I am planning a clutch r/r sometime and wanted to get some advice from those that have done it before...I have a option to use a lift for this job but was leaning toward doing it on jackstands in my garage for logistical reasons...i have time to do it (my daily driver carries the load)...and other than the fact that having it up in the air on a lift would make things easier i was wondering if anyone has experienced any other issues to watch out for or has any tips to make the process go smoother??? i had read that the x-pipe can stay in place but that makes trans x-member removal more difficult?? heard that the alignment when reinstalling the trans is pretty tight and can take some time to get it to index the bell to the engine?? the slave line ??? any info would be great...thanks

 

I haven't done the clutch in my stang yet, however if you have access to a lift I highly recommend taking advantage of it. I dont know if you have done a clutch before but it really doesn't take that long, longest it took me was 8 hours the jackstand route, think I managed it in 3 hours on a lift.

As one that has done clutches in his garage with jack stands it really is a pain and dangerous to boot, you have to figure you have to get the car high enough to get under neath the car yourself and still have enough clearance to bring it down, it kind of makes for a unstable perch which always made me mildly nervous.

Now getting it down is the easy part, getting it back in is a whole different story, I have tried all sorts of methods of getting a tranny back in, in the end, the few times I have gone this route I always ended up needing to bench press the tranny into place, not so fun getting it in there and telling your buddy to hurry up and get the bolts started.

Anyhow thats my 2 cents, clutches are easy in a rear wheel drive car, just takes patience.

 

I agree with MustangRetribution, use a lift if you can. Jackstands are a pain and take longer. I too have always ended up bench pressing the tranny in place as well. It is literally a real pain.

In the February 2008 issue of Mustang Enthusiast on pages 72 - 82, there is a good article on replacing 2005+ Mustang clutches.

 

With longtube headers it's easy to remove and leave the exhaust up. You just have to bend the exhaust to crossmember hangers down a bit, then hammer them back up during the install. With a stock catted h-pipe the cats are really in the way of the transmission from what I see. We just pulled my son's tranny out with the stock h-pipe and just decided to pull it down unlike my longtubed '05 which the exhaust always stays in place.

I get the car up about 18'' at the front of the rocker panel so the transmission has room to be slid out the side of the car and so I have ample clearance under the car while working at my home garage. I just lay on my back and pull the tranny out onto my legs and chest, then roll it over on the floor. Reinstallation is the same way....I roll the tranny over on my legs and chest, keep the tail end down low compared to the bell end, then once the input shaft goes through the pressure plate diaphram I lift the tail end up high and push it in. You should have a little help doing this. I get my son to help keep the tail end where I want it and I worry about the front bell section and hold most of the weight.

I suggest you buy an aftermarket release bearing. McLeod and Ram both make one. It will give your clutch more movement, better reliability, better high R shifts and the adjustability.

The slave/brg line has a little metal clip pushed into the side of it. Just pop the clip out to allow removal of the line. To bleed the system, just pump the pedal very slow for about 10 minutes with the driver's side jacked up higher then the other. That will rid the system of all air. If you buy an aftermarket slave/brg just bleed it like you would bleed brakes.

The tranny is tight going back in. Just keep the tail end down at first and work it slow. It will go. I get them right in now after doing it a bunch of times I know the moves.

 

thanks for the tips guys...i appreciate it...weighing my options...last one i did on stands was a 92 Iroc Z...it went okay...

 

About how much does this transmission weigh, anyway? Can't you use one of those transmission jack adapters for a standard service jack?