4.0 trans swap A to M

[fordman8991]

i have a 89 ranger 4x4 with a 91 4.0 drive train in it with the a4ld pos auto. i've gone threw 3 transmissions in this truck in 6 years i'm sick of it. i'm looking to swap to manual now but need some info. i have been told that the 4.0 autos are a little beefier than the 2.9 autos... is this true for the manuals too? i may be putting a manual into my 4.0 ranger out of a 88 bronco II 2.9 4x4. is this gonna hold up?? would it bolt up to my T case from the auto or no? if not i can get the T case from the manual but hey less money spent is more money in my pocket.

thanks for the info,

Jeremy

 

[rickcdewitt]

if you do the swap get a m50d from a 4.0l.

 

[MAKG]

Or a 2.9L. But make sure it's an M5OD. Most 2.9Ls had Mitsubishi transmissions.

 

[metalmacguyver]

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6106

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6345

the difference between the M5OD R1s found behind the 4.0L and the rest of them is the gear ratios. everything is identical and it will all bolt up but the ratios are different.

 

[rickcdewitt]

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6106

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6345

the difference between the M5OD R1s found behind the 4.0L and the rest of them is the gear ratios. everything is identical and it will all bolt up but the ratios are different.

you're saying the 2.9l and 4.0l version have different ratio's?its not in the tech library,do you know which has the lower gearing?

 

[metalmacguyver]

the version found behind the 2.9, 2.3, 2.5, and 3.0 has the lower gearing. the version found behind the 4.0 has higher gearing and is called the M5OD-R1HD.

oops. forgot that the HD version came behind the SOHC 4.0 only. not the OHV.


anyway yes the normal one has lower gearing, gears are 3.72,2.20,1.50,1.00,0.79 for the normal M5OD and are 3.40, 2.05, 1.31, 1.00, 0.79 for the HD.

 

[rickcdewitt]

the version found behind the 2.9, 2.3, 2.5, and 3.0 has the lower gearing. the version found behind the 4.0 has higher gearing and is called the M5OD-R1HD.

oops. forgot that the HD version came behind the SOHC 4.0 only. not the OHV.


anyway yes the normal one has lower gearing, gears are 3.72,2.20,1.50,1.00,0.79 for the normal M5OD and are 3.40, 2.05, 1.31, 1.00, 0.79 for the HD.

so the gearing is either HD or non-HD?i think the92-96 has 3.72 first, 97-99 has 3.91 first(thats what the library says).what about my 91 explorer tranny?

 

[metalmacguyver]

the 3.91 ratio that you mention is for the M5OD-R2 which is the full size version of the tranny that was used in F150s.

the gearing for your 2.9L M5OD is the 3.72,2.20,1.50,1.00,0.79 for first through fifth respectively.

 

[AllanD]

I'm not sure about the tech library information.

The Ranger-Based-Vehicle Mazda transmissions come with two ratio sets.
The "Close" ratio set used on the 4.0 and the "wide" ratio set used on everything else.

There is NO (Nit Nil, Nada, Zip, Zilch) difference in strength.
The difference is an accomdation to the fact that the 4.0 tends
to get "breathy" at high rpm.
So that the "jump" between 3rd and 4th of the "wide" gearset forces
the driver to rev the engine a bit further than the engine is "happy"
doing to get it at the "right" rpm in 4th.

One thing that even experienced stickshift drivers miss, is that the
rpm you shift at isn't NEARLY as important as the rpm the engine
DROPS to in the higher gear you are shifting into.

The difference in ratio is something most drivers of stock 4.0's
would only notice on a steep grade when moderatly to heavily
loaded (or when towing), and if you have headers and/or 4.0
gears you are unlikely to notice it at all.


but the whole discussion if more or less moot, because 2.9 Mazda
transmissions are relatively rare compared to any other Mazda variant
and VERY rare if compared to 4.0 Mazda's

4.0 mazdas are quite common, actually quite a bit more common than
even 3.0 Mazda's.

Over the years I've easily seen four to five times as many 5speed
explorers as I've seen 3.0 manual trucks

The HD is a somewhat different beast as there are differences in the bellhousing and starter mounting... it's another can of worms that you might not want to open...

The HD is "stronger", but weakness is not the issue with Mazda transmissions
oil loss or oil flow obstructions ARE problems and the HD shares those issues.


AD

 

[rickcdewitt]

i drove thousands of miles in my dads red 91 explorer before my brother tried to wrap it around a redwood tree,and the only thing i noticed that was a little odd about the gearing is a tall overdrive gear.like you say,it'll be fine i just thought a lower first would help things off the line.

 

[MAKG]

Rick, that's not really a transmission issue at all. Most Explorers have, well, stupid differential gears. The acceleration you feel is the product of the overdrive gear with the gear ratio. And if you believe metalmacguyver's numbers, the two versions have the same OD ratio....

Some of those things came with 3.08 gears. In an overweight 4000 lb brick.

 

[metalmacguyver]

heres my reference

https://www.fleet.ford.com/TRUCKBBAS/non-html/2002/rager2cd.pdf

and the index

https://www.fleet.ford.com/TRUCKBBAS/topics/2002/specs.html

 

[fordman8991]

so i read in the swap on the bronco II... do you have to get new drive shafts too? on a reg cab long box. when i took the 2.9 out the 4.0 dropped in no problem not changing anything but wiring... what do i need to do to make this work in my truck

 

[metalmacguyver]

no the drive shafts are fine. the tranny/transfer case are still bolting to the same place so the drive shafts you have will not have to be adjusted for length.

 

[fordman8991]

no the drive shafts are fine. the tranny/transfer case are still bolting to the same place so the drive shafts you have will not have to be adjusted for length.

thats such a life saver i was gonna give up on the swap idea lol. so the new shafts only apply to a bronco II huh. the trans i'm lookin at gettin is in a 89 2.9 bronco II. what trans do you think it is? i have not herd back from him yet about it