Is the 4R70W RK-AODE valve body recalibration kit needed?

[duffymahoney]

USSHIFT is trying to sell me on a shift kit for my 96 4R70W. It's 100$. Has anyone done this? How hard is the install? I am building a 90% street rig. Will it be needed? Thanks

 

[Broncobowsher]

Needed, probably not.
But still good. And there kit is very installer friendly. Very tunable as well. Not one size fits all but taylorable shift by shift. Explains what each part does and you decide how you want it set.

 

[spap]

Look up J mod for AOD / 4r70w
But for a 100 bucks that is a great kit...

 

[duffymahoney]

Should I replace the solenoids? How long are they good for?

 

[needabronco]

I've driven my Bronco with a stock early 80's crown vic valve body and my Hughes valve body and the difference is night and day! You go from slushy almost non existent shifts to nice crisp firm shifts. If you don't feel comfortable doing a shift kit yourself, I recommend looking into Silver Fox's valve bodies. http://www.silverfoxtrans.com/silverfoxtrans.com/VB_AOD.html

 

[duffymahoney]

I bought the kit, I am down to try the mod. Does it come with new solenoids? Should I replace them?

 

[Broncobowsher]

Solenoids are not generally considered a wear item. I know the early Baumann controllers didn't like the low resistance solenoids. Not sure what controller you are running nor weather the '96 are the early low resistance or the later high resistance solenoids.

 

[duffymahoney]

I have a higher voltage. Thanks guys! This forum is a great resource.

 

[pcf_mark]

Can't the user tune the shifts firmness and timing with the controller? I am not sure what the valve body mods are doing.

 

[Broncobowsher]

Can't the user tune the shifts firmness and timing with the controller? I am not sure what the valve body mods are doing.

The tuner can only tune within the limits of the valve body. Doing a valve body kit broadens the tuning abality. Line pressure for torque capacity for example. The spring in the kit raises the ultimate upper range of the line pressure. You can dial that down with the controller, but you can't raise it above the nominal pressure of the spring with the controller.