While overdrive and general fuel economy were considerations for decades before the oil embargo, it was the steep increase in gas prices introduced by that decade that drove a change into American car manufacturing. These sacrificed some of the performance and speed of the gas-guzzling large-displacement carbureted V8 models of the past, in exchange for the ability to go long and fast at a much lower cost. It was around the 70s that automobile manufacturers started coming out with better, more fuel-efficient cars. Quick Overview of Ford 4R70W Transmissons Here’s a quick overview of the 4R70W, it’s relationship to other popular Ford transmissions, and a few things you should know about it, including its basic strengths, glaring weaknesses, and ways to improve on it and make it both more reliable and better for performance. No stock transmission is perfect, but if you’re looking for a small-body Ford transmission with potential for insane performance and no need to mess with pesky throttle valve cables or old-school controls, then the 4R70W is a good place to start – but by no means the best place to end. Since then, improvements in technology and stringent regulations improving fuel efficiency and air quality have demanded better and better transmissions, while still providing opportunities for top notch performance, even if only through a few modifications. Both are improvements on the AOD, Ford’s first 4-speed automatic overdrive transmission, and its answer to the fuel efficiency issues first brought to light in America by the oil embargo of the 70s. The 4R70W is a Ford transmission, and generally considered an evolution to the AODE, a transmission that it is often interchanged with.

4r70w vs 6r80 length