Improving the transmission in any vehicle is a sure-fire way to get all the power you're making down the path of the driveline and to the pavement. Beefing up your transmission is not only good for performance, but in the case of the 6.0L Power Stroke diesels, it is also key to making the transmission last while towing your race car, boat, or trailer.
Level 10 Performance Transmission Systems has stepped up to fill the void of beefing up the 5R110 transmission with its new PTS Stage 3 kit, better known as the Animal. The kit contains Animal clutches, which hold extra power without burning up; a solenoid that firms up the shifts; and a super pump to flow more transmission fluid to cool the tranny. The keys to the kit, however, are the billet torque converter and programmer with a custom Level 10 tune.
"The problem with upgrading the transmission internals and not the converter is that the converter will slip more with more power you put through it," says Level 10's Pat Barrett. "The converter flat-lines at 2,800 rpm, for example, and it doesn't matter if you put 500 lb-ft of torque or 1,000 lb-ft of torque through it at that point. It will slip and keep the torque level constant. At that point, you are wasting power."
The converter that comes with the Stage 3 Animal kit has a lower stall speed. This lowered stall speed is used to calibrate the computer for the truck's use and to compensate for modifications done to the engine to improve power. That way, you get all the power through the converter and down the line.
The programmer is the other key component to the kit. "In the past, you bought a valvebody or a shift kit to firm and calibrate shifts," Barrett says. "Nowadays, all the transmissions are electronically controlled through the computer-not of manual origin like a C6 tranny, for example. With today's transmissions, all the calibration has to be done through the computer. If you have a special use for your truck or have added power, you must have the computer reprogrammed for better driveability, performance, and durability. Also, what people fail to realize is that when you reprogram the computer, you cannot go out there and hammer the truck. You need to have the truck shift through 20 light shifts before the computer learns the programs. By going out there and planting the throttle right after the tune is uploaded, premature wear of components (particularly the clutches) occurs, and durability and reliability are diminished."
While you can buy a complete transmission with all the kit's components, we decided to take a 500-mile-old '07 F-350 Lariat Super Duty equipped with the 6.0L Power Stroke and the 5R110 and rebuild the transmission. Follow along as we show you how to get it done.
Tracking Down TroubleAnytime the service-engine-soon light comes on, we know something is wrong with our truck. The problem is, unless you have a diagnostic tool, it's a guess as to why the light came on. Thanks to Level 10, you can dial up its Web site (www.level10power.net) and check out what some codes mean when you do run a diagnostic check.