OK, so last Wednesday my friend and I started the install. I was too busy turning wrenches to take pictures of the actual turning of the wrenches but you guys get the idea.:twak
My buddy wanted to pull the carpet and access panel on the floorboard of the Bronco but I told him no. This swap.....on my '94 302 M5OD to ZF5-s42 IS A DIRECT SWAP!!!!! follow the proceedure of a clutch replacement.
When I received the rebuilt trans and set it side-by-side to my M5OD it looked alot bigger overall so at first I was worried that I would have to modify my exhaust.
BUT again you guys and gals on the FSB forum were correct as always, no mods were made in the hanging of this trans.....:thumbup
During my due dilligence I read about alot of guys having trouble getting the quick connect off of the slave cylinder, and in fact I had trouble doing the same. I bought the special Ford tool for separating the quick connect and I worked it for what seemed like quite a while then gave it to my friend to try and when he crawled under the truck he had it disconnected in one second. Apparently just keep working it and it will separate with very little force just the right angle of pull.
My clutch was worn about 50%....so I went ahead and replaced the cluth disc, pressure plate, slave cylinder, and pilot bearing, basically a full clutch job as well as the transmission but I didn't want to do the job twice.
Alvin in AZ.....I just used a floor jack to stab that trans but I also had someone working with me so it was easier than doing it alone. Those line-up pins look like a good idea when working alone.
I guess the only thing I did have to modify was that the ZF5 trans has a slightly thinner bell-housing than my old M5OD and the starter bendix would not "return" properly after each start. I had to go down to my local O'Reilly's parts store and buy a starter shim and install it...$6.00....no big deal tho.
So I put FoMoCo Mercon SP in it and started to drive it around, but man each gear was very hard to get in to. I thought that the fluid just needed to heat up, or that the fluid needed to be pumped around inside the tranny to make it work better so I drove around a few blocks,having to force it into each forward gear. It seemed like it was just tight being a new rebuild I thought it would get better as I broke it in so I drove it back to my driveway and put in in neutral and let out the clutch and WOAH...the damn thing wanted to go forward....IN NEUTRAL....I put it in reverse and it wouldn't move, it wouldn't roll, so I had to give it gas and it feels like it wants to go forward as well as reverse....WTF...
I called another friend of mine to come over and check it out, he thinks it's trying to grab OD and REVERSE at the same time.
I called the tranny shop and told them my problem and they want me to use 85/90 gear lube instead of Mercon. "It needs to be broken in".....he said to drive it some more, so I did.
I like the way it feels compared to my Mazda trans. This is a true truck transmission and it feels like one. First gear 2WH, the max speed is about 10MPH, it will get you started thru the intersection but by the crosswalk you better go to second. Second gets me to 30/35 then third gear is for around town. Fourth is for getting on the freeway on ramp and OD is for the hiway. Max speed is maybe 80 MPH on my speedo which is about 83/85 real speed because of my tire size.
Overall I like this trans, but my builder has got to fix what is wrong with neutral and reverse.
I will keep you all informed.
Has anyone ever had to "break-in" a rebuilt trans before???