is it fairly rare to find a manual classic mustang thats not a 6-cylander??

i have only been able to find cars like this in cherry condition.

What kind of tranny's did V8's use back then? why is 5 speed better than 4 speed? soemthing to do with the power band or something?

any info, thanks!



P.S. how hard is it to add a manual into a automatic car....?

ive figured u have to add another pedal...how much more work is in it and is it even possible to do without loads of money? like find a old tranny at a junkyard or something?

 

Yes the i6 was more common,but the v8 is not that rare. Most of us on this forum have v8s. It wouldnt cost loads of money to convert the tranny, but the tranny would cost some money. You could get a tranny from a junk yard, but i would reccomend having it rebuilt. (Around $700) A t-5 tranny costs around 1800 new.

 

how much do they run from the junkyard? 200? 300? less or more?

I just talked to my friend on the phone, his neighbor had some old ford E series van thats a total mess but has a 302 and a 4 speed manual in it apparently. Would they work in his stang theoretically? without major modifications that is...

 

I think the 302 will fit. someone else on here took a 302 from a e van.

 

why is a 4 speed called a "top loader" ?

 

I believe that is just the name for the 4 speed tranny. My dads 67 convertible has a 289 4 speed. NICE car.

 

hi,
a toploader's name is derived from the fact that it has its access cover on the top of the transmission.

 

shifty,

the reason Ford called their 4 speed top loader, was two things, lower gear settings, and that the falcons, fairlanes, used sideloader trannys. the top loader actually had the gear case diectly on top, while the side loader was on the left side, ergo calling it a top loader. It was not uncommon for mustangs to have side loaders though, but it was used for easier maintance. I have seen however (almost bought one too) a six cylinder with a four speed top loader from the factory. doing my research only 3,500 66 mustangs came with 4 speed with a six cylnder and a lot came with 3 speeds (almost 3/4 of them!). As for switching over from auto to manual, youll need to pull the brake assembly, because manual trans cars have smaller brake pedal to make room for the clutch pedal, need to get the bracket for the clutch return spring. Plug off the tranny cooler lines from the radiator, and other easy odds and ends. HUH im smelling a tech article from this....if you want to do this conversion let me know!!

 

well, i know my friend wants to do this extremely badly to his mustang.

im currently looking for the best bang for the buck out of a mustang i can find around here right now and they are all auto's that are even worth the time and effort to fix them up. So yeah, i will be wanting to do this....although i dont have any dates or specific car to make it specific.

Im interested in any 64-66 coupe because thats the most realistic mustang for me to get price-wise and availability-wise. If the price is right id take a 67-68...but i dont like the back ends as much.

at any rate, i doubt it matters much between 64-68...im sure its basically all the same idea more or less.

 

If you're interested, there's a 1967 coupe for sale here (Mississippi) for $2200. Don't know the condition but I'm going to look at it next week. Also, I'm going to look at a 65 or 66 Fastback in the next week or so. It should be in the $9,000 - $10,000 range if it's in the condition that I was told it's in. PM me if you're interested.

Also, a factory 4-speed car brings about 8-15% more according to Kelly blue book.