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REBUILDER

Volume 4, Issue 2 / Second Quarter, 1996

NEWS
from
These transaxles had a cap that installed on the outside of the 2-4 servo cover snap ring that is no longer required and should be discarded. The old design cover should be replaced with the new cover, TransTec part #81673 (OEM #F4RZ-7D027-A). The new servo cover will be included in all TransTec overhaul kits with a date code of E96 and later.
2/4 Servo Return Spring

Ford CD4E 2-4 Servo Cover Provides Better Sealing


Ford has replaced the servo cover on its early-design CD4E transaxles with a new cover that is stepped on the outside diameter to provide better sealing.
lst Design Servo Cover No Step

4T80E Low & Reverse Lathe Cut Seal


GM has changed the design of its 4T80E low and reverse apply servo seals from a lip seal design to a D-ring on the outer seal location. The new seal, TransTec #25105 (OEM #24200747), will be included in kits built with a date code of C96 and later. This new D-ring seal will retrofit all early built units using the lip seal.
Low/Reverse Outer Seal.. Changed to D-Ring

2nd Design Servo Cover Step

2-4 Servo

Identification Groove Area

In this issue...
Our Troubleshooter feature article will clear up confusion over Ford's AX4N transmission. New Ford CD4E servo cover provides better sealing capability. See cover article. Chrysler replaces clutch seals on A604 and A606 transaxles with Viton D-rings. See cover article. Design change made to GM 4T80E Low & Reverse Lathe Cut Seal. See cover article. GM 4T60E servo cover seal change. See page 2. Subaru 4-speed low/reverse outer piston seal. See page 2. Another change made to GM 4L80E Lower Valve Body Gasket. See page 7. Subaru redesigns 4-speed Front Case Gasket. See page 7.

Piston Rod

Servo Cover

2/4 Servo Piston

Retaining Ring

Cover Cap DISCARD

Chrysler Replaces Clutch Seals on 41TE (A604) and 42LE (A606) with Viton D-Rings
Chrysler has replaced the inner and outer lip seals on the 2nd & 4th clutch piston with Viton D-ring seals. The Drings will retrofit all 604 and 606 transaxles.
Lip Seal TransTec # Outer Seal Inner Seal 28191 28192 OEM # 4412245 4412246 26677 26678

The lip seals can still be used, but they will no longer be available once stock is depleted. All gasket kits and overhaul kits with a date code of E96 or later will contain the D-rings.
D-Ring TransTec # OEM # 4659374 4659376

GM 4T60E Servo Cover Seal Change


Starting on February 20, 1995, GM made a running change on the 4T60E 2-1 manual servo cover seal, changing the axial thickness, or height of the seal, from .066" to .132". At the same time, the depth of the pocket in the transaxle case was changed from .054" to .112". The seals and cases cannot be interchanged! The new seal must be used in cases with a .112" pocket, and the previous seal in cases with a .054" pocket. The new seal, part #25104 (OEM #24204386), is included in all gasket kits and overhaul kits starting with date code E96.

Subaru 4-Speed Low/Reverse Outer Piston Seal


Beginning in early 1992, Subaru made a design change in the low and reverse piston outer seal. The previous design was a lip seal, TransTec #28255 (OEM #31546-AA000). The current design is a D-ring seal, TransTec #26683 (OEM #31616-AA111). The design change did not occur across the board in 1992, which has caused additional confusion. Break dates between designs vary with model applications. To accommodate the change, the low/reverse piston was also revised. The lip seal and the D-ring seal will not interchange. Replace the old seal with a new seal of the same design. All TransTec kits with a date code of E96 or later will contain both seals.
Subaru 4-Speed Revised Low/Reverse Piston Seals

Seal and Pocket Location in Case

PREVIOUS DESIGN 1991 - 2/20/95


SEAL .551" .066" .066" SEAL

NEW DESIGN 2/20/95 - 1996


.551"

.066"

.132"

CASE SEAL POCKET

CASE SEAL POCKET

Note under cut

.054"

.112"

Previous Design

REBUILDER

NEWS

Denny Scher, Editor

Rebuilder News is dedicated to providing current technical information to the automatic transmission rebuilder. Reader's comments/suggestions are welcomed. Write: Editor, Rebuilder News, P.O. Box 556, Milan, Ohio 44846-0556. 1996 Freudenberg-NOK General Partnership. All rights reserved. Reproduction without prior written permission is prohibited.

New Design

Illustration for reference only.

TROUBLESHOOTER

FORD's AX4N... Clearing Up Some of the Confusion


By Bob Bodossian, TransTec Transmission Product Engineer

From all the calls Ive received about Ford's AX4N transmission, two things are readily apparent. First of all, quite a few of these units were showing up in shops not long after they were in production. While this may not be good news for Ford, it probably wont make anyone in the aftermarket too unhappy. Second, I found that a lot of guys werent sure whether they were looking at an AX4N, AX4S, or an AXODE. All the Confusion is Understandable The AX4N was first used in 1995 in all Lincoln Continentals, plus some Taurus and Sable models. Just one year prior to that, Ford changed the designation of the AXODE to AX4S, and a lot of people thought that both the 4S and 4N were new units. Confusion grew with the Taurus SHO version of the AX4S called the AX4SH, which was used in 1993-95. Then in 1996, the SHO got a new 3.4 litre V-8 engine with the AX4N trans, instead of the AX4SH. As confusing as all this sounds, its really very easy to tell an AX4N from an AX4S. For starters, the side cover on the AX4N has AX4N stamped on it in big letters. The AX4S does not have any indentification on the side cover. You dont even have to know what a transmission looks like to figure that out. Looking closer, youll notice that there is no low-intermediate servo

cover on the outside of the AX4N, and there isn't a governor cover as found on the AX4S. Instead, there's a hole in the case where the output speed sensor goes.

Not Unlike an AXODE...

The AX4N should not present any problems to anyone thats familiar with the AXODE (AX4S). The driveline is pretty much the same, except for the section between the differential and the reverse clutch. This is where the lowWhat's Good for GM is Good for Ford intermediate clutch replaced the band, Basically, Ford has done the same as stated earlier. There is also a coast thing to the AX4S (AXODE) that band back there thats applied only in General Motors did to the 4T60 manual 1st and 2nd gears to provide (TH440) when they introduced the engine braking. The servo piston and 4T60E in 1991. The low-intermediate cover for this band are both bonded band has been replaced by a lowrubber. These are accessed from inside intermediate clutch pack and one-way the transaxle pan instead of an external roller clutch. This was done to elimiservo cover like the AX4S. Thats the nate shift timing proreason for the large blems associated with bulge in the side of the releasing the lowAX4N pan compared to "... its really very intermediate band and the AX4S. applying the direct easy to tell an clutch during the 2-3 Two Pans in Two AX4N from an shift in the AX4S. Years Speaking of pans, the In the AX4N, the the side cover on AX4N already has two low-intermediate different pans and clutch stays applied the AX4N has gaskets for the first two and the roller clutch AX4N stamped years its been in just free-wheels when production. The 1995 on it in big letters." the trans shifts from AX4N used a cork pan 2nd to 3rd. Thus, the gasket and the pan had release of one friction built-in torque limiters element and the application of another just like the AX4S. In 1996, the pan doesnt have to be synchronized. gasket was changed to an elastomeric Thats the meaning behind the designa(molded plastic & rubber) material. tions AX4N and AX4S. "N" means The torque limiters were incorporated non-synchronous (not-synchronized) into the gasket and removed from the shifts and "S" means synchronous pan. You cant use the cork gasket on (synchronized) shifts. the '96 pan because it will leak, and the

AX4S. For starters,

elastomeric gasket wont work on the '95 pan because it wont fit over the torque limiters. I guess whats good for one pan is good for another, because the same change was made on the side cover from '95 to '96. But it could have been worse. You see, the AX4S also went to the elastomeric gaskets in 1996. But the pan and side cover bolts were changed from 8mm to 6mm, so you have a different AX4S case for '96 than for '95 due to the smaller bolts. At least Ford planned ahead and used 6mm bolts from the start on the AX4N. One Too Many Seals Inside the pan, the filter on my AX4N core looked identical to the AX4S filter. However, there were

part numbers for the filter assembly. two orange seals on the filter neck The seal is what determines the instead of the usual one. Checking the location of the filter in Ford parts catalog the pan. didnt help clear things up. It still The short orange seal A good rule of lists an o-ring for a is the one were all used filter seal, which we thumb is to replace to seeing in the AXOD/ all know hasnt been Es and most AX4Ss. It the filter with the used in many years. is not used in the AX4N same style that was at all. The tall orange Go Right to the seal is used in the AX4SH removed. Source and some AX4N models It took a call to with a deep pan. The Wayne Ferrel at green seal is used in all Filtran, the O.E.M. supplier of the other AX4Ns and the AX4S starting in filter, to get the facts. Yes, the filter '96. A good rule of thumb is to replace by itself is the same as the AX4S and the filter with the same style that was AXOD/E. But there are three different removed. (As for my filter having two filter seals; a short orange, a tall short orange seals, thats what Ford orange, and a green seal thats in used initially until the tall orange seal between. Since the filters come with a replaced it.) seal on them, there are three different Ford Isn't Taking Any Chances The AX4N has four oil transfer tubes (fig. 1), one less than the AX4S. The rear lube and the low-intermediate tubes push into two small metal clad seals that are pressed into the lowintermediate housing. These seals are similar to the AX4S rear lube seal, but larger. Unlike the AX4S, all four of these tubes use o-rings at all the other ends for a positive seal. You get the feeling that after the lube problems with the AXODE, Ford isnt taking any chances? Look Close or Look Out Moving to the side cover, everything in there looks about the same as the AX4S. But if you look close, youll notice that the shift solenoids are arranged differently. The AX4N arrangement from top to bottom is solenoid 1, 2, and 3. In the AX4S, its 2, 1, and 3 from top to bottom. Not only are shift solenoids 1 & 2 reversed, but the solenoid apply timing is also different between the two transaxles, as

Figure 1

Oil Tubes

Reverse Clutch Transfer Tube Low-Int Servo Apply Transfer Tube

Low-Intermediate Clutch Transfer Tube Rear Lube Transfer Tube

Figure 2
Range P-N R Reverse lst D 2nd 3rd 4th 1st D 2nd 3rd L lst Gear

AX4S Solenoids
Sol. 1 Off Off Off On Off On Off On Off Off Sol. 2 Off Off On On Off Off On On Off On Sol. 3 Off Off Off Off On On Off Off On Off

AX4N Solenoids
Sol. 1 Off Off Off Off On On Off Off On Off Sol. 2 Off Off On Off Off On On Off Off On Sol. 3 Off Off Off Off On On Off Off Off Off

you can see in figure 2. If youre not careful here, you could go crazy trying to diagnose shift problems! Simplified Checkball Locations Once the valve body is removed, youll see that this unit has a total of six checkballs. Five in the valve body and one in the oil pump body, as shown in figure 3. Unlike the

AX4S, which has more variations of checkball locations than I care to remember, the AX4N only has one. Not much chance of screwing up here. Of course, now that thats said, Ford will probably make major changes to the valve body. Sticky Gaskets Can Stick You Speaking of the valve body, heres a

word of caution before you take your scraper to the main valve body gaskets. No, theyre not baked on from excessive heat. The gaskets are bonded to the separator plate at the factory. While this may be less costly and easier for production, it raises the cost of an overhaul. It also presents a problem to kit packagers like TransTec. Due to the cost and the number of plates, we cannot include them in an overhaul kit. So far, there are five different plates for the AX4N, and we will make them available separately. By the way, thats the good news. The AX4S has also gone to bonded plates for the valve body and the pump. To date, there are nine different plates. Accumulator Locations Worth Noting When you pull the chain cover off the AX4N, be sure to note the locations of the accumulator springs. (See figure 4 on next page.) Here again, Ford changed things around just a bit. The accumulator nearest the top of the case

Figure 3 Checkball Locations

Main Control Valve Body

Oil Pump Body

is the 1-2 in both the AX4N and drivelines between the AX4S and AX4S. Thats where the similarities AX4N. While some parts are identical, end. Not only are the a lot of them have rest of the accumulators small differences that switched around, but the could be missed if Every clutch piston AX4N has one more you're not careful. in this unit, except than the AX4S in the For example, lets the reverse clutch, chain cover, plus it has look at the direct & one in the bottom of the intermediate clutch is a bonded assemcase. Figure 4 shows drum. The AX4S bly. It looks like all the AX4N accumulator used lip seals for both the OEMs are going clutch inner seals. locations in the chain cover. The N-D Then along came the in this direction. accumulator is in the AX4SH in the Taurus bottom of the case. SHO and it had D-rings for both clutch inner Similar, But Not Interchangeable seals. I guess Ford wanted the best of both worlds for the AX4N. It uses the As I said earlier, the rest of the lip seal for the direct clutch and the driveline is pretty much the same as D-ring for the intermediate clutch. In the AX4S and so is the power flow. other words, before you start replacing The only thing you have to remember is that the low-intermediate band is any hard parts, make sure they match gone. In its place is the low-intermewhat you took out. diate clutch, the low-intermediate Fewer Pieces Parts one-way clutch, and the coast band. This doesnt mean you can interchange any of the parts in the Speaking of clutch seals, the AX4N has very few of them. Every clutch

piston in this unit, except the reverse clutch, is a bonded assembly. It looks like all the OEMs are going in this direction. A few years from now, lip seals will probably be a thing of the past. It may take a little time for some guys to get used to replacing all the pistons on every overhaul, but if you think about it, it makes sense. After all, you wouldnt overhaul a trans and not replace the lip seals, would you? Do It Right or Do It Over The use of molded pistons, molded rubber gaskets, and bonded valve body gasket and plate assemblies is becoming more and more common. Some of you are probably thinking about how this will raise the cost of an overhaul, and that its easy for me to say you should replace all these parts. Well, in the 20 years spent at your end of the business, I've learned this. If you explain the cost of a repair to a customer, they usually dont like it, but they understand and accept it. What they don't understand is if the job comes back because you re-used a few parts. The fact that you saved them $70 or $80 originally doesnt mean a whole lot at that point. Cost-Plus Versus Compromise In most successful businesses, the price of the product is determined by adding a profit margin to the cost. If the cost goes up, it is usually passed on to the consumer. In this business, it seems like we have a lot of people working in reverse. They set a price first, and then spend all their time trying to keep their cost within that price. I dont know about you, but theres no question in my mind which approach I prefer. TT

Figure 4

Chain Cover (Transaxle Case Side)


Intermediate (1-2) Accumulator Direct (2-3) Accumulator

Reverse (N-R) Accumulator Overdrive (3-4) Accumulator

Change Made to 4L80E Lower Valve Body Gasket


GM has made another change to the lower valve body gasket for the 4L80E transmission. The new gasket has an additional 1-7/8" hole, as shown in the illustration below. The previous gasket, TransTec #12657, is being replaced by the new gasket, TransTec #12853 (OEM #24201115), which will retrofit all units back through 1991. This gasket will be included in all TransTec kits with a date code of C96 or later.

Previous Gasket - TransTec #12657

New Gasket - TransTec #12853

New Hole

Subaru Redesigns 4-Speed Front Case Gasket


Subaru has replaced the paper front case gasket on its 4-speed transmission with a rubber-coated metal gasket. If your transmission has an oil baffle (see illustration), it should be discarded if using the new metal gasket, TransTec #10029 (OEM #31339-AA121). The baffle is only used with the paper gasket, TransTec #12578 (OEM #31339-AA040). The metal gasket was added to overhaul kit #2259 starting with date code A96. The paper gasket will remain in the kit until stock is depleted, at which time it will no longer be available. Caution: Using the paper gasket on a transmission that originally had a metal gasket could cause fluid to leak out of the transmission vent.
Oil Baffle Plate

Pump Cover

Appearing Soon
A TransTec representative will be at the following "Tech Seminars"

Date
August 24th August 31st September 7th

City
Nashville Denver Detroit

State
Tennessee Colorado Michigan 7

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