The Explorer uses a 2wd transmission(like 2wd Rangers) that won't bolt to your T/C. Only 2wd BIIs had the 4wd trans and the dummy T/C.
I changed the clutch in my 91 Explorer when I got it. Getting the M5 out and in is a B****! There is zero extra room in there. I didn't like the M5 either. Shifts nice, but the person who selected the gear ratios was a MORON! Did someone tell him the transmission was going in a 2500lb sports car, not a 4000lb SUV? First was ridiculously high(I lived in a flat area, I never would have taken the SUV to someplace I had to start on a hill, in high range) and I still turned almost 3000 rpm on the highway, in 5th!
I have an A4ld behind a 2.9 in my BII. If I change the trans, I'll try the Mitsubishi, with synthetic lube in it. Looked inside one, should hold up to 140hp.
My friend put 400k miles on a 91 Explorer! We put 4 replacement A4lds in in(80k, like clockwork, no towing, he drives it REALLY easy). Besides that, he changed the plugs every 50k, the waterpump once, the MAF sensor twice and that was it! I can't believe he got 400k out of that alternator, maybe he forgot to tell me that. He's an engineer, and really religious about oil changes(conventional, not synthetic). After they got a new SUV, the wife was tired of looking at it and sold to some people who knocked on the door one day, lol! We were property appraisers, driving 5k miles/month, so it was highway miles!
I'd change the main seal in the back and timing seal in front, coz it's a PITA in the car! If you can run the motor before you remove it, hook up a mechanical gauge and check oil pressure. If you've got 30lbs at idle(maybe 25 if old oil), forget about the oil pump and run it as-is.
My 2 cents!