the converter stays locked you will actually be able to pick up speed depending on grade.
The motor has plenty of torque down low.
Maybe a converter problem?

P.S. Too bad you weren't closer to B.C.
My A4LD is coming out with only 150km

 

[Lex]

Well if anyone is ripping out a A4LD and lives in NS Canada. let me know. And thank you for all the input. I am really considering the T5 idea. hmm decisions.

 

[Pro-Hawk]

I never owned a stick until I decided I wanted more power, everyone said the same thing, "Drop in a T-5." Just when I got all my pices to do the swap in my coupe, I found a SVO which came with T-5. I never knew a stick on these cars would help it so much until I got the SVO. I know what your saying its a turbo charged so how can you compare it. Well its simpe, as long as I'm under 3000 rpms I never touch the boost. So around town driving is all motor and gear box. Without the boost this car response WAY better than my A4LD 2.3L does. I still have my LX coupe which if I keep it any longer it will get that T-5 I got lying around here