Posted by Dan Starnes (IP: 208.165.211.181) on April 09, 1999 at 23:21:43:
In Reply to: Re: chill out dood, you are sadly wrong posted by 74merc on April 09, 1999 at 23:12:02:
well well well, a little spirited conversation never killed anyone. And the information exchanged has been very interesting. I also own a 88 5.0 stang which is all original and only has 14,000 miles on it. It has seen some serious hot rodding in it's short mileage and I have never had a problem with the trans yet. Anyways I aint taking sides here I am just stating my experience with the car. Have a great day all!! :)
: Ok, I went a little overboard on this, but the fact is, a T5 be it world class, T5z or whatever will work fine in a normal car. My car will not be normal in a very short while. I said basiclly that on my posts and would like to come to some sort of peaceful ending here. I frequent the Corral Windsor BBS, where the majority of the guys are not driving normal cars either. Most of them are running the 1/4 mile to check each individual modification. Go there and ask, the T5 is not conservetively rated, the rating is fairly accurate. Several people have busted 2 and 3 trannys on normal 5.0s with minor bolt on mods. So far as drag racing, be it on the side, as a hobby, or whatever, the T5 will not hold up. I don't know what you consider to be abusing a transmission, but driving a Mustang like its actually a hotrod, and either available stock tranny(T5 or AOD) will not hold up. If the engine is anything more than stock, the T5 will not stay together, usually the second gear syncro is the first to go. Also, you said the horsepower changed over the years because of how Fords ratings fluctuated, no engine changes. Check out
: http://www.wrljet.com/engines/
: for info on the changes on the 5.0. the 302 has gone through a hell of a lot of changes over the 29 years of its life. it is still the same basic design, but it is far from the same engine. You are entitled to your opinion, as am I, but these are facts. They are either right or wrong. I am simply passing along knowledge I have gained. If you don't agree, thats your right, but I can find many instances of T5 failure under a normally powered 5.0. It is not a very strong transmission. Ford is replacing T5s with Tremecs now. Thats a fact. T5s are now only in V6 stangs. Thats a fact. Anything further, take it to email, or I will not respond.
: James