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

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

Thanks for the info LaserRed
I guessa single piece drive shaft is next on my list of upgrades.

Now, does anyone have any info on the lurching while starting out in first gear?

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

Wellllll,

Some of the clunkyness is resolved with the one piece DS. Some people have suggested a new flange on the transmission side while others have suggested different transmission oils.

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

I know what you mean about the Lurching when starting out. I think it is the drive by wire. It"s like a dead spot in the pedle. Not sure if theres a fix for that.Gas pedle not the clutch

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

Yeah, the lurching...I hold the clutch in a little longer but I've had those embarassing "am I a new driver?" moments myself.

The notchiness, stiffness, and clunkadonk seem to be normal. I asked the same questions about a month ago. I have noticed that the clutch is loosening up. But you do hear that cathunkadonk in there when shifting.

I'm not going to change to an aluminum doodad though. I mean, if I am going to be flushing a whole bunch of money down the toilet on mods, I may as well buy exactly what I want with no further tinkering required. Srsly, a new driveshaft can't be cheap, right?

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

I'm glad I came upon this post. I've been driving my beautiful new '07 5 speedfor a couple of weeks. I noticed right away the clutch noise and lurchiness, and almost an unstableness in the low gears. I too am a very experienced manual driver. When I'm at a stop, if I put it in neutral, there's some strange noises going on, then if I put it in 1st and clutch it, yet remain stationary, the noise stops. I think I'm going to go the dealership and have this one mechanic (a self-proclaimed Mustang freak!) ride with me in it. Ford needs to get their act together if this is a consistent problem!


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RE: Manual tranny questions
 

I was having the same problem with my car. The lurching forward in low gears and generally running poorly in first. I thought it was driver error on my part but seeing as I have been driving standard transmission for years I doubted that. My car started stalling in idle too. So to her to the dealership and come to find out...my throttle body was dying. So they replaced it. Now the problem is completly gone! It runs like my old toyota truck. I really think it is the drive by wire system, if it keeps doing it have the dealership check out the throttle body. It was like night and day in my car for driving in low gears

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

i work at a shop that services cars for a largelocal used car dealership. ive driven alot of 40s and GTs. the 40s definitly have shown signs of tranny and rearend wear. some you can tell have been thrashed so bad you dont dare drive beyond the parking lot. i bought my 40 back in march and noticed your second issue progressively worsen over the summer. i took it to the dealer and they ended up installing a whole new tranny($2000) and rebuilding the rearend($900) under warranty. problem solved......for now. glad i bought an extended warranty.

RE: Manual tranny questions
 

I've had my 07 for about 7 months now, and have been overall very happy with it. If there's a weak link, however, it's between the engine and the rear wheels.

If this tranny is supposed to be a decsendent of the one in my 94GT, I think it was a step backward. I seem to have the most problem shifting from 1st to 2nd under max acceleration - almost guaranteed to miss it every single time. To avoid it, I have to go all out in 1st, push in the clutch and wait....... as soon as the load is taken off the drivetrain, I can shift into 2nd and to maximum warp.

There's supposed to be some kind of "k-brace" that one can buy to fix this, but I've looked all over and can't find one for sale. If anyone has a link, I'd appreciate having it posted.

I've read a lot of posts about noise. The only "extra" noise I hear is in 4th. The other gears don't seem to be nearly as noisy.

Another thing I noticed is starting out is more difficult - kind of what other people seem to be experiencing. I put 100,000 miles on two different 5.0 Mustangs, and I've probably killed my 07 more times than both of those put together.

Teaching 5-speed newbies how to drive one of the 5.0's was fun - within about 15 minutes of working the clutch, I could usually have them burning rubber. With the 4.0, it's more of a finesse thing.I was looking forward to teaching my daughter how to drive a 5-speed, but soon discovered that this was something that would require a lot more practice for her.

I doubt what I'm seeing is a flaw or something that should be brought in for warranty - it's more the nature of the design. Maybe I'm just not observant enough to spot a real problem, but I don't think I'm seeing problems that are as serious as others have posted.

Still, a few bucks more spent on R&D would've netted a much better drive shaft and much smoother tranny, IMO.