T5 to hydraulic

[Fr0st_Stang72]

Looking to make the t5 hydraulic what all would I need to do to convert it? Just a hydraulic throw out bearing and a reservoir or do I need a slave cylinder too?

 

[Don C]

The hydraulic throw out bearing takes the place of the slave cylinder. Do your research, they're not as simple as they sound, getting them set up right (adjusted) during installation is critical. Depending on the age and condition of your clutch disk, pressure plate, and flywheel you might want to think about replacing them, too, while you have the transmission out. I'm assuming the reservoir you're referring to has a clutch master cylinder attached to it. Some have a clutch master cylinder under the dash with a remote reservoir.

 

[Fr0st_Stang72]

The hydraulic throw out bearing takes the place of the slave cylinder. Do your research, they're not as simple as they sound, getting them set up right (adjusted) during installation is critical. Depending on the age and condition of your clutch disk, pressure plate, and flywheel you might want to think about replacing them, too, while you have the transmission out. I'm assuming the reservoir you're referring to has a clutch master cylinder attached to it. Some have a clutch master cylinder under the dash with a remote reservoir.

Yes I am getting a whole new clutch kit for it I recently bought the car and it wasn’t finished yet and I don’t have a clutch master cylinder on the car as it was originally automatic so I’ll have to add that as well. Basically they just put the t5 in it without a clutch or anything. Is one better than the other between a slave cylinder and a hydraulic throw out bearing?

 

[Don C]

I prefer the slave cylinder, due to its ease of adjustment and rebuild/replacement. The only problem is mounting it, and determining if a push or pull will be best for your setup.

 

[boxgranch]

Search the forum for hydraulic clutches and throw out bearings. There are several variants and when switching from an auto to a manual, getting the clutch pedal in gets involved. This usually requires some welding and a bushing kit from Scott Drake. One poster used a kit that has a master mounted on the pedal and I rather wish I had gotten that instead of the one that mounts on the firewall, but I didn't know about it when buying the kit. You have to match the master with the slave portion and that might have meant more complications since I didn't see a full kit for our cars from the vendor with the pedal, so some work would be needed to be sure it all would play together. We got the hydraulic throw out bearing that has the slave built into it. On hindsight, I think I would have preferred the separate slave cylinder for the reasons Don C mentioned, but he also mentioned you have to figure out how to mount it.

In some respects, I wish we had just gone for a mechanical clutch, but the car will be my son's daily driver and my recollection of my manual days is that a hydraulic is nicer for that since there is less effort. Hopefully my memory is correct. Just running a cable would have been easier than putting in the hydraulic stuff.

Be sure the bellhousing is centered over the flywheel so you don't have side pressure on the transmission shaft. We had a great deal of fun doing this, NOT.