[88gt306]

well here i am with less than 2 months left in Iraq (if its the Lords will), and ill be going back home to my baby. Well we have a bunch of **** talkers out here with stock or near stock cars that will be lucky to touch a 13 second quarter mile and im gonna go ahead and get serious with my suspension. so, i need some advice. Bolt in or weld in SFC's? i already know which LCA's im going with. should i go with 50/50s up front and 70/30s out back for a DD that will see a track once or twice a month? and I hear Lakewood is out-dated so could somebody let me know if this is true or which brand to go with for shocks and struts. And are my stock springs gonna work or whats the deal with them? (my car is lowered in the front but not the back) i have 4.10s and i plan and getting a new dif, (mine is peg-legging occasionally) and some 31 spline axles also.

Now, i have a bad synchro (3rd to 4th grinds) and it is the stock t-5. what im getting at is will the 02-04 T3650 bolt up to the bell housings and work? or does it have a funky electronical reverse lock-out or something? i want the longer OD gear from the 02+ GT's and i know they will be enough for me.. a tko 500 is a lil more than what i wanna pay.. so can anybody give me some info on this Tranny? or will i have to get a t-45? or can i have a t-5 rebuilt with a t3650 OD gear in place of the stocker OD gear? ANY input or help is NEEDED

 

[Smurf stang]

Your going to want full length SFC and they have to be weld in.

For the price your going to pay for any shock/struts you should look into the Strange 10 way adjustable as they are very affordable.

Lowering springs are not good for weight transfer. You will be better off sticking the stock springs back in there if money is tight but if not look into some drag springs.

Rebuilding your T5 will probably be your best bet and you can choose to upgrade the internals.

 

[need4spd90]

SFC's=full length weld in
Strange 10 ways at all 4 corners
Detroit True-trac is a great diff for a mainly street driven car
stock rear springs are the best in the back..
for the front,that depends on how street or track dedicated you want your car to be,and what kind of driving you plan to do on the street...you cant have the best of both worlds there,unfortunately...

for the trans,dont know what your budget is,but check out Astro performance and their A-5 gearset,which fits inside your t-5 housing

also..

<<---In before sharad slams the thread with upr advertising

 

[Sharad]

Smurf Stang is right on the money.

Also, the tremec 3650 is not a direct bolt in.

Oh, and thanks for serving our country!

 

[88gt306]

is a strut tower bar gonna help with the launch? looks like ill be doing the stock spring thing with strange 10 ways then. and Sharad, No problem man. over the t3650 but i guess ill be looking into a rebuilt t-5. im kind of on a budget, but not really. i wanna buy another stang but if i dont find the right one ill be sticking with my 5.0 until the right cobra (97-04) comes my way. Need4speed do you have race springs on yours.. im still AWED over your 11.9. how much weight reduction have you did to it? and do these strange 10 ways come halfway adjusted or am i gonna have to do trial and error until i get them set up right?

 

[need4spd90]

is a strut tower bar gonna help with the launch?

no..not worth having the extra weight over the front end either

Need4speed do you have race springs on yours..
stock fox springs in the rear, upr coilover kit w/ 14-150's over strange 10ways in the front


im still AWED over your 11.9. how much weight reduction have you did to it?

LOTS!!! lol..car weighs about 2800 w/me


and do these strange 10 ways come halfway adjusted or am i gonna have to do trial and error until i get them set up right?

little trial and error to see whats best for your car and track conditions..but adjusting them only takes seconds,literally..they have a small knob you turn with your fingers..while its on the car..no need to jack it up or special tools..simple as turning on your a/c

 

[88gt306]

coilovers are out the question for me... a lil too expensive.

do you have the rear seat delete? im not sure how much more i can take out after smog pump, ac, all of the carpet in the trunk, 15s, rear seat, tubular k-member and a-arms,.. i can think of anything else. im thinking of the rear seat delete on mines though.. looks easy and clean.

and looks like these 10 ways will be ordered soon.. pretty much turn to the left to loosen the suspension and turn to the right to stiffen it up? just trying to learn everything before i buy them.

 

[88gt306]

and need4speed what kind of transmission set-up are you running? and what rear-end gears?

 

[306Notch]

You can build a set of coilovers with strange shocks/struts, springs, sleeves/hardware for about $900...The real bonus is you're looking at ~20lbs additional weight savings.

 

[need4spd90]

i think the coilover kit was like $200..i already had the strange struts with 4cyl front springs,but when i bought a tubular k member/tubular a-arms,i had to run coilovers cuz the a-arms had no spring perches

it's also highly recommended that you run aftermarket caster/camber plates with a front coilover setup,since all the front end weight now rests on the strut tower,and the stock c/c plate is just a wimpy rubber bushing

im running a basically stock 100k mile 1992 T-5..i just rebuilt it 2 weeks ago actually,nothing broke,but the synchros were shot and it was grinding and clunking into 3rd..i replaced all the bearings,synchors,seals,small parts,etc..new 3rd gear(the grinding must have chipped some of the dog teeth, and i didnt want to risk anything,so i replaced it)..also added an all steel input bearing retainer,new throwout bearing, and a billet steel cluster support plate

my car is bare bones man lol..no rear seat or rear seatbelts,chrome-moly tube front and rear bumpers,not heat,no a/c, no heater box,no radio,speakers,manual steering,no emissions,manual windows,no sunroof..i even went thru the under-dash harness circuit by circuit and stripped out all the stuff i wasnt using..lost about 10lbs worth of wires and connectors...basically,with the exception of windshield wipers and a passeneger seat for the wife,if it doesnt make me go fast,its not on the car lol

i run 3.73's with a 26" tall tire..i tried 4.10's,but it nosed over bad after 1000' and i lost like .2-.3 in the 1/4..i shift at 5500,and with the 4.10's,it was screaming past 6k crossing the stripe..no power to be made there,so it slowed down

 

[88gt306]

OHHHHH that weight savings is looking really nice. out of curiosity, what does your car run the quarter at 306? and do you have longtubes or shortys?

 

[need4spd90]

i also meant to mention i picked up .2 by switching from 17x9 cobra r's to 15x8 rear draglites/ 15x3.5 draglite skinnies up front

lighter is quicker,no doubt..its basically like adding free horsepower

 

[88gt306]

ive heard some people say to use 4cyl rear springs.. would you recommend them over the 5.0 rear springs since im gonna go buy some new ones anyway? are you recommending me to go with3.73s? i weigh a lot more than you but do you think that ill trap enough to need 3.73s? btw im buying the tw 170s and i have the comp xe270hr-14 cam already so im installing it when i get home. i have no ac already, so i guess ill do the rear seat delete.. also i have a king cobra clutch right now.. should i go ahead and get a SPEC stage 2 while the tranny is out?

 

[88gt306]

and did you have to do any modifications to get your weld's to fit? ie, big hammer mod or grinding the front caliper?

 

[need4spd90]

with the better heads and "bigger" cam,you may get more rpm out of the motor than i do,so i'd try it out first and see before you go switching gears..im just saying what my experience was

you could always run a taller rear tire if you run out of gear..i just changed back cuz i had the 3.73's laying in the garage..$400 for new slicks, vs. 2qts of oil for a gear swap..easy choice if you're broke like me lol

no "mods" necessary for the draglites...15x8 rear with 5.5" backspace
fronts are 15x3.5..i think the backspace is 1.75"?? dont remember off hand..pretty sure they only make one backspace 15x3.5 with 4 lug pattern

i do have the rear fender lips rolled,but i dont know if it was needed or not,i just did it anyway

the stock v8 fox springs seem to be about the best from what ive read and used..i tried moroso trick spring..they were worthless..you may have to cut 1/2 coil or a full coil off the rears to get the best ride height...Team Z only recommends high mile stock v8 rear springs with about 1 coil cut..i have weight jacker LCA's,so i didnt have to cut mine

ive been running a king cobra clutch in mine for 2 years now..i have no complaints..it hits nice and soft,which helps save drivetrain parts,and also doesnt shock the tires like a stiff hitting, on/off clutch would..less tire shock=better hook

cheaper to replace a fried clutch than rebuild a tranny,lol

 

[88gt306]

youre the man.. so i guess i wont replace the rear stockers then. just the fronts.. so 4cyl fronts or v8 fronts? and how long did it take you to change out your gears?

 

[need4spd90]

4cyl fronts are a good budget drag spring...fine for normal street driving..especially if you stiffen up the strange struts for the street,then loosen them up for the track...just dont try to go blazing thru any corners or anything

removing the front sway bar is highly recommended for the track as well..it severly limits front end travel,which is needed to load the rear tires during launch...you can drive on the street with no swaybar(i do all the time),but you just need to be very careful,again,no corner carving,etc..

gear swaps dont take me long anymore..i've done it a bunch of times..couple hours and its ready to roll again..i have all the right tools to do it these days though..first time was a 2 day ordeal trying to find a dial indicator and a plate-style bearing separator locally on a sunday lol

 

[88gt306]

yeeaaaaa buddy!!!! looks like ive got a full suspension set up.. 4cyl front springs, stock rears, strange 10 ways on all corners, full length SFC, UPR LCA's, and remove front sway bar. rear seat delete and 15s with skinnies up front, finish my ac removal and rest of egr delete... eventually ill get around to a tubular k-member. seems like ill go off of this whenever i get home and then trial and error and more adjustments then ill post some times whenever a cool night comes around

 

[88gt306]

i should probably put this in the Tech forum, but i figure one of yall would know. u know where the thing screws into the lower intake that feeds coolant to and from the heater core? well my heater core is bypassed already because it decided to leak into my floorboard.. and after i bypassed it, it cracked from old age and the like. so what im gettin at is, can i unscrew the whole deal and plug the hole with something else? will this impede coolant flow or anything? i would love to just get rid of the whole deal. im gonna go ahead and not use my heater, ill live.

 

[88gt306]

btw i found all the suspension parts on UPRproducts...