Modifications to the CD4E are few and
far in-between. Actually, modifying the CD4E actually means building
it up for better reliability. The weakest point of the CD4E is the
torque convertor bypass valve. This valve was poorly designed, but
thankfully, Sonnax makes a replacement valve that solves these
issues. The fact that there are several weak points that can be
addressed and when addressed properly, can increase the overall
reliability of the transaxle. So what about performance
modifications? Well, there aren't any. The only real performance
mods you can do to the CD4E is take the Direct and Coast clutch
packs from the 98-2000 models, which host High-Energy Kevlar
Composite clutch plates, and the 2000 model CD4E found in the Escape
and Tribute also have a wider High-Energy band. Thes small changes
will help with overall clutch life, which takes us right back to the
fact that modifying the CD4E means modifying for reliability and not
so much for performance. Below I will list of a few of the more
common modifications that can be made to this transaxle along with
how-to's were I can.
External Cooler An
external cooler is a wise investment for any automatic transmission,
no matter what type! The number one killer of any automatic
transmission is heat. By adding an external cooler will greatly
decrease the overall operating temperature of the unit. This will
help in several areas like; fluid & clutch life and operation.
So how can I install a cooler on my car? Well here is a
quick drawing that Hector (LoCoZ2.0 is his screen name of the CEG
forums) did for someone awhile back. As you can basically see, all you have to do is tap into
the "return line" coming from the radiator to the trans and place
the cooler there. Mounting the cool is really based on where you
have room to mount it. Just make sure that it gets plenty of air
flow. Most place it in front of the A/C Condenser. Most of the
people that have installed these have noted that mounting it here
does not affect the overall performance of your A/C.
This is
actually a simple operation, that most anyone could do themselves
over a weekend. It can also be done, most of the time depending on
the brand and size of cooler you use, for less then $100! Most only
spend about $70 for all the parts including all fittings. Not bad
for something that could easily save you several thousand dollars
for a rebuilt tranny!!
Full Synthetic ATF I have read on several
boards that Ford does not recommend synthetic fluids for the CD4E. I
am not real sure where they get there information from, but I have
not read anything from Ford on this. So! On that note, over at CEG,
many of us swear by the use of Mobil 1s' full synthetic formula. Not
only have we not had a single member loss a CD4E while using it, if
they started using it early enough, but the temperatures that these
guys run are just sick! One member has claims of, in the winter, 90
degree operating temperatures while driving on the highway when the
outside temps are 50 or below. City driving, under the same
conditions were around the 110 - 150 degree range. When the temps
are well above 50, normal operating temps were around 120 - 150
highway and city is around 175 - 200. The normal operating temp of
the CD4E is around the 220 degree range. Bear in mind that these
numbers come from the combined use of the full synthetic ATF and an
external cooler. AWSOME!!
Shift Kits Plain and simple... There aren't
any performance kits available! The only thing on the market right
now that has anything to do with shifting for the CD4E is the
TransGo CD4Ejr kit. This is more of a problem solving kit that, when
installed, fixes a bunch of known weak points of the CD4Es hydraulic
system. Most of the kit is for the valve body. The valve body can be
removed easily enough and the kit includes all the needed bits for
drilling out the valve body where needed.
High Energy Clutch Packs If the build date
of your CD4E is pre96, you can have High Energy clutch packs
installed. In 1996, the coast clutch replaced with the High Energy
material and in `97 the Direct clutch was as well. These packs are
only available, for the Direct & Coast clutches. High Energy
clutches are clutches made with a Kevlar Composite material.
Raybestoes and Borg-Wagner both make aftermarket High Energy
clutches for the CD4E.
Some Random Possibilities
Swapping Around Alright! So 3L swaps are all
the rage right now with the Contour and Cougar. So what if someone
did all the normal engine swapping, but instead of using a normal
CD4E, use one out of the Mazda Tribute. Well, you would not have
to find just a Tribute I don't think, but any 2001 or above CD4E
would possibly work. Anyway, my point here is that the Tribute has
a little more aggressive shift pattern that is better suited for
street use. Swap the engine, tranny and PCM!! You could then get a
chip from SuperChips or someone like that, which would accentuate
that aggressive shifting even more. Why not? Hey it is just an
idea?
Cooling Issues We all know that the CD4E has
some serious cooling issue's. So how might we be able to cool the
tranny even better then the above mentioned method of stuffing a
small unit in front of all the other stuff that is down there
already (power steering cooler, a/c condenser and radiator). What
if you took a radiator from an SVT contour, which has a little
better flow characteristics then no-SVT radiator, and replace the
stock one with this. Then remove the a/c condenser, which would
make more room for a larger tranny cooler. This action would also
remove the CD4Es cooling system from the radiator, which would be
a good thing. Even if you had an external cooler installed and
your engine overheated, you could still run the risk of causing
the ATF to become super heated if the conditions were right. If
you didn't want to go with a Contour SVTs radiator, you could get
a Focus radiator from Fluidyne. I am not sure if it would be an
exact fit, but something to think about anyway and that is what
all this is about.