Fun with transmission crossmembers- bye bye bushings

[ratdude747]

I'm splitting this off another thread:

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=166101

As it is in the urgent help section and since the thread doesn't look like it is getting moved out, I'm continiuing it here since it's no longer urgent.

(those that have read that thread can skip ahead a bit)

Anyway, to summarize, I bombed my transmission crossmember bushings, which some of you know are not replaceable (integrated with the crossmember). Coincidentally, I found a used crossmember sitting free at the Pull-A-Part while I was pulling an alternator for my wife's Taurus. Anyway, I destroyed the old crossmember during removal (rusted through-bolt) and discovered that the new one isn't usable as it was (presumably) tagged by a fork lift and bent/twisted beyond repair. This pissed me off enough that I wanted nothing to do with these bushings, and bought a raised crossmember on ebay, only to later find a 1994 stock bushingless crossmember at Pull-a-Part. One question (which led me to look for a such a stock crossmember) was whether or not a raised crossmember actually raised the transmission itself or only raised the ground clearance under the vehicle.

The new aftermarket crossmember came in today, and while I will be mailing it back for refund, I did take it out for some somewhat crude measurments compared to the stock bushingless unit.

First, this one may be a bit flimsy. It's only made out of 3/8" steel, not 1/2" like the better raised crossmembers. The 90 degree bends on the end are a bit sharp for comfort but otherwise the build quality is good (the powdercoat looks nice although time is the only way to test powdercoat).

In terms of lift, I measured around 1 3/16" of lift, from the top of the lower side of the frame rail (where such a crossmember would mount against) to the top of transmission mount slot.

I then performed the same measurement on the 1994 solid crossmember from the side that also mounts in the same spot on the frame rail. Ironically enough, it actually raises the transmission MORE. 1 1/2" to be exact, which is a full 5/16" higher. Not a whole lot, which leads me to conclude that the "raised" part, at least for the ebay listing, refers to ground clearance, not transmission height.

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Tomorrow I'm drilling/grinding/chiseling/punching the rivets that hold the old crossmember brackets on and hopefully installing the crossmember. I also am replacing the transmission mount, as the rubber on mine was dry rotted and 75% gone. One side of the rubber was completely split, the other 50% split . I bought the mount specified for the 1994 application, which should hopefully pair well with the solid crossmember without excessive vibration. I'll try to get some pictures as well.

 

[turbo91xlt]

Indeed, raised crossmember is for extra ground clearance so that the low rider guys can lay frame haha.

 

[ratdude747]

^ The question was if it did that and raised the tranny too, or just added ground clearance without changing the position of the tranny relative to the frame/body. Turns out the latter was the case.

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Performed the swap today... minus removal of the driver's side bracket (purely cosmetic), it's done and working. So far, no vibration issues, although I haven't taken it to the interstate yet.

Did I mention that grinding/chiseling/drilling/hammering rivets is a pain?

I have a few pics but I left my camera in the truck. I'll upload them tomorrow.

 

[ratdude747]

Here's some pictures of the 1994 crossmember installed.

First, the passenger's side:

The third hole wasn't used on the 1994 B3000 I pulled it from either; I am using all of the original mounting hardware.

The driver's side and transmission mount:

Yeah I haven't removed the other bracket (this is the one that got messed up pulling the old crossmember). This has been a busy week. As soon as I got the crossmember mounted my parent's Chevy Astro bombed a heater control valve, and as soon as I fixed that today my mom wrecked her Chevy S10. When I have a good day, I'll remove it, for now, it's just an eyesore.

$20 at the junk yard, and all the holes were already in my frame. Also works with 4WD models, which while not an issue for me, is an issue preventing others from using aftermarket crossmembers; as the extra bends in the stock crossmember is to clear the transfer case.

Minus the remaining bracket, how does it look? It drives fine, no vibration issues on the highway or anything. I'm happy.

 

[AllanD]

I DISPISE the rubber bushed "Dog-bone" cross-member

Every vehicle I've ever worked on got one of those L-type Gen1 Explorer cross-members...

 

[Creig]

I DISPISE the rubber bushed "Dog-bone" cross-member

Every vehicle I've ever worked on got one of those L-type Gen1 Explorer cross-members...

Allan, could you possibly outline what parts are needed to do this swap and what vehicles it would fit? My daughter's 1987 SuperCab 4x4 is in need of a new cross-member.

 

[YungICY]

Hmm, my 85 2wd had that 94 style crossmember on it.

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Edit: just for the sake of someone warnting to research further on the topic, I have the TK5 trans in mine. And if I remember correctly, the 88 2wd donor I bought a few years ago had the m5od and the rubber mounted style.