T5 Transmission Installation - Part 1

After a long delay, I'm starting the installation of my T5 transmission.  The plan is to complete a little each day this week as I'm off work.  However, I don't expect to be driving at the end of the week as I will need to have the driveshaft shortened.

Today, I started at about 11 o'clock and completed the following:

• Removed the front carpet
• Removed the 3 speed shifter, boot, and bezel
• Removed the dual exhaust H-pipe
• Removed the shifter linkage
• Removed the speedometer cable
• Drained the transmission fluid
• Removed the drive shaft
• Removed my O2 sensor

All of that was not too difficult and took a little over an hour.  The removal of the transmission and putting the new one in place are the tricky and dangerous parts.  There are better ways to do it than the approach which I take.  However, I've removed and installed it twice in this way so I know it can be done.

My approach is to use a 2x6 piece of wood with a cutout which matches the location of the transmission.  I put this on top of a jack and jack up the bottom of the transmission.  I then remove the cross member, unbolt the transmission, and use the jack to wiggle the transmission out of the bell housing and throw out bearing.

Once the input shaft is clear of the bell housing, I start to lower the jack.  While doing this, I balance the transmission on the jack with my other hand.  Needless to say, it is a little tricky.  Once I have the jack all the way lowered, I roll the transmission off the jack and onto a creeper laying right beside it.
I don't recommend anyone use this approach but I was successful with it yet again!

With the transmission out, I went ahead and finished up the following few things before calling it a day:

• Disconnect battery and starter
• Remove starter
• Remove bell housing

T5 Crossmember Purchase

I'm still slowly collecting the items needed to install my five speed transmission.

I've watched the Modern Driveline crossmember (Part# MD-6773M-CMT5) on the CJ Pony Parts website periodically hoping to find it on sale.  Despite 20% and 30% off sales, this particular part never seems to go on sale.  I decided to stop waiting an just buy it a few weeks back.  Unfortunately, I received a call a day later stating it was on backorder.

I ended up paying $148 for the crossmember which was more than I'd hoped.  I selected this particular crossmember as I need one which provides as much exhaust space as possible.  By looking at the others produced and the underside of my car, I did not see the point in trying one of the others as they were obviously too big to fix with my exhaust.  I'm hoping this one works without any issues.

Aside from the possible need to shorten the driveshaft, I think I have everything needed to swap in the five speed transmission now.  I'll just need to arrange for some time which is hard with hunting season nearing.  

BFGoodrich Sport Comp 2 Tires

I've looked at several different tire designs in the last couple of weeks looking for something which would be best for the Mustang.  I started focusing on tires which had the most grip which led to a few track oriented variations.  However, the tread designs just looked too modern for a classic muscle car.  In the end, I decided to go with BFGoodrich Sport Comp 2 tires as they provided good performance, a good appearance, and a reasonable price.

I took a unique approach with buying tires for the Mustang.  I started by buying just the front to tires and having them mounted.  I'd read so much conflicting information about how tires fit when mounted I did not feel I could trust anything I read.  I knew I wanted 225 45 tires for the front so buying these first would give me a guide for how other sizes would fit the rear of the Mustang.

I mounted these on the back and took some measurements of how much space I had on each side of the tire.  I estimated a 245 would fit easily but a might be able to go with a 255.  To be on the safe side, I ordered and had a set of 245 45 tires installed on the rear wheels two weeks later.

With all the tires mounted, I just had to pick up a few lug nuts this morning and I was ready to install the rims.  With them installed, I drove around for a while and then took this picture at the end of my driveway.  Its not the best picture but it shows how they look with the current stance.

As I drove around, I found the car is much more stable at highway speeds than before.  I thought the shake before was due to the poor aerodynamics of the vehicle.  Now it is as smooth as any of the other vehicles I've driven.  I hoped the back tires would hold the power of the engine but it is fairly easy to spin the tires when accelerating. 

The car still needs an alignment since I performed the Arning drop.  I've not done it yet but with the tires I really need to.  I've hesitated as the last time I had someone perform an alignment, they used vice grips on the adjustment sleeves and tore them up badly.  I'll need to purchase some new adjustment sleeves and then locate a good place so I can really test out the cornering ability with these new tires. 

New Billett Specialties Wheels

Over the last few months, I've continued to search for a new set of wheels for the Mustang.  I initially started looking for late model rims which I could use with some spacers.  However, I decided against that direction as I don't want to cut corners and just end up wishing I'd done something different later.  This led me to an exhaustive search of the various aftermarket wheels available.

Many of the inexpensive wheels available through Summit or similar retailers just look cheap to me.  As I search through what is available, I don't find anything I like until I'm looking at wheels which are well over $200 a piece.  I did not expect to spend this much on wheels so I started saving and continued to look.

This past week, I settled on a set of wheels and had saved enough to purchase them.  The wheels I decided on where Billet Specialties Rival G's.  I decided to go with 17" x 8" wheels all the way around. The wheels arrived today and I'm rather excited about how they look!

I wanted to find a way to place 275 tires on the back but without custom ordering these wheels it would not be possible due to the backspacing.  I suppose the wheels are made in a one size fits all approach so as to limit the number of wheels each company produces.  There were a few which were 9" wide but I did not like the look of any of them.  I decided I'd go with these and then just determine what tire size would fit when they arrived.    

Now that I have the wheels, I'm going to mount them up without wheels and measure for the best tire size for front and back.  I'll then need to save up some money so I can buy those.

Transmission Parts & Needing New Wheels

I've not vanished.... just been busy.

I purchased an adapter plate to install the T5 transmission to my original bellhousing.  My original plan was to use the bellhousing which came along with the T5 transmission.  As I calculated the pricing, I found it was going to cost roughly the same for the block plate ($29.99), Fulcrum Mount ($52.99), and T5 bellhousing boot ($28.80) as it would to just buy the adapter plate.  The adapter plate is shown below.

I also purchased a NOS 3 speed shift lever for a 1967 Mustang.  It is identical to the one currently in the Mustang except the chrome finish is much better.  T5 shift levers place the shifter too far forward.  My plan is to modify this 3 speed shifter to attach to the T5.  This will provide me with the same shifter location as I have now and a stock like appearance but with a short throw due to the shifter itself.

I've wanted to get new wheels for the Mustang for a while now so I can run a wider rear tire and tires with a lower aspect ratio for better cornering.  I decided two weeks ago I would list my current GT wheels I've had for five years on Craigslist.  I expected it would take a while for them to sell since I did not want to compromise on the price.... I was wrong.

Someone showed up to buy them today for $450.  This is the same price I paid for the wheels and tires five years ago.  I'm glad I was able to get the price I wanted for the wheels.  However, the Mustang is now on jack stands as I figure out what I'm going to purchase.