Hi all,

After having a 2005 GT for a few months now, I get to start restoring my '91 GT. It has approx. 120,000 miles on the original tranny. I plan on rebuilding the upper half of the engine (Heads up to air filter including a cam) and redoing the exhaust. I'm not exactly sure of the HP/torque I'll end up with, but I'm hoping for something in the 350HP/360 FtLbs range. My questions are:

1) How much can the stock tranny handle? (HP and torque)

2) In the humble opinions of the most knowledgable folks here, would it be better to upgrade the tranny now or wait until it dies then upgrade?

3) If an upgrade is in store, what is a good upgrade?

Thanks for the help in advance,

Richard

 

Hmmm . . . .

I was in the same boat a while back with my last Capri. I had an early T-5 with a 3.27 first gear, as opposed to the 2.95 first gear on later T-5's. I was going to get a Tremec before I started my engine work, but I also looked at a 'World Class' T-5. I ended up purchasing the Mach and selling the Capri.

SVOPaul could probably add more information to your question, but I wanted to save my engine work for last, and have the rest of the driveline complete. A good rebuild would be cheaper if your tranny is still holding up strong. I guess it is just a matter of preference.

Not sure if my comments help at all.

 

World Class T-5s are awesome. Along with 4.10 gears, they improve ALOT!

 

He will gain nothing from installing a world class T-5.....considering his car already has one



Seriously though....freshen up your T-5 to Cobra specs and with a good shifter you should have no trouble at the power levels you are seeking....otherwise you could upgrade to a Tremec 3550 or TKO if you want to be sure you won't hurt anything...but that really depends on how much "heck" you are going to give her .

 

He will gain nothing from installing a world class T-5.....considering his car already has one

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:scratch: :scratch: :scratch: :scratch:
From now on, if anyone wants advice, read my sig, read my c/t, and then look at my avatar. It will answer everything. It IS the meaning of life

 

Exactly What SVOPaul said, depends on how much heck your going to give her in the future

 

Thanks for the replys.

As far as how much "Heck" I'm going to give it...well it is going to be for fun on the street and as any Mustang owner knows, it's awfully hard to not go WOT every once in a while.

I'm fairly good with the engine side of things, but the tranny is still uncharted territory for me. SVOPaul, what did you mean by freshening it up to Cobra specs. Do you mean some sort of tranny mods, or the rest of the car with suspension, brakes and braces?

Thanks again,

Richard

 

have it rebuilt to 93 Cobra R specs,a friend did this to his 86 and fell in love with it.

 

There is no such thing as "93 Cobra R Specs" The changes for the "Cobra" transmission are the same across the board for the 93 Cobra....the "Cobra R" had the same drivetrain as the regular Cobra but differences found in weight, interior, no A/C, brakes, wheels, Etc. But if you stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night you would know that


Richard, if you are not going to regularly launching the car on slicks then I would say that you should have no trouble....WOT won't hurt anything. Launching on Slicks will eventually

By "Cobra specs" I mean the transmission....Also known/similar as a "Z spec" it has Double Moly 2nd speed, 3rd speed, and countershaft cluster gears....Carbon fiber 3/4 blocker rings....improved synchronizers and bearings....cobra style pocket bearing....and steel bearing retainer.

Those are just improvements you can make to your factory T-5. I suggest calling Hanlon Motorsports, they can supply you with everything or rebuild it for you. Bob is a very knowledgeable guy and so is his wife who often answers the phone...she knows more than most "knowledgeable" mustang fanatics.

 

Cobra, Cobra R, same stuff...........O well, you no what I meant and Holiday Inn? WOW, i did not get that? :scratch:

 

Hey paul what do those kits usually cost anyway, in general?

 

It's been so long since I bought one I can't remember but I think a standard rebuild kit was around $150 or so...

 

Cool, thanks!

 

a Friend had one rebuilt awhile back (1998) and it was 1200 Dollars then, but that did include labor.

 

If you are mechanically inclined, Hanlon sells a video on how to rebuild your T-5