t-5 swap

[Davis]

well the time has come that i do the t-5 swap. my poor old mazda tranny is as loud as the motor on the freeway. i have located one for $175. it wont have the hydaulic line intace, but does have the slave cylinder and bellhousing. my question is, what else do i need. in the tech articles i read something about an adapter plate. also do i need a t-bird clutch?
thanks
jesse

p.s. add any other tips you may have if you have already done it.

 

[Davis]

okay so i figured out that i need the t-bird clutch disc. does that work with the ranger pressure plate?
also is it easier to make the tranny mount relocation bracket or to re-weld the x-member?

 

[Dave R]

The T-bird disc will work with the Ranger flywheel and pressure plate.

The hydraulic line and throw-out fork are critical to get with the tranny/bellhousing as they are no longer available from Ford. Lack of the correct line can probably be gotten around but, without the right fork your dead in the water.

 

[Davis]

well i got the tranny today. one of the rear mounting tabs was broken and it didnt have a slave cylinder so i talked them down $40 and got it for $135. i found a slave and line, so i should buy that right? the tranny had a fork in it. i also found a centerforce stage II clutch for a t-bird for $175 shipped. does this clutch have a good rep?

 

[Dave R]

i found a slave and line, so i should buy that right?

Definitely

the tranny had a fork in it.

That's a good thing.

i also found a centerforce stage II clutch for a t-bird for $175 shipped. does this clutch have a good rep?

That'll be fine.

 

[Davis]

are the ranger and t-bird flywheels any different?

also, i think that i can just grind off the rivets holding the tranny mount brackets on and drill holes a couple inches further forward and bolt them in. do you see any potential problems with that?

 

[WyoCowboy]

Im kinda new to this whole forum thing. Is your ranger a 2.3? If it is if you want to use a t-bird clutch you will need a T-bird flywheel. I just got done with the swap into my 97 2.3 Turbo ranger and had to change flywheels to use my t-bird clutch and pressure plate. What I did is just weld a extension plate to my crossmember with a hole drilled in it to bolt the T5 tranny mount to it. Then I drilled right in the center of the mount on both sides right through the frame to make my rubber mounted tranny brace a solid peice. As for the clutch line I got a line off of I think was a 89 Ranger and just cut the end off to shorten it and heated the plastic with a lighter and sweated the end back into it. Caution it does take time to bleed that slave cylinder out. I've did it for three days until I got all the air out. As for the shifter I just put the stock T bird Shifter in a vise and straightend it then cut the top of my Mazda Shifter and welded it to the T-bird one to give it some height. It works well for a bucket seat config. I hope this helps.

 

[Dave R]

There is no physical size difference between the Ranger and T-bird fylwheels. Some Ranger flywheels were drilled for a smaller bolt circle pressure plate. But, last time I looked most of them were on the 2.0 and 2.3 carbed motors. I'm not sure why they would use a smaller diameter clutch on a '97.

Jess,
If for some odd reason you find you need a flywheel, let me know. I have spares.

 

[WyoCowboy]

Thanks anyways but I have three of the stock ranger flywheels. What i incountered was that the dowls on the ranger flywheel are in the wrong spot for a TBird pressure plate. My stock ranger pressure plate was bad and I was too broke to buy a new clutch set for it so my TBird pressure plate was still good so I used that instead. Thus I had to switch flywheels in order for it to bolt up.

 

[Davis]

i'll be picking up a spare t-bird flywheel from a friend of mine, but thanks anyway.

 

[D94R]

Get masterful at this swap Davis. I may need you to help me pull the old one, swap the T5 (or T56 if i can find a cheap one), and bleed the system when my time comes.

 

[Davis]

aight. looks like i'll be doing mine at the beginning of december sometime. give me a call at 801 691 6054 when you are ready to do yours.

 

[D94R]

mine wont be for a while, truck is still in Ohio.

 

[Davis]

well i was looking at the tranny and slave cylinder and got to wondering, is it supposed to clip in or something? because if it is, i'm missing the clip or whatever keeps it in place. if anyone has pics, that would be really helpful.

 

[Dave R]

I'll have to go and look to be sure but, yes, I think there is a retaining clip.