what kind of horse power can the 3 speed manual tranny withstand. I have an on a manual 3 speed and I have always wanted a manual tranny. I have a 302 with some extras. Prob not more than 300 HP. Will the 3 speed hold up. Also, how hard is it to switch from an auto to manual tranny? Anyone done it?


THANKS

 

I did some research and it seems the swap to do would be to swap to a four speed. Anybody have a comment between the 4 speed versus the 3. Or even the 5 speed. I would be getting this 3 speed for only like 50 bucks that is y i was wondering what it would be like.

Thanks

 

I went from a 3spd manual to a toploader 4spd. Same bellhousing and driveline. That'd prolly be the easiest way. Or you could get a diff bellhousing/driveline and go to a 5spd like a Tremec TKO 500/600. That'd give you an overdrive and provide a solid tranny for a lot more power down the road. A t-5 would work too, but not as sturdy as a Tremec, though quite a few people have a lot of power going through T-5's and take care of them, and they don't break. You just gotta treat it right

 

If you are going to make the switch from the automatic, you would be making a mistake by putting a three speed manual in. I don't think the three speed will hold up to 300 horses. Either put in a top loader 4 speed or a T-5.

 

I think that the 67 390 engine came standard with 3 speed manuals and if that's the case, there are 3 speeds that can take horsepower.
Jim

 

Maybe so, but the C codes came with 3 speeds, and the A and K codes came with the toploader. Must have been a reason.

 

The 3spd manual can prolly take quite a bit of abuse, but it's nicer to at least have the extra gear for the sake of drivability

 

Glen, In 67 and 68 the standard tranmission for a 390 was a 3.03 3 speed and it was marked 'RAT-N' or 'RAT-N1'.This includes the 68 390 GT. In69, the largest engine that came with a 3 speed was a 351. All this from the Ford Car Parts manual.
Jim

 

Oh, I believe you and all, but it just seems foolish to me to take out an automatic transmission and put in a 3 speed manual. If you are going to go through all that trouble, why not just do it right and put in a toploader or a T5? That's the only thing that makes any sense to me.

 

On that I agree. 3spds aren't that fun and easy to drive when compared to a 4 spd. And with the wider gears on a 3spd you're more limited in how you can setup an engine/car