Shift firmness
Thread Starter
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Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 285
Likes: 0
From: Anaheim Hills, California
Shift firmness
Hi guys.
I have made a few posts here concerning the firmness of shifts on WOT.
When I had my other 02 Scab with the 4.6L, on acceleration at WOT, the shifts were very firm, enough to unduce belt squeal when it made the shifts. Around town it shifted "wife friendly". I was very happy with that setup. A few said that (if I remember correctly) that it wasn't supposed to do that and there must be something wrong with it or it has been tweaked. I leased it new, less than 10 miles on the odo. It was factory stock.
With my current truck, an 02 Screw 5.4L, it shifts "wife friendly" around town and also at WOT. Every time. No chance for any belt squeal.
When I originally asked the question, Mike Troyer made mention that it probably was due to the increased HP & TQ of the 5.4 over the 4.6 that limited the 4R70W trans to shift soft at WOT. He said one of his custom tunes could take care of making the WOT shifts firmer.
What my concern is, not what Mike said as I believe him, but my concern is can there be something wrong with my transmission because it does not shift firm at WOT?
I love my truck and we all know how it affects us when something appears to be wrong with our trucks.
Help!
I have made a few posts here concerning the firmness of shifts on WOT.
When I had my other 02 Scab with the 4.6L, on acceleration at WOT, the shifts were very firm, enough to unduce belt squeal when it made the shifts. Around town it shifted "wife friendly". I was very happy with that setup. A few said that (if I remember correctly) that it wasn't supposed to do that and there must be something wrong with it or it has been tweaked. I leased it new, less than 10 miles on the odo. It was factory stock.
With my current truck, an 02 Screw 5.4L, it shifts "wife friendly" around town and also at WOT. Every time. No chance for any belt squeal.
When I originally asked the question, Mike Troyer made mention that it probably was due to the increased HP & TQ of the 5.4 over the 4.6 that limited the 4R70W trans to shift soft at WOT. He said one of his custom tunes could take care of making the WOT shifts firmer.
What my concern is, not what Mike said as I believe him, but my concern is can there be something wrong with my transmission because it does not shift firm at WOT?
I love my truck and we all know how it affects us when something appears to be wrong with our trucks.
Help!
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 1,376
Likes: 2
My truck shifted horribly soft and mushy when I bought it. Just barely looking at the gas pedal would induce a lot of revving and downshifting, lots of noise and eventually the truck would get around to increasing speed. The dealer put a new torque converter in it under warranty but the new one acted the same as the old one. It was so bad that I considered selling the truck 3 months after buying it. A Predator tuner helped with the lag and slightly firmed up the shifts, but it still downshifted with the slightest feathering of the 'go' pedal.
Last month I spent almost $900 on a Factory Tech torque converter, shift kit and rear housing. I then spent over $500 getting the parts installed (just the 14 quarts of Merc V was over $60). Now my truck shifts like a truck and not like a 40 year old Lincoln Continental with 300K miles.
Yeah, the factory setup sucks. No, it isn't broken. It just sucks by design. Lots of failures at 50K-80K miles for these slushboxes and I suspect it's because they slip and downshift so much. For some reason Ford thinks somebody wants their trucks to shift like slushboxes. If the Chevies weren't so ugly and so far behind in design, I might not be driving my 8th Ford truck. If Ford hasn't addressed these issues by the time this truck is worn out, I will be seriously looking at other brands for the first time in my life.
Last month I spent almost $900 on a Factory Tech torque converter, shift kit and rear housing. I then spent over $500 getting the parts installed (just the 14 quarts of Merc V was over $60). Now my truck shifts like a truck and not like a 40 year old Lincoln Continental with 300K miles.
Yeah, the factory setup sucks. No, it isn't broken. It just sucks by design. Lots of failures at 50K-80K miles for these slushboxes and I suspect it's because they slip and downshift so much. For some reason Ford thinks somebody wants their trucks to shift like slushboxes. If the Chevies weren't so ugly and so far behind in design, I might not be driving my 8th Ford truck. If Ford hasn't addressed these issues by the time this truck is worn out, I will be seriously looking at other brands for the first time in my life.
Former Sponsor
Joined: Mar 1998
Posts: 13,385
Likes: 4
From: Virginia
Hi Reloader,
No, there is NOTHING wrong with your vehicle, contrary to what is being claimed. Just as I told you before.
The problem is simply that depending on the PCM revision, the 5.4 can have far more torque management in effect than the 4.6 does during heavy-throttle upshifts - that varies widely even in the same model year based not just on engine, but based on PCM revision. Some even exhibit belt-squeal in bone-stock trim - that noise is NOT your transmission, is the the low-grade serpentine belt slipping on the pulleys, and that can happen either when stock, or when tuned.
When we tune them, virtually all the time they will do that simply because of the extremely low quality of serpentine belt used combined with the increase power and a much quicker shift at heavy throttle. this is extremely basic & has all been covered many hundreds of times before here - so you can easily look all of this up via the SEARCH feature.
The bottom line is, there is nothing wrong with your vehicle - you don't need a new torque converter or any other "repairs," etc. If you want firmer shifting, you simply need a proper custom tune done on it, and/or install a Factory Tech Valve Body (which still won't address torque management) - we can take care of all of that for you, very easily.
No, there is NOTHING wrong with your vehicle, contrary to what is being claimed. Just as I told you before.
The problem is simply that depending on the PCM revision, the 5.4 can have far more torque management in effect than the 4.6 does during heavy-throttle upshifts - that varies widely even in the same model year based not just on engine, but based on PCM revision. Some even exhibit belt-squeal in bone-stock trim - that noise is NOT your transmission, is the the low-grade serpentine belt slipping on the pulleys, and that can happen either when stock, or when tuned.
When we tune them, virtually all the time they will do that simply because of the extremely low quality of serpentine belt used combined with the increase power and a much quicker shift at heavy throttle. this is extremely basic & has all been covered many hundreds of times before here - so you can easily look all of this up via the SEARCH feature.
The bottom line is, there is nothing wrong with your vehicle - you don't need a new torque converter or any other "repairs," etc. If you want firmer shifting, you simply need a proper custom tune done on it, and/or install a Factory Tech Valve Body (which still won't address torque management) - we can take care of all of that for you, very easily.