C-6 to T-5 swap

[Tnfastbk]

Have not forgot about what we talked about Jeff, heading over tomorrow after work.

 

[droptop73]

No hurry my friend, I still have the original to work with... for now.

 

[droptop73]

A little more progress today. I mocked up the clutch, flywheel, bellhousing and clutch pedal. The steering column was removed to have a little more working room under the dash. The Modern Driveline retrofit pedal is in place and I am very impressed with the quality of the part and the ease of installation. I would have the bushings welded into place except for running out of welding wire... AARRRGGHHHHH. The brake pedal is out and ready to be cut down and painted. I am starting to plan the equalizer bar and clutch linkage. The plan is to use the stock mounting location on the frame and fabricating the brackets. I'm waiting for the clutch release lever to plan the hole in the bellhousing set the pivot location and begin the linkage.

Here are some progress pics.

 

[Don65Stang]

Looking good Jeff!

 

[droptop73]

Thanks Don

 

[Tnfastbk]

:udaman:

 

[droptop73]

There was more time spent in the garage today. The release fork location was determined and the hole was laid out. A 3/8" hole was drilled in each corner of the opening. I'll need to get a saw to connect the "dots". The fork and bellhousing boot are from LMC truck for a late 60's GMC truck. The pivot from the 3.8 bellhousing is going to work with the new fork after some slight modification to provide clearance for the fork retaining clip. Since a tool run is necessary I moved on to determining the size and shape for the frame and bellhousing brackets for the equalizer bar. The templates will be transferred to some 1/8" flat stock and welded together. At this point the position of the equalizer bar has been determined from there the levers and rods can be mapped out. Enjoy the pictures. I just hope the masking tape holds! LOL

 

[71_badmach]

Now this is above and beyond "plug and play"! Nice work...

 

[boogeyman]

I don't think it will be an issue the trans is rated at 300 ft/lb and my Cleveland is a very mild piece. The car is a driver and I will not be racing it. There are many parts available to upgrade the strength if it fails. They used virtually the same trans behind the Cobras IIRC that was rated @ 330 ft/lb.

Famous last words... "It SHOULD be OK" LOL!

SO THE 3.8 BELL HOUSING WILL BOLT TO THE 351 I ALSO WANT MINE TO GO FROM AUTO TO STRAIGHT DRIVE AND JUST WANT TO BE SHORE BEFORE I START GATHERING PARTS

 

[droptop73]

Yes the 3.8 bell is bolt on. The release lever exits very low (see the photos, rectangle hole) so I am cutting a new access hole. The 3.8 bell also uses a 164 tooth flywheel which allows use of the '73 11" clutch. The only thing is you need to run the '94 - '95 Mustang transmission which has a longer input shaft than other t-5s. My plan is to include a complete parts list, prices, vendors and dimensions of custom parts at the project's conclusion.

 

[droptop73]

Some small progress today. I finished tacking the clutch pedal bushings in place and started cutting metal for the brackets to mount the equalizer bar. No pics of today's progress, nothing really changed appearance-wise.

 

[Tnfastbk]

::goodjob::

Some small progress today. I finished tacking the clutch pedal bushings in place and started cutting metal for the brackets to mount the equalizer bar. No pics of today's progress, nothing really changed appearance-wise.

::goodjob::

 

[droptop73]

Ken PM'd a good question concerning my parts selection so I copied it here because we thought it was good information.

droptop73 Wrote:

whitesoc Wrote:

HI Jeff

The need for the T-5 with the longer input shaft is because of the bell you're using right? I was told that since mine is a stick already that I had to use earlier T-5 as it will bolt up to my bell but then I need to shorten my drive shaft.

Ken

Hi Ken,

That's a good question. I actually chose to look for the longer input trans since it will also move the shifter back about 3/4" and more centered in the stock hole in the floor. Since I'm kinda tall at 6'3 I felt that would be an advantage. The 3.8 bellhousing is about 1/4 the price of a 5.0 bellhousing so that was a no brainer. The unexpected benefit was the ability to use the c-6 crossmember ande trans mount.

As far as the driveshaft goes, I'll cross that when I have to. If the C-6 sells I'll be putting an Explorer 8.8" in along with a cut down Ranger aluminum driveshaft this winter as well.

So to sum it up the trans drove the bellhousing decision.

If you have any other questions please ask. That's why I am doing the thread. If you don't mind I'd like to add this to the thread.

Jeff

 

[turtle5353]

Good info Jeff. If you need any help or have any questions with the explorer 8.8 let me know, thats what i am running in mine. Worked really nice with little modification. Nice to have disc brakes all the way around and posi 3.73's. The tranny you used, is it only availiable in the 94 95 mustangs with 3.8 or did it come in the 96 and up also?

Kevin

 

[droptop73]

The trans is from a '95 5.0 GT. The bellhousing is from a 94 to 98 3.8.

On the 8.8 did you modify the Explorer rear to center the pinion?

 

[71_badmach]

So, just wondering why you guys are getting away from the 9" rear? Or, is it an upgrade from 8" that you had and I missed?

 

[turtle5353]

No i didnt center it up. its only slightly longer on one side. u joint seems to handle it ok. im running around 400 hp and no troubles yet. no vibration or anything. Ihave had it up to about 110 120mph. then let off. scary that fast! The rear has held up through 2 sets of tires getting burned off

71badmach... mine was an8 inch with 3.00 open gears. The 8.8 is 3.73 posi with disc brakes. So I killed a few birds with one stone.

kevin

 

[droptop73]

My car has a 9" and I want to go to the 8.8 because it is a more efficient design. The 9" is very strong but it also uses a lot of power to turn it.

 

[71_badmach]

Good info, thanks!

 

[72Q-code]

Good info, thanks!

Great thread that I missed while I was on sabbatical. Thanks for pointing it out in a recent post Droptop!

My 302 FMX Mach 1 is getting this treatment as soon as the Q-code is on it's feet.