Manual tranny questions
 

Ok,
I know that the T-5 transmissions are not the greatest.
I am wondering if anyone has had any luck fixing or improving some of the following problems.

1. Lurching when starting out.
If I am not careful about how I engage the clutch when I start out in first gear, the car will
sometimes lurch. Has anyone been able to successfuly get rid of this problem or at least improve it?
Please don't tell me to learn how to drive a clutch. I have driven cars with manual transmissions for
almost thirty years.

2. klunk / slop in drive train
When I am in low gear and accelerate gently, I usually hear a klunk and feel a slight lurch.
It seems as if there is some slop in the transmission or driveshaft or rear end.
Does anyone know what part of the drive train is causing the slop? If so, is there a fix?


I know that the T-5 transmission is not a smooth transmission, but if there are some ways of making it smoother, I would like to know. I dont drive the car hard. I use it for a daily driver , and like having a manual transmission. I would just like it to be a little smoother. I don't mind the notchy shifting. After a year, the notchiness i a little smoother.

Thanks for the help.

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

#2 could be caused by the 2 piece drive shaft. There are several companies that make solid aluminum ones that are getting good reviews.

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

I've owned my stang for about 3 months now and I haven't encountered your first problem of lurching. I've driven manual cars all my life and many different makes and models and they are all different having the release or catch point at a different position or feel to the clutch. When I first started driving this car I had to get used to this clutch. It was very stiff. Now about 3 months later I'm used to it and it is notchy but is "broken in" now and seems to shift a lot smoother now than ever.

However your second problem is definitely a problem I encounter too. Sounds like I'll live with it. I'm not a mechanic and changing a drive shaft out sounds a little too advanced for me. And in my opinion if it's a real problem Ford should replace it. https://mustangforums.com/micons/m8.gif

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

I know in the near future I will be changing out my driveshaft with an aluminum one. If you've ever looked under the car, you'll see why. There is surface rust all over the driveshaft.

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

Supposedly the 1 piece shaft is a very simple, 30 minute install. I've read that it's just bolt in, bolt out.

I will be doing that mod also.

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

i've never seen a driveshaft without surface rust. surface rust provides a protective layer for the rest of the shaft, trust me that surface rust doesn't mean jack. now if you are going to replace teh driveshaft because it is a heavy, clunky, two-piece shaft that makes sense, but surface rust is normal, and will NOT ever impact the strength of the shaft.

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

If this driveshaft is such a problem with ALL mustangs why doesn't Ford address this issue? My guess is because it's not a safety issue, just an poorly made part???? Besides that how much are the aluminum ones and where do you get them?

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

surface rust is normal, and yeah it is a little clunky but it hasn't proved unsafe unless people are going 115 mph+. If you plan on a large amount of time at high speeds or want to get rid of the clunkiness get an aluminum driveshaft.

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

Okay,
I dont really care about the rust on the drive shaft.
Has anyone actuallyreplaced thier drive shaft with a one peice shaft?
Did it fix or imporve the (klunk/slop) issue with the drive train?

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

search aluminum driveshaft in just the 4.0 section and you will find several threads, the clunking was resolved with the 1-piece aluminum driveshaft.

best of luck