I'm wanting to buy another car to tow behind my motorhome. Would love to get a Mustang. But for some reason the pre 2005 Mustang manuals can be towed (toad) 4 wheels down but when I check on the 2005 and later, it can't. What did Ford change in 2005 that made the difference?

 

Maybe the locking steering wheel?

 

And they didn't have locking steering wheels before 2005?

Do they use the same tranny on the new edge? I would think that is the only thing that makes a difference if any, as far as towing is concerned. Just unhook the driveshaft if it's gonna be hauled a distance.

 

I can buy a driveshaft disconnect for about $2000. This would prohibit me buying the post 2005 Mustang. Its supposed to have everything to do with the slinger inside the transmission. I guess my question should be did Ford move this from the output shaft to the input shaft in 2005? If nothing changed about the manual transmission from 2004 to 2005 and beyond it may just be a warranty issue Ford didn't want to put up with after 2005. I know all the Mazda manuals can be towed, but officially Mazda never suggested their cars could be so no one ever made tow bars for their cars.

 

I'm not quite understanding what a driveshaft disconnect is for $2000? I'm talking about unbolting the driveshaft between the tranny and rear end. Why would you have to buy something to do that except for maybe a wrench? Now I'm confused

 

what about just buying some wheels that the rear wheels can ride on when being towed?

 

I've been told and agree with the information that putting the rear wheels on a tow dolly would strain the front suspension. Its supposed to be set up to go forward down the road. Making it go backwards more than backing down a driveway will ruin it over time. An easy fix I've heard some use successfully is hooking everything up and letting the engine idle down the road. That would keep the battery charged and the automatic transmission cooled and lubed adequately. I've been told there could be problems with that. Remco makes lube pumps to do this without running the engine, but they don't make one for the Mustang. When I first got the RV I thought all manuals can be towed in neutral. But I found it depends on where the manufacturer installed the oil slinger. Thus the need for a driveshaft disconnect. And no I don't want to climb under a Mustang each time to perform this.

 

I guess you will need a car trailer then

 

No! I'll either hold out for a pre05 Mustang with a manual or go with another car all together. I was hoping someone here would know if they indeed changed transmissions in 2005 or just changed the owner's manual for warranty reasons. If it was for warranty purposes alone, I'll be way past any warranty period on a Mustang I will purchase.

 

Just unbolt the driveshaft. It's like 10 bolts.

 

guys I know that's an option, but not a good one when you packed up and wanting to leave a campground.

 

unbolting and bolting a drive shaft would be the last thing I would want to do on vacation

 

From the manual:

"If your vehicle is to be towed from the front using wheel lift equipment, it is recommended that the rear wheels (drive wheels) be placed on a dolly to prevent damage to the transmission."

So sounds like you'll need to either tow backwards, or get all four tires off the road to tow.

 

Again I know what the manual states. Mazda owners manual states the same thing for their manual cars, but they can be towed without any trouble. A lot of people tow Miatas. I was hoping maybe someone in here has either in the transmission or at least knew if Ford indeed changed the part numbers in 2005. I haven't been able to find any part information.

 

I thought it was the same TR3650 transmission, but there could have been some changes over the years.

I wonder if your local RV guy would know?

 

There are 3 RV dealers in the Memphis area. They usually don't know too much about toads.

 

I think it would be cool to have a Stang as a toad, but might not be the most practical choice. The low front facia / low ground clearance could be a problem for the tow bars. Also might get all beat up by rocks thrown up by the RV. Normally a manual transmission is fine for towing in neutral, but the owners manual warning makes me wonder.

From my experience the best choice is a 4-wheel drive vehicle where the transaxle and transmission can be put in neutral so the transmission is not turning at all while towing (transmission in park). Also these tend to have higher front clearance to make the bar mounting more practical.

 

Right now our toad is a 2011 Smart For2. The Smart is WAY lower than a Mustang. And any car will pick up rock pecks and road tar. 4WD (not AWD) vehicles with a neutral spot on a shifter can be towed. Later model 4WD with shift on the fly doesn't have a neutral setting. I'm hearing the 2016 F150 4WD can be towed, but I'm not sure of too many of the details as it is way too heavy for me to tow.

Another possibility as I have found is to let the car idle in neutral while towing. There's someone on another forum that does that with a Taurus with an automatic. He says he's done it several times with no problems, battery fully charged when he gets where he's going and getting 100 MPG idling. That's way less to spend as opposed to a transmission pump. I wonder if a manual could be adequately lubed if the slinger is on the input shaft idling.

 

I recall seeing tow adapters. You remove the rear wheels from the car, bolt the adapters on and then bolt the wheels back to the hubs. The hub is made like a spindle that has a flange that matches the car's pattern, wheel bearings, and a free spinning hub.

Maybe they don't make them anymore .... I can't find them with search just now???

 

I was hoping someone in this forum would know whether Ford actually changed the manual transmission in the V6 Mustang from 2004 to 2005.