trans and rear end.

Topic: trans and rear end. (Read 3436 times) previous topic - next topic

trans and rear end.

September 29, 2006, 02:15:28 PM

OK... i havnt been on here in a while just getting things ready for my fiancee to start college today is her first day so thats out of the way. i am wondering a couple things.
1. i have an 84 cougar and im putting an 89 mustang rear end in place of it... should i use mustang control arms or cougar control arms?
2. also im installing a 4 speed transmission... the german 10 bolt... and i need to find a speedo unit for it so i can attach the cable to the trans. anyone know what ones will work or where i can find one?
SIncerely
eric

trans and rear end.

Reply #1 – September 29, 2006, 02:24:39 PM

1. Cougar control arms and axles/brakes
2. No idea what trans you're talking about...

trans and rear end.

Reply #2 – September 29, 2006, 02:29:14 PM

Borg-Warner T-5, maybe?

You should already have the VSS unit/speedo driven gear bolted to the side of your current transmission (V6 = C5, V8 = AOD). You can reuse that and just change the driven gear to match your rear gear/tire combo. Are you keeping the stock speedo?

trans and rear end.

Reply #3 – September 29, 2006, 02:38:59 PM

sorry... its the 4 speed transmission used in the 4 cyl mustangs from79-86... the srod ... the things ive noticed on it tho is that it has a cast iron center section. its got the gearing of the pintos but is for a fox body car... which was spose to have 4th as overdrive.
btw... im still not on top of it all... ive got the cougar 7.5 with 2.73's and im putting the 89 7.5 with 3.73's in place. so u say i should take the axles out of the cougar rear end in put them in the mustang rear end? what would be the problem if i were to use the complete mustang rear end with cougar control arms, shocks?

trans and rear end.

Reply #4 – September 29, 2006, 02:40:04 PM

eric i have the units from an a4ld, M5OD R-1 and the one thats in the c5 in the cougar... the M5OD R-1 is from a ranger. i just dunno if any of those are compatable with it.

trans and rear end.

Reply #5 – September 29, 2006, 03:15:43 PM

Quote from: the_intimidator03;106135

btw... im still not on top of it all... ive got the cougar 7.5 with 2.73's and im putting the 89 7.5 with 3.73's in place. so u say i should take the axles out of the cougar rear end in put them in the mustang rear end? what would be the problem if i were to use the complete mustang rear end with cougar control arms, shocks?

The Mustang rear end will be narrower overall than the Cougar one...your wheels will wind up pulled in 3/4" on each side.

Use the Cougar control arms and shocks....

trans and rear end.

Reply #6 – September 29, 2006, 04:28:06 PM

ok ... i dont mind the 3/4 inch part im using the wheels that came off that 89 mustang 2.3 also... btw i noticed in ford racing... they have an 8.8 inch set up for fox bodies... no axles n breaks... says to use ur own axles n such... says it doesnt fit the thunderbird... is that due to the slight change in widths?

trans and rear end.

Reply #7 – September 29, 2006, 04:56:14 PM

The wheels would be the same between the two, so things are still going to be pulled in. If it were me...I'd use the correct axles. It's going to look silly otherwise.

That thing in the catalog is misleading. The ONLY Tbird rear housing that is different than a Mustangs is the 86-88 7.5. The 80-85 7.5 and the 87-88 8.8's are the same...

trans and rear end.

Reply #8 – October 01, 2006, 07:53:27 PM

Just to clarify the 85 and 86 GT Mustangs came with a 5 speed. Not sure about the 4 cylinders but I am sure the SRod sucks. Very gappy in the rpm bands between shifts and 3rd to 4th is just terrible. Any kind of power and it will break.

The Mustang rear end is narrower by the 3/4" as indicated. The lower control arms are different lengths so use the Cougar/T-Bird units. If you are only changing the rears for the gears then swap the center sections. There are several sites that show how to do the center section swap. While you are at it you can rebuild the trac-lok and pack an extra clutch in it.

Easy way to check the differences between the two rear ends you have is to measure the axle housings to . That will tell you if the housing width is the same. If it is then simply use your old axles and everthing from the backing plate out on the brakes. If the housings are different in width then I would suggest the center section swap.

Darren

trans and rear end.

Reply #9 – October 01, 2006, 10:15:10 PM

http://www.5speeds.com/toploader.html

The site says the SROD was used in mustangs till 83.

There is also the T-04 transmission: T-04 (wide-ratio 4-speed manual [non-OD]: 4.07, 2.57, 1.66, 1.00:1).

Also: http://www.foxtbirdcougarforums.com/showthread.php?t=8689&highlight=SROD

trans and rear end.

Reply #10 – October 02, 2006, 12:50:13 AM

Quote from: Aerocoupe;106436

Just to clarify the 85 and 86 GT Mustangs came with a 5 speed. Not sure about the 4 cylinders but I am sure the SRod sucks. Very gappy in the rpm bands between shifts and 3rd to 4th is just terrible. Any kind of power and it will break.

My '86 2.3 Mustang had the SROD in it, they are easy to i.d. if you know what to look for on the tailshaft housing.
That cast iron center is a weak area, I broke mine one day when i lost traction on a slick surface while going arouna corner, when the right rear hit dry pavement again, it busted the tranny in about 4 pieces, had a coffee can full of pieces in the road to pick up too.
The T5 i put in was a big improvement. Too bad I sold it before I could get a carb 351w in it, but it paid for my first Tbird, which was an improvement all around.
I'd avoid the SROD altogether, unless ya just want practice pulling a tranny after a coupla days...

trans and rear end.

Reply #11 – October 02, 2006, 01:17:31 AM

toploader 4 speed are great

trans and rear end.

Reply #12 – October 02, 2006, 07:51:09 AM

One other note. If you end up not using the SRod Tranny the bell housing will work on the Tremec's. So its not a complete loss, just the tranny.

Darren

trans and rear end.

Reply #13 – October 02, 2006, 08:07:38 AM

AFAIK He's running this thing behind a 2.3NA......the trans will be fine.

Also, I beat the everloving snot out of two SRODs with no issue. I had one in my 82 5.0 Mustang...I was NOT nice to that thing at all. Even ran it low on fluid....never had a problem. I had a V6 one in the 83 for a while behind the 5.0 as well...while not as meaty as the Mustang was, it never missed a beat, and again I was not nice to it. I have one now for the 2.8 I have for another project. No qualms about using it.

trans and rear end.

Reply #14 – October 02, 2006, 07:06:18 PM

Quote

AFAIK He's running this thing behind a 2.3NA......

It's going into the Coug, correct? Is the 2.3 n/a goin in the Coug too? Also 1989 8.8 axle shaft length is the same as the earlier (pre 1986) 7.5 is it not?