found a tc rear end...

Discussion in 'Fox 5.0 Talk' started by Adams91LX, Apr 30, 2009.

  1. Adams91LX Active Member

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    250 a good deal for 88 tc rear complete caliper to caliper with 3:55's?

    what else do i need to finish the swap?
    master cylinder etc?
  2. stykthyn Commander of the snuggie cultists

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    thats a screaming deal.
    I would go with a 93 cobra MC, you can get them on ebay all day long and will handle all your brake upgrades.
  3. Adams91LX Active Member

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    thanks!

    if only i could fit that in my trunk i'd pick it up now... oh well.. looks like i gotta borrow the truck :)

    later
  4. jrichker StangNet's favorite TOOL

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    Been there and done that! With success! :nice:

    Do the 87-88 T-Bird Turbo Coupe rear end swap!

    Auto trans 87-88 Tbird Turbo Coupes come with 3.73 gears and manual Turbo Coupes come with 3.55 gears.
    Cost is $125-$300 for the rear axle. Add another $100-$200 or so to complete the brake upgrade.

    I choose 3.55 since I do more highway driving. Both ratios have 10 5/16" disk brakes with vented rotors as standard equipment.

    It takes 2 guys the first day to get the old rear end out and the new one bolted in place.
    It takes 1 guy another whole day to do the brakes.

    You will need a several sets of fittings, I recommend that you get them from Matt90GT's website,
    87-93 Mustang 5.0 Brake upgrade pages. Improve your 60-0 times!.
    Read Matt's instructions thoroughly, everything you need to know about the brakes is all there.
    You need to be patient and follow all the internal links, and there are many of them.

    You will need 2 fittings in the rear to adapt your old brake tubing to the TC disk brakes.
    The fittings go between the steel tube and the caliper brake hose.
    You will need another set of fittings to make a 2 port to 3 port adapter. To make life simpler,
    just buy the kits from Matt. You could piece them together, but it's not worth the time unless
    you work at an auto parts store with all the fittings ever made.

    You will need to drill the quad shock mounting holes 2” below the holes drilled for the Turbo Coupe
    mounting points. The bolts are metric, so don’t loose them or the nuts. A 15/32” drill should be
    about the right size unless you have access to metric sized drill bits. Going without quad shocks is
    not an option.

    You will need a proportioning valve, Summit has one for $42 + shipping. Wildwood 260-8419
    You will need a kit (FMS makes the part) to gut the stock proportioning valve, Summit also
    has that, about $18. Ford Racing M-2450-A

    You will need a new master cylinder, see Matt's site and make you choice. I used a 94-95 Mustang
    master cylinder. Note that rebuilt 94-95 Mustang master cylinders do not come with a reservoir.
    That means a trip to the junkyard and some more money spent.

    Your brake pedal may be very hard and almost impossible to lock up the brakes. I had to replace
    the front calipers with 73 mm calipers from a 91 Lincoln Mark 7 to get the braking performance up to par.


    You can use the stock 5.0 booster if it is in good working condition. No need to replace the booster.

    Bleeding the brakes will require 2 people and some coordinated effort. I don’t recommend using your
    wife or girlfriend to pump the pedal – they get offended when you yell at them. I used a homemade
    power brake bleeder constructed from a garden sprayer and some fittings from Home Depot. It cost
    about $25 and was worth every penny. See how hard is it to bleed brakes? - Mustang Forums at StangNet
    for details and pictures.

    See Mustang Central.net FMS M2300K Brake Install for help with the emergency brake. The red words
    link to some very useful photos on how to modify the handle. The stock setup tends to lock up and not release properly.
    All in all I have been very pleased with the results.


    Turbo Coupe parts list:
    87-88 T-Bird Turbo Coupe Rear axle
    94-95 Mustang Master Cylinder with reservoir
    Brake line Adapter fittings http://www.svo73mm.cjb.net/
    3 line to 2 line brake fitting kit http://www.svo73mm.cjb.net/.
    Proportioning valve, Wildwood 260-8419 Summit or Jegs
    Kit to gut the stock proportioning valve Ford Racing M-2450-A Summit or Jegs
    Reuse stock brake booster
    73 mm front calipers from a 91 Lincoln Mark 7 (two calipers) local auto parts store
    Emergency brake cable parts Summit or Jegs or Late Model Restoration
    M-2809-A* Parking Brake Cable (need 2)
    M-2810-A* Parking Brake Cable (short cable that attaches to the parking brake handle)

    I recommend that you use reman calipers and use the calipers from the Turbo Coupe axle for cores to return. The parking brake mechanism and the caliper slides tend to lockup and freeze


    Identifying a Turbo Coupe rear axle:
    1.) Measure the rotors - a TC disk brake uses 10 5/16" vented rotors.
    2.) Measure the length of the quad shock mount arm and compare it to the mount on your existing stock axle.
    The TC quad shock mount arm is about 8" long if I remember correctly.
    3.) Measure the distance between the axle flanges and compare it to stock. The TC rear axle assembly is
    3/4" wider per side, or 1 1/2" wider for both sides.

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