Diabolical!

Did the installation on jackstands.
NEVER.
AGAIN.
Lol. I've done clutch installs before, but always on a lift. Well, this time I had no access to a lift, so I figured I'd get the car as high in the air as possible and just swap it out on my back. Bad idea. My body hurts in places I didn't even know it could hurt, and an install that usually takes me 4-6 hours took me two days instead (with lots of long beer and nap breaks in between). I took a few notes for the people who asked me to, but pictures were out of the question. I was too busy cursing and bleeding to take pictures, and the hardest parts of the job are impossible to photograph anyway, as they are the bolts located above the transmission. I'm gonna hop in the shower, and then I'll post the notes that I took.

Diabolical!

I always remove the negative battery cable bfore doing any work on the car.

Raised the car as high as possible on 4 jackstands. (If you have access to a lift, I HIGHLY recommend that you use it!)

Make SURE the tranny is in nuetral.

I have a spydershaft, so I just removed the front bolts of the driveshaft and braced it up out of the way on an uprighted cinderblock. If you have the stock driveshaft, you'll probably need to remove it completely.

Remove the starter. (Three wires and three bolts. Takes less than 5 minutes.)

The transmission is much easier to remove if theH pipe is out of the car, but it can be done with the H pipe in. Iended up takingit out, but you can decide what's better for you once you're under there.

Disconnect the bolt where the shifter connects to the transmission.

Disconnect all of the electrical connectors from the transmission and LABEL them with a piece of tape. Some of them can be easily mixed up and you don't want to have to figure out where you made a mistake later. There are 6 electrical connections. One is for backup lights, one is for the transmission speed sensor, and four are oxygen sensors. Some of them are on top of the transmission and VERY difficult to reach.

Support the engine. (Ideally with a floor jack and block of wood under the oil pan, but I used a cinderblock and a couple of blocks of wood.)

Support the transmission with a transmission jack if available (I used a large floor jack and a small, flat piece of wood.)

Remove the crossmember at the rear of the transmission. (Very easy step,four bolts to body, one to transmission.)

Here comes the part that will have you inventing new curse words: removing the transmission to engine bolts. I'd recommend removing the top bolts first, they are hardest to reach and will take the longest, and it's easier to keep the transmission from tipping off of the jack and onto your fingers if you remove the bottom bolts last. (Don't even ask me how I know that.[:@]) You will need some long socket extensions and a universal joint. I used two 10" extensions with the universal in the middle. When you get to the point of reinstalling the tranny, lining these bolts up will drive you INSANE. Finally, lower the jack while keeping the transmission steady and moving it back and away from the engine. (This is much easier with the H pipe out.)

Push an alignment tool (most clutches come with one) through your old clutch's disc to support its weight. Loosen the flywheel to clutch bolts a little at a time, going back and forth so that all of the pressure is not relieved from one at a time. Remove the bolts, pressure plate, and clutch. Use the alignment tool to put the new clutch in place. Apply a dab of loc-tite to each of the flywheel to clutch bolts and tighten them (again going back and forth so that the pressure is not all applied to one bolt at a time) making sure that the clutch is aligned.

The rest of the installation is pretty much the reverse of the removal. You will curse ford a million times for leaving so little clearance between the transmission and tunnel, and you may have to give a neighborhood kid with small hands a few bucks to connect the electrical connections above the tranny if you have large hands. It is seriously that tight. If anyone attempts this and has any other questions, or if I left out anything important, PM me.

Lastly, if you can afford to, pay someone else to do it.

moosestang

I think you have to remove the H pipe in order to get the trans mount out. Atleast I couldn't see any way around it.

Diabolical!

The last time I did a clutch swap, I seem to remember leaving the H-pipe in, although I agree with you, I couldn't see any way of getting it out with the H-pipe in this time. I could be wrong. I'll have to contact the guy who owns the other car to see if we removed the H-pipe when we did his swap, but I really don't remember having to. I did kinda jump in when he was already about an hour into that job though, so it's possible that he already had the H-pipe out and I'm just not remembering it for some reason.

catalac

Thanks for putting up this thread, I was planning a Spec 2 to support theSaleen SC I installed, from reading your comments I think I will order the parts then go get some quotes on getting a shop to do it.

hammeron

thanks nail, for the writeup

MustangGT0405

So how about some driving impressions? I was thinking of going with this set up when my clutch goes. How is the peddle effort compared to stock and what torque will it hold?

Thanks,

Vcoat

Did you have to bleed it??..if so how hard was that to do??...also..did you use the stock flywheel ?...Thanks

Slink

Would those bolts have been easier to get to if you let the back of the motor tip down about 1-2 inches (after disconnecting the exhaust) or is that even feasible with the Mustang?

Black05StangGT

I did this once with my 99 Cobra and I will never do another clutch install on my back again...using a lift FTW! lol...doing the install on your back FTL!