I have acquired enough cash flow to do one of the aforementioned, not both.
Which do you think will the 5.0HO with duel exhaust + headers(I say this because of powerband) would be happier with, track wise.
3.73s(Or other preferred gear, please, through me some advice) or a shift kit, I'm assuming the gears, but am asking because I know people are more familiar with these motors and there output @ engine speed better then me.
Future mods would most likely be only 1.7 roller rockers and a better upper intake.
Now the local track is an 1/8th and I doubt I'll make it much to the 1/4 mile track, since it's a bit of a jog.
gearing for sure.for the track 4.10 would work well.
shift kit 1st keep the life in the tranny also a cooler gears can always wait
I've already got a cooler seperate from the radiator waiting to go in. :D
...but, that's how I was thinking, shift kit = firmer shifts, less slippage, the usual...
Shift kit....
Are you running the stock so or ho???
If so i would not go more than 3.27's do to the fact that :
A: You'll run out of useable motor very quickly with 3.73s,4:10s are out of the question.
B:The highest reliable speedo gear for your trans is 21tooth(accurate with 3.27s),you would need a 23-24tooth to make your speedo accrate with 3.73's(accuracy not possible with 4:10s).
I used to run 3.27s with an so and it was a huge jump in performance and it actually gave me better fuel economy for not having to be in the throttle as much to get upto speed.
If you do gears don't forget to adjust your trans cable afterwards or your shifts will be way to early.
With the right tranny(7 tooth output) a 21 tooth gear works fine W 3.73s, course no Fox Tbird had such a tranny...
For 1/8 mi racing 3.73s would be a good choice... Probably still just barely get into 3rd...
I would go shift kit, the gears would cause to much strain on a stock trans with milage on it.
I'd go with 3.73s. Then again my engine makes power all the way up to the 5,000 rpm shift point. A trans with out a shift kit will handle the 3.73s fine. Just adjust the TV cable so it shifts at the right time. Trust me if you don't it will shift too early ;)
That is true tom,but i didn't think he had a stang trans.
I run a stang trans with 3.73s and a 21tooth and it's dead accurate.
I say gears, 3.73-4.10's, I had 4.10 in my stang and loved them, was great on gas too, (around town improved, but I did lose a little on the highway)
Your tranny will be fine with the gears til you can afford to throw a shift kit in it, unless you pound the hell out of it.... The gears will actually be eaasier on the drivetrain, as it will take less effort to get the car up to speed as Chris said.
What did you think I had?
AOD = Cougar, Thunderbird and Stang trans...
It's a relatively stock HO, It's a toss up between 3.55(if offered, more familiar with chevy) or 3.73s.
um no chief, the mustang has a different drive gear in the tranny, for the speedo.... hence the reason he asked if it was a Stang aod....
Ahh, i didn't realize he meant that differentiating the trannys.
He did say track,thats why I said 4.10,street 3.55-3.73.
Can you use a 6 tooth gear for a t-5 in the AOD tailshaft?
Nope, gear teeth is cut into the output shaft on the AOD... Requires swapping shaft(total dissemble)
Can those 2 tailshafts interchange then?
When I did the shift kit in my first 'Bird, it didn't make that much of a difference...except for the 2-3 shift and the light throttle shifts. Just manually shift the tranny and get the 3.73's until you can afford the shift kit...then still manually shift it at the track. Many people are probably going to respond with "doing that will kill your transmission!". Well, I did it for 3yrs in an AOD that already wasn't in the best of shape...and it was the 300k+ engine that popped, not the tranny...infact another member of this forum is running my old valvebody in his '88 'Bird.
With 3.73's over 2.73's or even 3.08's, you could expect to pick up a solid half second in your quarter mile ET.
i would go with gears. more so if the tranny is in decent shape. this is assuming they will be installed correctly. shift kit is nice but gears are going to perform better. 355s or 373. im not big on getting real deep into gears. i would have a shop do a gear swap. the shift kit can be done easy enough by yourself so i would do that later.
Chances are he will kill it. Yours is an exception.
All this talk about manually shifting and stuff. I have a question about TransGo's. I cannot find ANY specific description on their site as to how the hell you hold 2ng gear, but they claim you can hold 1st 2nd and 3rd to any rpm. 1st and 3rd are obvious. What about second? From what you guys are saying apparently the shift kit doesn't somehow make the 1-d-1 deal non-damaging...so how is it done?
I had the trans-go and making the 1-D-1 shift to 2 held 2 all day till I slowed to much and it when back to 1.
Let’s all not forget the benefit of a shift kit is not holding 2 gears at the same time making better shifts and better ETs and not wearing a tranny. Sure a rear gears might help ETs as well or better the reason I stated shift-kit is the fact of tranny ware. Both are good upgrades
Well that's really why I want to get one this year...for wear. It made me cringe the first time I read what actually goes on in there! Comfort and smoothness be ed I say, in the name of making the thing stay together. (really gettin kinda unhealthy ain't it putting my car before myself ALL the time)
For the money I would recommend skipping the shift kit and the gears and find a 4cyl T5 tranny and pedal assembly. The bracket with pedals from a mustang work perfect, you would need a thunderbird clutch cable, Zoom cluthc with multifriction disk is around 280. First gear is 3.97 which will make up for the higher ratio in the differential and allow you to launch through the first 60 feet. If your car has an automatic floor shifter it will fit your car without any problems. The only reason I am installing a Tremec this winter is because of the 351 Windsor I am installing. A lot of drag racers use the 4 cylinder tranny because they are cheap and reportedly they last just as long as the V8 T5's on the track. Lighter car, quick shifts, you select the shift point, the you have solved the gear problem all on a budget.
This might be my personal preference...but Gears. When I swapped to 3.73s in my supercoupe it was a kick in the ass. Ive been in cars with shift kits that would make you swallow your own teeth and they are just jerky. Don't get me wrong, a good shift kit is an excellent addition. But, if you got the dough/time for gears.. do it now and get a shift kit with the next paycheck. :hick:
Basically a good shift kit will add durability, the gears will decrease ET... A 2400 stall converter(talking fairly stock HO) will probably give more increase than the gears, but defiantly also install a shift kit with that change... A engine with good heads(NOT E7s), should have a 3000-3200 converter, S/K and gears...
Somewhere I have a article on modifying the AOD for a 1-2-3/OD shift pattern... Basically it eliminates the 2-3 shift in the D position... It's a early Lentech mod from the mid 90s, before they started selling custom valve bodies and requires a bit of cutting and epoxying... Main issue is no O/D lockout but with 3.73 gears, I've NEVER missed it... I did the mod to my SC AOD, along with a Trans-Go kit back in '00 and it still shifts good, though not with the authority it once had... Wonder if approx 700 drag strip passes(a few with nitrous) has anything to do with the shifts softening???
Would you mind please explaining? I'm confused on O/D lockout.
D on your shifter is 1st, 2nd & 3rd without O/D (otherwise known as 4th). The mod Tom mentions deletes that option and the AOD will act as if in the D with the O around it position....
Well if you're going to be driving the car regularly (like a DD, like my car) then I'd say go with some 3.27s. I just put mine in today and the difference in HUGE. Turning 2,000rpm at highway speed in OD is as high as I'd want to go for a DD. I'm also planning to get a shift kit in a couple of weeks (along with a new speedo gear of course). Should be a great combo of mods.
Paul, I'm not sure what you are saying...
Anyway the D position now only gives a 1st to 2nd shift and never any higher... O/D operates with the normal 1-2-3-4(O/D) pattern, only way to prevent the O/D shift is keep it on the floor... Works fine for drag racing, and with 3.73s I'm yet to find a mountain it won't scoot up in O/D...
With O/D 3.73s are fine on the highway... IF I ever swap gears, it will be for 4.10s... That's what's in my '93 Lightning...
D normally locks the overdrive gear out completely....I mistook what you said about the mod. Word jumble in my head.
Yep. I turn maybe 2300 rpms at 60 mph on the highway with 3.73 gears. Plus I still get about 24 mpg :D
After rereading the post it is clear now. Thanks.
The 3.73's would probably be great if the car would hook. The small 14" tires spin quite a bit. Good fun factor though!
The shift kit would most likely be the best mod for the buck and time spent.
I'd vote for the stall before the gear.
A shift kit with the right stall would be a great starting point. :burnout:
Believe me I know........
The car is an XR7, 15" wheels...:D
I don't remember mentioning a stall, since this isn't the right oppurtunity for me to get one I wasn't worrying about it.
I'm going to be grabbing a shift kit first, seeing as I found one BNIB for $10.
That's a good find for $10. :)
A stall might a better choice before gears imho but I can't speak from experience. At least...............not yet...........:evilgrin:
Those 15" should give you a better tire than the 14" which are presently stuck on mine.
Good luck :D
Mike
Definitely do gears before a convertor or else you will end up hating your expensive new convertor...too much time spent stalling the convertor with 2.73's will cause some excessive heat in the tranny...if you had 3.73's or better it would be a non-issue. Shift kit is a good basic start...the 3.73's are definitely the bigger bang for the buck.