88 Mustang T5 Interchange

[Chevy guy01]

I have a 88 mustang 5.0 with an aod, planning on. A t5 swap tired of the broken auto ect. I will be sourcing most parts from the local salvage yards, what years should I look for? Also the pedal assembly , clutch cable and the t5 itself are those the same from 4cyl to the V8? Bell housing , fly wheel , clutch fork,and throw out bearing have to be from the V8 I'm sure, correct me if I'm wrong but the rest should work from either the 4 or 8 cyl

 

[Theroadwarrior]

The 4 cylinder T-5 has a smaller diameter input shaft which requires a xx-303 pilot bearing I believe (Check the site for further info on the swap). The 4cyl is not as strong, and has steeper gearing but will work, the 87-95 I believe are the same, with the 92-95 being the higher rated torque ones, I may be wrong on the years its been a while since I have done the swap.

Also im not for sure about the pedal assembly I would assume they are the same and spring and get an adjustable quadrant with maximum motorsports cable system

 

[Chevy guy01]

So just the tip for the pilot hearing is different, or is the spline that goes through the clutch disc different to? Hoping to find a complete donor car at the yard but that's probably a slim chance, is a stock 5.0 with headers more of a weekend cruiser with the top down , so I don't think the torque rating will be an issue,

 

[Theroadwarrior]

Yes, just the end of the input shaft diameter is smaller

 

[Mustang5L5]

Why even consider the 4cyl T5? go right for a V8 version.

As for parts to target, they are all the same 86-93 mechanically. You'll want 1987+ wiring though as a few harnesses did change.

Pedals...I've heard 4cyl are different but have never seen how.

Pretty easy swap overall. My '88 is an AOD-to-t5 swap and pretty straightforward. Buy a new flywheel and clutch. New flywheel and driveshaft bolts too. . Bellhousing you want an e6 bell from an 1986-1993.

You can reuse your double hump x member if you grind the spot welds so it can slide. Pick up a new trans mount. Exhaust hanger is optional if your h pipe still has hangers. I've cut mine off.

Get and oem clutch cable. No aftermarkets. While the clutch pedal assembly is out, replace the plastic quadrant with an upgraded quadrant and install firewall adapter.

 

[Chevy guy01]

Why consider a 4cyl t5, to answer thaty first choice would be the V8 of coarse but I tend to be impatient when I start on something, hate waiting on parts, so I will get what I can, what is the fire wall adapter for?

 

[Mustang5L5]

Clutch pedal adjustment. Raise or lower engagement point. Ensure full disengagement of clutch. Basically a great time to install one.

 

[Chevy guy01]

Ok thanks, thought the adjustment was at the quadrant, where did you reroute the speedo cable?

 

[jrichker]

A Tremec 3550/TKO/TKO 500/TKO 600 is a completely different transmission from a T5. Strong and almost bulletproof unless you run them without proper lubricant or full throttle shift without the clutch.

A Tremec T5 is still the same T5 that is prone to self destruction when used in a street/strip or racing environment

T5, all versions used in 5.0 Mustangs

Tremec 3550/TKO /TKO500/TKO600 AFTERMARKET replacement for T5 - handles racing environments with ease

See http://www.ttcautomotive.com/English/products/tremec.asp for more information - check out the "Light Duty" group, since TTC makes monster transmissions for big trucks as well as passenger cars.


T5 identifier information.

On the tail shaft of the transmission, there will be a stamped aluminum tag. The tag will have a number on it that you can cross reference to the chart below. There is no other way to find out what type of T5 it is without disassembling it. All the rest of the numbers on the outside of the T5 case are part numbers which are not unique to any particular T5 model.

Remember that 94 - 97 T5's have a longer input shaft (about 11/16” longer) and can only be used with a 94-95 bell housing unless you modify or replace the input shaft.

T5's used with a 4 cylinder have a 3.93 first gear, reduced torque ratings and an input shaft pilot diameter that is smaller that the T5 used for V6 & V8 engines. The pilot diameter is .59" compared to the .668" used on V6 & V8 T5's. It requires a different pilot bearing to be used with a V6 or V8. The pilot bearing you need is for a Ford Ranger diesel from AutoZone part #14672

I don't know how you feel about the DYI thing when it comes to gears, some people don't like the idea of working on transmissions. If the DYI transmission fix idea isn't something that you would rather leave to someone else, here are some resources:

See http://www.ttcautomotive.com/English/onlineorder/product.asp to download a FREE service manual for T5 or Tremec 3550/TKO
You will need the Adobe Acrobat viewer which is also a free download – http://get.adobe.com/reader/

See http://www.hanlonmotorsports.com/ or http://www.ddperformance.com for parts

A T5 rebuild kit with syncros, bearings and other small parts costs about $200-$250 It does not include any gears or shafts.

http://www.hanlonmotorsports.com/ also has a video on how to rebuild your T5 or Tremec. It costs about $20, and is worth every penny of it.

I did a Tremec 3550 rebuild, and it wasn't that difficult. The video was an immense help, and I would recommend viewing it. At $20, it will give you an opportunity to look and decide for yourself if you think that it is something you want to try to do.


T5 Shim kits – best product I have seen in a while… http://www.5speeds.com/t5/shims.html
“The Peel ‘n Place T5 World Class shim kit makes shimming T5 counter gear and main drive gears very easy.”

 

[Chevy guy01]

Awesome write up jrichker and thank you and everyone else for the info, Sunday I'm headed to the scrap yard to see what I can find, called ahead and the have 9 mustangs in the yard between 87-95 but can't tell me what they are auto manual or engine size, hoping to get at least some of the parts

 

[Mustang5L5]

Ok thanks, thought the adjustment was at the quadrant, where did you reroute the speedo cable?

The location for the speedo on manual trans cars is present on all mustangs. It's further inboard behind the valve cover.

 

[Chevy guy01]

Update no luck finding a t5 at the yards around here , so trying to get the aod working n save up for a swap kit for next year. Problem with the aod I only have 1st and reverse doesn't even try to shift, so far I've pulled the speedo cable and shift linkage bracket from the tail housing removed tail housing to access governor, governor was not moving freely had to push on the parts a little to move the so disassembled it and cleaned with some brake clean and rags to remove the varnish lubed it up with some PB put it back together all moves freely now so put it all back together, searched around for awhile till I found how to get to drain plug on the torque converter, drained it fluid was dark but didn't smell burnt and didn't find any foreign material in it, still have to drop the pan and fluid yet today and remove the valve body, new one should be In tomorrow, hope that it does the trick, never rebuilt a Ford transmission before hoping I don't have to