I have a 70 Cougar with a 351 Cleveland 4bbl and a FMX tranny… man it is gas guzzler… Has anyone done a AOD conversion and if so what are the benefits? How much more gas mileage are you getting out of the AOD. I’ve seen kits out there for the AOD conversion but can anyone make recommendations on where to get the kits?
I have done the conversion. On the freeway at 70 mph, I get close to 20 mpg with the A/C blowing cold. In the city, I see little, if any improvement to gas mileage. An added benefit is the ability to have a conversation without yelling over the noise created by 3000 rpm.
I didn’t purchase a kit because you don’t really need one. You need the transmission, the cross member, new transmission cooler lines and a TV cable and mounting bracket from Lokar. I may be forgetting something but that’s about it.
The addition of an AOD is one of the most enjoyable modifications I’ve done to the car and would do it again.
When you did your conversion did you have trouble with the exhaust or tranny tunnel? The aod is quite a bit bigger I thought. I’ll most likely do the conversion at some point as well but want to make sure I have all my bases covered first.
No trouble with the transmission tunnel. My exhaust wasn’t built until after the transmission was installed.
Do you have any recommendations on a donor? What would be the best year and vehicle to pull one from? Thanks
Not sure of what year, but definitely not this year:
P.S. I have a good, rebuildable core from a Fox body Mustang if anyone is in need (and there is one application for a donor).
anything after 84 from a Mustang is the general rule, so you get the right short tailshaft, shift arm, and stronger internals. They were made from 80 to 92 or early 93 (or 94 depending on who you axe).
But it’s always best to rebuild or at least go through and check any donor trans before you install it. Or pay a shop to do it. It’s a pain in the neck to find that a trans that’s been sitting around for 20 years is leaking or has some internal hang up that makes 3rd gear not work or something like that. An ounce of prevention.
I miss Socalcraigster. :*(
Just did this swap on mine 351w w/fmx to AOD. Had to change the h-pipe , stock h-pipe wouldn’t fit around transmission. You’ll need to change shifter arm on the transmission or modify it to work with the stock shifter.
Bob,
Is that the FMX tranny? Thank you for not posting the XXX tranny.
Installing an AOD…
You will need a slip yoke, cut your original crossmember, Lokar KD2-AOD-HT cable, modify your shift lever or find an E9SZ shift lever, modify one cooler line, get longer bell housing bolts. You can use the FMX block spacer plate, but most likely the inspction cover will not bolt to the AOD bell. I don’t bother with the inspection cover myself. The dipstick and tube are specific to the AOD—the FMX won’t work.
There are two different length AOD. Lincoln and Econoline are longer. The FMX is 30 1/8" and so is the short AOD. The best AOD to get is the 89 T-bird Super Coupe—unlikely to rummage across one of them. Get a 5.0 Mustang AOD. NO AOD’s before 86.
The stock Y-pipe will conflict a little bit with the rear of the AOD.
As fas as cutting your crossmember: During installation, you will see the crossmember is triangle shaped. I cut off the part of the triangle that extends forward to provide clearance for the AOD pan. Then the crossmember will hang off the rear sides of the bolts only. I’ve done several this way.
If you can’t find a shift lever, let me know. Back in the day, I built a jig to modify the AOD lever for the correct radius.
In the future, would everyone please refer to that part of the vehicle that resides between the engine and driveshaft as a TRANSMISSION. Otherwise we will continue to be haunted by “the tranny”. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
Agreed. I was just viewing this post as my wife walked by and she was wondering what I was viewing on this lovely Easter Sunday.
SocalCraigster made me do it! It was his dying wish that someone carry on the “tradition”! 
Is it possible to use an aod from 86-93? There’s a guy that did this swap near me and told me I can’t because the 86-93 aod is electronically controlled. I know this sounds dumb but I just want to make sure I get the right transmission. BTW I have a 70 cougar xr7 convertible with a 351w and a fmx transmission which lears from the pan and I can’t get it to stop. Have tried 5 times with dropping the pan.
I believe you can get a stand alone computer to control the aode but i don’t think they are used as often because they aren’t that cheap. I do think they are supposed to be a better set up for the torque convertor lockup though. I haven’t looked into it much though so I may be mistaken
I don’t want to use any comouter so I want to use the aod. My question is are there any aods that are controlled by computers in the later years the I should know about?
I believe that it is after 1993 that you will find the aode. Before that all aod transmission don’t require a computer just the throttle linkage. Do a little searching around, but I believe the older aod in the mustangs and lincolns were supposed to be the best built.
Can you use a 86-93 with a carbureted engine?
Yes you can. Just be sure to keep the tv cable properly adjusted if you don’t use a constant pressure valve body.
AOD from 80 to 93 is hydraulically controlled. The only place to plug in wires is for the neutral safety switch. Which is not used on a 69-73 because the neutral safety is in the shifter. 67-68 you can patch the AOD’s neutral safety into your harness. AOD requires a TV cable. AOD is sometimes finicky to adjust a problem shift.
AODE and 4R70w are fully computer controlled. 93 to 2010 or so. You will need a stand alone computer to run it.
Either can be run behind a carbureted engine. Or an EFI engine.