The T-5 's out there have several different input shafts. The V8's is 0.668" dia, the 2.3L ones are 0.59" dia. To install the V8 box, have the input shaft ground down to 2.3L size. Rapido sells an adapter BUSHING (not a bearing) but many people won't use it, since bushings need lubrication periodically. The input shaft comes out pretty easy.I ran into one modification that I don't remember being mentioned. I had to modify the driver's side trans to engine support bracket to clear the clutch cable at the trans. It wasn't rocket science, just a couple of cuts with a hacksaw and then using my bench grinder to smooth and debur.
The T5 shifter comes up thru the transmission tunnel about an inch more forward than the center of the opening. I removed about that much material from the forward part of the opening. I plan to use the Mustang shifter boot and seal plate after some modifications. Specifically, I will use the center black section of the Merkur consol as a pattern and cut the Mustang shifter surround to match. I may need to heat the Mustang piece to make it take on a little curvature from side to side. I will then cut the Merkur consol flush with the window switch box and reuse the back half of the Merkur consol.
I will use the adapter for the Mustang drive shaft.
I also plan to use a Mustang Speed Sensor (VSS) on the speedo cable so that I can add cruise control later. The only problem is where to mount the control switches.
I can't quite decide how to mount the transmission to the crossmember. After measuring things, I can see that I could design a T shaped adapter piece that would bolt to the T5 and then to the existing Merkur transmission mount.
I can also get dirt simple and use a 7" long x 1" wide x 1/4" thick steel plate with 4 3/8 holes spaced 2-1/8" apart. The Mustang T5 mount would then protrude out of the hole in the center of the existing crossmember and I would use the plate with spacers to tie it all together.
I will probably do both. I can make the plate in my garage quickly, but long term I think that an adapter back to the Merkur mount is simplier and stronger, however, I can't get access to a milling machine to make the adapter today.
Here's some random tips, tricks, and tools that may help you do the job in less than 40 hours....
1) The upper bellhousing bolts are very difficult to access - you can get a wrench on the one on the right side from the top, but the one on the left needs a 3/8" drive 13mm socket with a wobble extension and a really long (24") extension.
2) There is a clearance problem in getting the T9 removed. The upper bellhousing hits the body and the lower hits the anti-sway bar. The anti-sway bar will need to be dropped to provide adequate clearance. The T5 resolves this problem, as the bellhousing can be installed separately first.
3) The lower end of the driver's side bellhousing supper bracket will need to be cut off at a 45 degree angle to provide clearance for the clutch cable.
4) The 10-spline input shaft is much more difficult to align than most shafts which number 20 or more splines. This can make one-man installation a bit challenging, but there is a solution. Buy two 10.9 grade 12 x 1.75 x 100mm bolts and cut the heads off to make studs. Once the bellhousing is installed (thank-you Borg Warner for designing the T5 with outside-in bolts), install the two studs into the lower two bellhousing bolt holes (finger tight only). Now the T5 can be lifted and slid onto the two locating studs, and you can leisurely turn the output shaft small amounts until the input shaft slides home. Secure the two top bolts and then unscrew the two studs out with vise-grips and replace with the regular bolts.
5) The T5 has no provision for a neutral safety switch, so the harness on the car will need to be shorted to enable the car to start. This is easily done by snipping off the connector and soldering the wires together. The neutral safety switch is the one located right at the shifter. Cut off the connector as you remove the T9 and eliminate the guess-work later when you realize the reverse light connector looks identical.
6) You may need to grind the emergency brake brackets if your Mustang driveshaft has balancing weights attached to it. I didn't have this problem, but if I hit a bump just the wrong way, my driveshaft just hits my Borla exhaust.
7) To make attachment of the clutch cable to the quadrant much easier, disable the spring on the quadrant and/or use a come-along on the bell-crank. If you do the later, make sure you pull it straight forward, not at an angle.
8) Your initial tranny fluid fill (2.8 quarts) can easily be performed by filling from the shifter box before the shifter is installed. You need to put a output shaft in the trans to keep luid from coming out.
9) Setting drive-line angles correctly is very important to a vibration-free installation. Go to www.iedls.com/guide.html for an explanation.
Here's the only special tools I used:
- Pilot Bearing Puller (Part# P4876 from Harbor Freight $15)
- Seal Puller ($5 from Harbor Freight)
- Flywheel Holder ($3 from Harbor Freight)
- Wurth Blue Threadlocker (flywheel bolts)
- Digital level (actually, this is the removed level portion from
a digital camber gauge $199 from SmartRacing Products (800) 383-0808
www.smartcamber.com)
- 12 point 12mm wobbly socket 3/8 drive to install the trans to
bellhousing bolts (ed)
'86 Mustang SVO T5 Transmission $150 In my opinion, this is the best T5 to use for a XR with a stock 5-speed 3.64 rear-end. The 3.50 - .78 ratios are a little wider than stock, but 2nd and 3rd are geared lower than the T9, which is exactly what we need. The bell-housing and Hurst shifter that come with this tranny can be re-used (assuming they are in good condition and were included with the purchase). On the down-side, these boxes are fairly rare and are typically more expensive. My $150 bargain turned out to be not such a bargain.
T5 Rebuild (Hanlon Motorsports - (610) 469-2695) $680 When Bob Hanlon called me up and asked, "How much did you pay for this thing?", I knew I was in trouble. A typical rebuild from Bob costs $319. I needed new 1st and 3rd gears along with a number of other parts. Whichever T5 you select, I'd recommend that you have it rebuilt by someone who knows what they're doing (I'm convinced Bob could rebuild a T5 blind-folded). Be sure to spec' a 6-tooth speedo drive gear and a steel bearing retainer as part of the rebuild (Bob can even install one of these on the 3.97 T5's, something which can't normally be done).
One-piece Mustang Driveshaft w/ dampened slip yoke (Harry's U-Pull-It) $12 Mine came from a 2.3 '88 and the slip yoke was in good condition. You can get one from a 5.0, but it won't have the dampened slip-yoke. Don't make the mistake of thinking you can use the FMS aluminum driveshaft - the diameter is too big.
Mustang driveshaft adapter/spacer (Don Haulsee - Capri5oh@aol.com) $90 A well-engineered piece, it allows the use of an unmodified Mustang driveshaft.
Bolts, 10 x 1.0 x 30mm (10.9 grade) These are used to secure the driveshaft adapter to the pinion flange. The stock bolts are too short (20 mm).
Bolts, 7/16 x 1.25" (coarse thread) (grade 8) These are used to secure the Mustang driveshaft to the adapter.
Tranny mount F6ZZ-6068-A (Lou Fusz Ford) $10.94
8" x 4" x 1/4" Steel Plate $5 This gets drilled and bolted to the existing cross-member and replaces the stock round tranny mount. The T5 mount is then secured to this plate. I spent way too much time with this, although in the end it worked out fine. I'd suggest buying Rapido or Jim DeBerry's T5 cross-member and save the aggravation.
Ram Motorsport Clutch Kit 88618 (Hanlon Motorsports) $159 This kit is a good value and includes the pressure plate, friction disc, throw-out bearing, and centering tool.
Pilot bearing D4ZZ-7600-A (Lou Fusz Ford) $7.05
XR4Ti Auto (C3) Speedo Cable (U-Pull-It) $3 AVAILABLE NEW FROM PEP BOYS FOR ABOUT $11, ED)
Speedo cable driven gear (19-tooth, pink) C0DZ-17271-B (Lou Fusz) $6.22 This is the one to use if you've got stock size wheels/tires, 3.64 rear-end, and the 6-tooth drive gear. You can use the calculations at: www.kellnet.com/chambers/speedo.htm, BUT, add 1 to your answer (i.e. If you come up with 18, you really need a 19-tooth gear).
Speedo gear clip C1DZ-17292-A (Lou Fusz) $1.33 The one from the C3 speedo cable is the same, so if you pulled the cable from a wreck, you can re-use the clip.
'86 SVO Clutch Cable CA-653 (AutoZone) $14.99 This cable works, is very heavy duty, but it's a little on the short side (60") and the firewall fitting isn't the same. My clutch engages a little too high, but it does fully engage. If I hadn't put those two washers under the fork pivot bolt, it would probably be perfect. The stock T9 cable will need to have the knob on the tranny end substantially ground down to work. And even then it may interfere with the proper pivoting action of the link and will likely snap in short order.
Clutch cable link D5FZ-2861-A (Lou Fusz) $2.47 Two of these are used on the bell-crank to secure the cables
"Dog-bone" 2" clutch cable E6ZZ-7535-A (Lou Fusz) $7.74 This is the secondary cable that goes to the clutch fork. Good idea to have a spare.
Clutch fork rubber cover E3ZZ-7513-A (Lou Fusz) $13.32 To cover the hole in the bellhousing where the clutch fork exits
Clutch fork E6ZR-7515-BA (Lou Fusz) $19.39 The fingers were worn on the one that came with my T5, so I replaced this.
Rear Main crank seal F1SZ-6701-A (Lou Fusz) $11.09 Good idea to replace this even if it isn't leaking. Cars built before 2/16/87 use a 2-piece seal (p/n E5ZZ-6701-B)
Flywheel re-surface and ring gear reversal (King Auto Parts) $50 Whenever a clutch is replaced the flywheel should be re-surfaced. My ring gear was worn and chipped in a few places, so it was pressed off and rotated so the starter would engage on fresh teeth. Otherwise the cost would have been $30.
Bolts, 12 x 1.75 x 30mm (4) Attachment of tranny to bellhousing. These are a different pitch than the T9 bolts, although the bellhousing to motor bolts can all be re-used.
Bolts, 12mm x ?? (2) Attachment of tranny mount to tranny
Nuts, 10mm ?? (2) Attachment of tranny mount to cross-member
2" x 4" x 1/8" rubber mat material (2) I put two 8mm holes in this and pushed it onto the dual-stud cross-member mounting brackets to provide some vibration dampening into the body.
Fender Washers, 5/16" (22) (Home Depot) Used to space the cross-member downward. I used 16 (8 + 8) on the right side, and 6 (3 + 3) on the left. Surprisingly, this provided a level surface for the T5.
Mobil 1 ATF (3 quarts) (AutoZone) $15
My total cost was a little over $1200, which was more than I had intended to spend, but significantly less than if I had someone else do the labor. Speaking of labor, this is a labor-intensive project, not for someone without some mechanical ability. I hit a number of small "speed-bumps" along the way, and went way over my original labor estimate - probably about 40 hours invested by the time I was done.
Brad Anesi '88 XR4Ti 5-speed
My clutch on the OE T-9 started slipping so I spent a month getting parts ready for the T-5 swap. I got the following parts ahead of time:
On the big day I:
Still to finish
Allan
Ok... first let me say that DO NOT USE THE FMS ALUMINUM DRIVESHAFT! It will work but it also requires a lot more work than the stock steel 5.0 driveshaft and Don Haulsee's adapter. I have sold my aluminum shaft and replaced it with a steel one.
Here's my set-up:
1992 t-5 Wold Class out of a 92 5.0 LX
Driveshaft from same
Motorsport clutch and pressure plate
Stock t-9 clutch cable
Steeda t-5 shifter
Rapido crossmember
Mustang t-5 trans mount
The one piece driveshaft used with the adapter does require some clearancing of the parking brake cable brackets in the tunnel. The adapter has worked very well with no noticable vibration, well worth the price. The Steeda shifter works very well and is much cheaper than the Pro 5.0 and the B&M Ripper. It also moves the shift knob back to nearly the stock location and moves it over close to your hip. It shifts very nice and 2nd to 3rd is a no-brainer. The Rapido crossmember worked as advertised as well and is a very stout piece.
If anyone is interested in my cost I'll have to get all the reciepts out of my file but with the tranny it came out to around $1500 plus a weekend's worth of work. Considering I paid $1500 for the car that may seem like a lot, but I have engine plans and its worth it not to worry about the tranny.
Tips:
-When removing the t-9 use a 36 inch extension and a wobble to
get the top two bolts on the bellhousing.
-I had to remove the riveted piece in the tunnel and cut forward
approximately 3/4 inch to clear the Steeda shifter base.
-When you think you're done make sure you jump (connect) the neutral
safety switch wires as the T-5 has no provision for this.
-After that make sure all your hoses are tight (the VAM to tubo
hose for example).
My cost to do the conversion is as follows:
88 2.3 Mustang T5 $75
Ranger 2.3 Flywheel (turned) $29
88 TC 9-1/8 dia clutch kit $130
Merkur Pedal Assembly $25
Mustang 5.0 Driveshaft w/ 2.3 T5 yoke $15
Driveshaft Adapter Plate $85
88 2.3 T5 Bellhousing $15
Engine plate, clutch cable, shifter $15
Misc bolts, seals, fluids $15
Total $404
The trans, bellhousing, driveshaft, and flywheel all came from
a local
Pull-It-Yourself junkyard. I got the flywheel free because they
said it had
"Hot Spots". I also put new seals in the T5 while it
was out.
My time estimate is as follows
Remove donor parts from Junkyard 3 hours
Remove C3, flexplate, auto shifter, identify wiring 3 hours
Replace rear main seal, install flywheel 1 hour
Install clutch and bellhousing, T5 1 hour
Install Pedals, Modify shifter hole 1 hour
Install Clutch cable and debug adjuster 1 hour
Design driveshaft adapter (Solid Model on CAD system) 4 hours
Design & Make Trans adapter plate 2 hours
Install crossmember 1 hour
Install driveshaft,adapter, & exhaust 1 hour
Modify shifter and consol 2 hours
Align Driveline 1 hour
Total Time 21 Hours
Don
I got the new T5 mount adapter made and installed last night.
The crossmember
clears the transmission by about 3/8" now. The top of the
trans also clears
the tunnel by about the same distance. The high frequency vibration
is GONE.
I have run the car full throttle up to about 100mph. I don't
seem to have any
driveline vibration until I start to coast back down. I pick up
a little on
the coast down, but probably not enough to make me go after it
right now. One
thing that I will fix is that one of the 10mm tapped holes in
the differential
flange was stripped out and I used a grade 8 3/8" bolt with
an ESNA locknut to
put things back together. Unfortunately, that means that the differential
flange is now unbalanced by the mass of the ESNA locknut. The
ESNA locknut
probably has more mass than the little balance weights welded
to the drive
shaft tube. It's also further off center than the weights. I will
either
helicoil the stripped thread or drill out the bolt opposite and
put an ESNA
nut on it also.
Overall, I'm very pleased with the 5.0 driveshaft conversion.
I have less
vibration now than I did before the T5 conversion because the
center carrier
bearing was near death anyway. The U-joints on the original driveshaft
are
also very stiff around center, but the Guibo is new with about
6000 miles.
Anybody need a used guibo CHEAP??
I guess thats it. Id like to thank everyone that helped with my various problems during the swap. Especially Roland for this great resource!! <clap clap clap>, and also Don Haulsee for the adapter that made this alot easier than it should be.
