Manual Transmission Compatibility

[KornTruck2]

Any 4.0 M5ODR-1 from '91 to '11 will bolt up to you engine.*

Those from a 4.0 SoHC ('01-11) will have an extra hole, but you can just ignore it. And 1st isn't quite as deep (3.40 vs 3.72).​

​

* You, of course, want a 2wd transmission if your truck is 4x2, 4wd transmission for a 4x4.

Hey bud, so if i am reading this right, my 2004 ranger 2.3 5 speed, that transmission will bolt to my 1999 ford ranger with a 3.0??

 

[broncc]

Hey bud, so if i am reading this right, my 2004 ranger 2.3 5 speed, that transmission will bolt to my 1999 ford ranger with a 3.0??

no check my post here

 

[KornTruck2]

no check my post here

I didnt think it was that easy.. stranger stuff has happened

 

[don4331]

Hey bud, so if i am reading this right, my 2004 ranger 2.3 5 speed, that transmission will bolt to my 1999 ford ranger with a 3.0??

The fine print at start of line - any 4.0 M5ODR-1. The 3.0 M5ODR-1 and 2.3 M5ODR-1s each have different bellhousing bolt patterns.
And the M5ODR-2 is almost completely different.

 

[KornTruck2]

The fine print at start of line - any 4.0 M5ODR-1. The 3.0 M5ODR-1 and 2.3 M5ODR-1s each have different bellhousing bolt patterns.
And the M5ODR-2 is almost completely different.

Yea yea yea, i got breifly got excited, fa king ford and their bellhousing bs

 

[RonD]

Wouldn't be Ford bs, its Mazda bs, but Ford did own quite a bit of Mazda stock at the time, lol

Prior to the M5OD-R1s(and R2s) most manual transmissions had detachable bell housings
So a transmission model could be used with multiple engines by changing the bell housing only
But you still had the issue of best gear ratios for engine power/torque

An Integrated bell housing does reduce the cost of a manual transmission and became popular when FWD cars started to become more common because the transmissions have to be much shorter than a RWD manual trans, so the bell housing and transmission case were cast as one piece

 

[Dualtank87]

Not exactly true....

The trans from a 2.9 will fit and bolt up, but the ratios don’t mesh well with the torque range of the 4.0

-The 2.3/2.5/2.9/3.0 trans all have the same ratios. The 4.0 is different.

-The 2.3 and 2.5 have the same bell housing pattern

-The 3.0 is its own animal as far as bell housing pattern

-The 2.8 (never had an M5OD from the factory), 2.9 and 4.0 all have the same bell housing pattern.

So you can swap gears around between the 2.3, 2.5, 2.9, and 3.0. The 4.0 has its own set of gears.

Bearings, bearing retainers, manishaft, tailhousings and bolts can be swapped between any M5OD. The catch here is the 2wd mainshaft/tail housing must go in/on a 2wd trans, and the same for a 4wd.

Top plate (shifter plates to some) are pretty much Interchangable across the trans versions and years. The Aerostar trans has a unique top plate.... and it’s kinda rare.

Can a 3.0s gears be put into a 4.0 trans for a gear reduction?

 

[scotts90ranger]

Can a 3.0s gears be put into a 4.0 trans for a gear reduction?

Yes they can, been done several times

 

[NakedDucks]

Can a 3.0s gears be put into a 4.0 trans for a gear reduction?

So there is a short and a long answer to your question….

The short answer was given to you by Scott… it can, and has, been done.

The long answer is somewhat different… Yes you can, but you don’t really gain that much. The 2.3/2.5/2.9/3.0 torque band is different from the 4.0, so this is why we have different gears in the transmissions…. But only for 3 gears. The 4.0 has more torque than the others so it doesn’t need the slightly lower ratios to reach speed.

(Read as “x.xx:1” means “x.xx to 1”)

The 2.3/2.5/2.9/3.0 1st gear is 3.72:1, 2nd is 2.20:1 3rd is 1.50:1, 4th is 1:1 and 5th is .79:1, with a reverse of 3.40:1.

The 4.0 gives us a 1st gear of 3.40:1, 2nd is 2.05:1 3rd is 1.31:1 4th is 1:1, 5th is .79:1 and a reverse of 3.40:1.

So as you can see, only the 1st 3 gears are different.

If we take the lo range of the 13-54 (2.48:1) from the 3.0 (and 4.0) and mix it with 3.73 gears… we get ratios of…

-1st… 3.72 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 34.411:1
-2nd… 2.20 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 20.351:1
-3rd… 1.50 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 13.876:1
-4th… 1.0 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 9.25:1
-5th… .79 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 7.308:1
-Reverse… 3.40 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 31.451:1

Where as the 4.0 gear set gives us…

-1st… 3.40 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 31.451:1
-2nd… 2.05 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 18.963:1
-3rd… 1.31 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 12.118
-4th… 1.0 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 9.25:1
-5th… .79 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 7.308:1
-Reverse… 3.40 x 2.48 x 3.73 = 31.451:1
(Notice 1st and reverse have the same ratio in the 4.0)

So, technically, yes you’ll get lower ranges, but is it really worth the work for such a small gain?

And for the record, the ONLY ratio you can change in this equation and keep a stock Ranger Trans/t-case combo is the Axle ratio….

So let’s take a quick look at the 2 most common axle ratios swapped into Rangers used as wheelers. 4.10:1 and 4.56:1. We will do this using 1st gear, cause honestly, we rarely crawl in lo range outside of 1st

3.0

- 3.72 x 2.48 x 4.10 = 37.825:1
- 3.72 x 2.48 x 4.56 = 42.0687:1

-4.0

- 3.40 x 2.48 x 4.10 = 34.571:1
- 3.40 x 2.48 x 4.56 = 38.45:1

So there’s the numbers to answer your question… and numbers don’t lie… they are what they are.

Now you get to decide if it’s really worth the hassle….

 

[Brain75]

I was wondering why on earth you would want to spend a TON of time converting a "wide" tranny into a "narrow" tranny when the top gear is the same, the 4th gear is the same, and the motor isn't really built to take advantage of anything you are accomplishing. (Or at least it would take me a ton of time to rebuild a tranny without having done it ever before...)
...or at least anyone other than a drag racer who is all obsessed with that first 1/4 mi.

 

[SenorNoob]

Seems your math proves this is what a 9% change in crawl ratio for the rock people? I wouldn't do it. I might spend a few extra minutes looking for a 2.9 transmission if I needed one anyway. BTW, there is one currently on market place in my town. IF I had money, I might go get it for a spare. But money is the one thing I don't have right now.

 

[Curious Hound]

I was wondering why on earth you would want to spend a TON of time converting a "wide" tranny into a "narrow" tranny when the top gear is the same, the 4th gear is the same, and the motor isn't really built to take advantage of anything you are accomplishing.

It depends on your goals. If you focus on highway speeds, there is absolutely no difference. If you do a lot of technical, low speed offroad driving with big tires, every little bit helps. Torque multiplication and fine control are the name of the game offroad. And on the low budget end of things, it's much easier to swap those gears than to buy or build a specialized high ratio transfer case or doubler.

 

[Brain75]

And I am facing the opposite problem.. I have the regular standard stock M5OD that comes behind the 2.9L and the gearing was obviously setup for 55mph - the highest top end legal speed in 1990... now that the interstate is 75mph, and even 85mph in some states I am screaming away over 3k RPMs at 75mph and wishing I had an even wider trans so I could drop the rear diff down 1 gear set and not end up with a totally gutless grocery getter (Trans M, Axle 84)

 

[sgtsandman]

And I am facing the opposite problem.. I have the regular standard stock M5OD that comes behind the 2.9L and the gearing was obviously setup for 55mph - the highest top end legal speed in 1990... now that the interstate is 75mph, and even 85mph in some states I am screaming away over 3k RPMs at 75mph and wishing I had an even wider trans so I could drop the rear diff down 1 gear set and not end up with a totally gutless grocery getter (Trans M, Axle 84)

I'm surprised that the RPMs are that high with a 3.45 axle. Granted, it was a gutless 2.5 Lima, but my 1998 Ranger didn't start getting it legs until about 70 mph with that axle in it.

Now I hear you on the next available axle option. 3.08 is a heck of a jump (82) from 3.45.

 

[Brain75]

It depends on your goals. If you focus on highway speeds, there is absolutely no difference. If you do a lot of technical, low speed offroad driving with big tires, every little bit helps. Torque multiplication and fine control are the name of the game offroad. And on the low budget end of things, it's much easier to swap those gears than to buy or build a specialized high ratio transfer case or doubler.

I guess I am still confused, if making a crawler, don't you want as wide a range (or as low a 1st gear) as possible - you said in this quote every bit helps, every bit lower right - he would want the lower gear of the wider transmission.. so taking a wide transmission and making it narrow would be opposite of what a crawler wants.

Plus these M5OD's don't take to speed shifting, don't think the drag race crowd would want to leave a M5OD when there are better easy swap trans available.