A4 to C4 tranny swap

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Oct 11, 2017

procadman

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Joined: Sep 2012

Posts: 14

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From: loveland, oh

A4 to C4 tranny swap

All help forums, on various sites, say one way to connect a 2.9 block to a c4 tranny is to use a C5 bellhousing.

My A4 has gone belly-up for the third time so I'm making this swap. (I only have about 60k on the 2.9 rebuild or I'd swap engine and tranny both.)

I have one question:

Do I need a specific C5 bellhousing or is one better than the other?

i.e.:
RF-C5AP-7976-A (Aluminum) (my preference)
c5ta 7505 b 390 (cast iron)
C5TA-7505-B (cast iron for 352 360 390 410 427 428)
C5TA-6394 (cast iron)
C5TA-6394-A (cast iron small blk)

Oct 12, 2017

RonD

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From: Vancouver, BC

You need to question trans shop about the repeated failures of the A4LD it is a good transmission if rebuilt correctly, if they, or you, are just doing soft parts replacement then it will only last a year, maybe 18 months
This is not from bad design its from bad servicing

Good read here: Ford Ranger A4LD Automatic Transmission

Short version

Quote:

When having an A4LD rebuilt, there are a couple of things that you need to make sure of. First and foremost, do not let a shop do a soft parts fix only (clutches, servos, and bands). This will almost ensure that you will have another repair needed right after the 1-year warranty is out. Other things you want to have replaced are: forward one-way clutch (always), overdrive drum (stamped tin, replace if out of round or heat damaged), pump (Ford only, rebuilds are prone to failure), and the converter (get the better converter with the improved lock-up clutch and brazed fins).

Any bad rep the A4LD got over the years was from poor servicing by trans shops, much better for them to blame bad design than admit they goofed up because they didn't know how OD trans worked, lol.
And the A4LD was used in Rangers until 2012, C3 was the base model, A4LD added OD and 2 solenoids, 4RxxE add 3 more solenoids, 5RxxE just used different control from computer to get 5 speeds, so the A4LD, 4R and 5R are the same base model transmission

You would need a C5 bellhousing from a 2.8l or 2.9l engine, both fit 2.9l(Taunus Bellhousing pattern), and the C5 bellhousing will bolt to C4 or C5 trans
And you are not trading "up", it is backwards or sideways at best
Also need to change drive shaft, or shafts if 4x4

Last edited by RonD; Oct 12, 2017 at 10:10 AM.

Oct 12, 2017

procadman

Thread Starter

Member

Joined: Sep 2012

Posts: 14

Likes: 2

From: loveland, oh

Thanks for the info.

Yes I know using a C4 is a step backward but it is a dependable medium duty unit that has much better fuel economy than the C6 and is, as far as I can tell, easier and cheaper to come by and rebuild/modify.
Also it is still the choice of race builds which should allow me to do modifications more easily than a fully electronic model.

The problem was the A4LD was billed as "medium" duty. The 1989 2.9 with A4LD 2wd Ranger had a tow rating of 5000lbs.
Unfortunately, everyone who has had one apart has found it to be a "light" duty C3 with overdrive and 2 solenoids as you pointed out.

This will be the last build, one way or the other, for the truck while it is in my care.
I may will it to my grandson/granddaughter or someone who really appreciates Rangers.

Thanks again.