JMod: Yay or Nay? Gimme Some Opinions

sneaky98gt

10 Year Member
Apr 23, 2008
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NC State University
I know that this topic has come up plenty of times before, but all of them are like 5 years or older. I'd like some fresh input. :) The reason I'm asking is that I have the shift pressure all the way up in the tune, and it still doesn't shift hard enough at WOT for my liking. IIRC, I also remember a few forum members recording nice gains switching from upped shift pressures in the tune to the Jmod. My 1/4 traps are a plenty low for my dyno numbers (325 Dynojet, probably 300ish MustangDyno) and 1/8 traps (85 mph). In trying to figure out why, my searching brought me to this.

I know that almost everyone recommends it, but is it too much for a daily driven car? I have other people ride with me more often than I ride alone, so I would like to keep the best ride quality as possible. How is it during part throttle? Does anyone daily drive their car with the Jmod?

From reading on the TCCoA site, according to Jerry's specifications, I know that you drill out some holes in the separator plate. I also thought that people say to remove or replace the lower accumulator springs. But Jerry's write up doesn't say anything about taking out the springs. :shrug: Help me out here.

Also, what write ups did you use? I've found write ups for 94-97, and 99-04, but no 98. :mad: Where should I look?

I read that a tranny cooler is a very good idea to do while doing the Jmod. Is it required? Any write ups on installing those? What are the good brands to go with/where do you find them? The only one I found is a Mishimoto on American Muscle, which, if I remember correctly, is a brand a lot of people say to stay away from. It's also a universal kit, which I'm not too fond of. Where else can I find one? I'm not having any luck.

Basically, to sum things up, tell me EVERYTHING there is to know about the Jmod. :p Thanks guys.
 
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The JMOD was a modification that was real popular that most have seem to forgot about. When I lost my transmission in my 98, I had the shop do the modifications for me and was extremely happy with the results. It was fine for a daily driver as it wasn't neck-snapping when cruising, however was nice and firm when WOT.

Are you on a stock t/c? That mod is going to knock off a few tenths even in the 1/8th alone and is yet another modification that is fine for daily driving.

The transmission cooler is a rather simple install and any basic tuturial will show you the basics of getting it installed. You can purchase a quality cooler off of ebay or even local auto stores. A 18k-24k gvw would work more than needed :nice:
 
I had all the above (except a 2800 stall PI convertor) and a B&M stacked plate trans cooler. Very fun, reliable, fast shifting 4R trans. Just be careful, traction will be an issue after that :)

Yeah I have all the parts but right now the only thing I have for the transmission is a B&M cooler and 4.10 gears. I should have the stall and jmod done this month. I can image having traction issues with 4.10s, 3200 stall and 300rwhp but it will be fun:D.
 
When I owned my GT I looked into the J-mod and decided it was not worth doing on a 2001. I thought installing a trans cooler would be a much better use of my time and money and if I wanted to increase shift pressure my opinion was that a handheld programmer would be the best way.

Also IIRC the J-mod is only needed with older 4R70Ws and kinda pointless on a 99+, IIRC.
 
Here's a video of the 1-2 shift for reference.

YouTube - 1998 Mustang GT FRPP/SVO Supercharger 0-60

I see that the general consensus is to do the JMod and the tranny cooler. Now, anyone have a write up for the 98s?

When I owned my GT I looked into the J-mod and decided it was not worth doing on a 2001. I thought installing a trans cooler would be a much better use of my time and money and if I wanted to increase shift pressure my opinion was that a handheld programmer would be the best way.

Also IIRC the J-mod is only needed with older 4R70Ws and kinda pointless on a 99+, IIRC.

Yea, I understand that completely. My granddad has an 01 auto GT, and an 04 auto Mach 1, and with the stock settings, they both shift WAY harder than mine does. I wouldn't bother with them either.
 
When I owned my GT I looked into the J-mod and decided it was not worth doing on a 2001. I thought installing a trans cooler would be a much better use of my time and money and if I wanted to increase shift pressure my opinion was that a handheld programmer would be the best way.

Also IIRC the J-mod is only needed with older 4R70Ws and kinda pointless on a 99+, IIRC.

IIRC, the difference between the older/newer ones were the solenoids, which you could easily interchange. Increasing shift pressure alone was not recommended.

And for the record, the Jmod did wonders on my 01 4R.
 
Alright, I found a really good write up (that I somehow missed my first time searching). http://www.crownvic.net/tech/4R70Wnotes.pdf

Two questions left:

Do you have to drain the fluid to install a cooler? I ask because at first thought I don't want to do the JMod and tranny cooler at the same time on account of troubleshooting should something go wrong. But if it's best to do both at the same time, then that's what I'll do.

And, for you guys who have done it, would you drill the holes? remove the lower accumulator springs? or do both? I ask because one article I was reading said that drilling the holes firms it up a lot, and taking out the springs does firms it up even more. Suggestions? I don't want neck breaking shifts at part throttle...

Thanks!
 
This is a super popular mod on LVC. Its covered in depth many many times. It seems that it was how the trans was first made but Ford decided the shifts were too quick and firm so they used smaller passages to soften them up. Not only does the J-mod make the trans run how it was initially designed too but also increases durability due to decreased clutch wear.

I will be doing mine next month with the blower install. :nice:
 
Alright, I found a really good write up (that I somehow missed my first time searching). http://www.crownvic.net/tech/4R70Wnotes.pdf

Two questions left:

Do you have to drain the fluid to install a cooler? I ask because at first thought I don't want to do the JMod and tranny cooler at the same time on account of troubleshooting should something go wrong. But if it's best to do both at the same time, then that's what I'll do.

And, for you guys who have done it, would you drill the holes? remove the lower accumulator springs? or do both? I ask because one article I was reading said that drilling the holes firms it up a lot, and taking out the springs does firms it up even more. Suggestions? I don't want neck breaking shifts at part throttle...

Thanks!
As for the fluid you will loose a 2-3 quarts with the cooler install if you can keep the lines up while doing the install. As for the springs I couldnt say. In Mark VIII's the trans was updated for 98 and got better accumulators and springs so in the 98 trans we dont replace the springs on a J-mod but all previous years we do.



Now this is very important when doing your install! If the fluid in the trans is varnished AT ALL then you need to reuse your fluid so keep the fluid clean while draining it.
Just take a white paper towel and check the fluid against it and if its not red or pink or leaves any browness on the paper towel that means you have varnished fluid. If you put fresh fluid in it then IT WILL start to slip soon. Only way to put fresh fluid in when the fluid is varnished is to also rebuild the trans. :(
 
No you dont have to drain and refill the trans to install the cooler. all your doing is splicing the lines going to the Rad, you going to have a few drips but thats about it, you will have to add a little bit to make up for the hose length and the cooler, usually an extra quart or 2. As far as neck snapping under lite to moderate throttle, it will be firmer and faster than stock, you will def feel neck snapping at WOT and dont be alarmed if you hear a loud BARK sound ;) Its a beneficial side effect. Also to kinda add to Lasers note on the fluid, it also might be better to run the fluid though a coffee filter, i know when done with regular oil it takes out a lot of the contaminants, so if you have to reuse it, it will be a little cleaner.
 
As with everyone else, cooler and J-mod are the best things to do for your auto.

If you're at all hesitant about doing the mod yourself, you can buy one pre-drilled from a few places.

One that comes to mind is BC automotive (used to have a great rep as of a few years back) bc-automotive.com

Also, DirtyDog should have a kit too, just email them. dirtydogperformance.com