Mustang GT question

[metalchurch79]

I brought the 82 GT home last Saturday.
Changed the oil and fuel filter when I got it home, and put a passenger side spindle on it, cause it was chewing up bearings.
It runs really good for being a stock motor w/ over 100k on it, but the SROD 4 speed whines really bad in 4th (O.D.), so I'm currently looking for a T5 to swap in.
The pinion in the 7.5 is clunking when I stop and start, so I went junkyard shopping yesterday and found a complete 8.8 w/ 3.08TL from a '92GT for $150, so it's going in asap.

Overall the car is in great shape both inside and out. There's a little rust on the inside of the wheel lip on the rear, but that's minor.

I also found an 82 in that same junkyard with nice Black interior, so I'm thinking about putting that in place of my Red interior.

I have alot of things that I want to do as soon as the weather cooperates, cause I dont have a garage.
So I'll be swapping out that 8.8 in my yard w/out air tools and proper jacks.
Looks like I'll have to put it up on blocks and try to find a buddy to help me....Backyard mechanics 101

My USB port isn't working right now, but I'll try to throw some pics up as soon as I can.

[Cleveland Metal]

Great price on the 8.8.... They're usually 450-550 here.

Sounds like a lot of fun doing that on block with no air, ugh... Hope you have some torches

[Firebird V]

It looks like a pretty body for a north east car. Good luck with it!

[RacerX]

Good luck...and POLISH THAT TURD!!

[roodyrocker]

If you're doing the 8.8 swap in your driveway, while waiting for the weather to break you can make things a lot smoother on yourself by spraying something like PB Blaster or Kroil on all the hardware you will be loosening/removing. Start spraying them now and you'll be surprised by how well it works by the time you get to them in the spring. I used to spray the suspension and rear end parts on my 93 LX coupe any time I was under there changing oil because I knew I was going to pull the engine, transmission, rear end, front suspension, etc... It went a lot smoother and I did that in my driveway as well. BY the way, if you get NMCA's Fastest Street Car magazine, my Mustang is the subject of an exhaust tech article in the current March 2009 issue. It will be in next month's issue as well when we swap fuel system components and dyno figures are provided in both articles

[metalchurch79]

Good idea on that PB Blaster, I'll do that today. Thats very cool that your car is a celeb! I'll try to find that issue.

I dont have torches either and I live right in town, which sucks. I have a small area beside my house where I can work on it though.

Been reading up on these 8.8's and I found out that I can re-use 2 of my old friction discs with 2 new ones and stagger them with the steel shims for better lock up with the traction lock.
I also read that the "S" spring from an F-150 provides better force and locks it up better as well.
Atleast for now I'll keep the 3.08's in it because that will lower my overall final drive/rpm and since 4th gear is getting really bad, I wont have to use it as much.
3rd gear is 1:1 so the 3.08's will be a little better than the 3.45's that are in it now.

I found some lightly used Crane 1.6 roller rockers and screw in studs / guide plates for $150, which is a great deal.

I need to mess with the timing a little today because when I go to start the car it cranks over really fast and takes too long to start.
Wonder if it's advanced or retarded in timing.
I should be ok w/ 13 degrees without pinging, but with no timing light I'll have to guess, and then drive it and see if it's ok.

Wonder if Autozone would rent a timing light?

It has a really old Holley Street Dominator intake, which I believe is a Single Plane if I remember right. They have been out of production for 20 years or better atleast.
I'm trying to find the original dual snorkel 5.0 H.O. air cleaner to get some cold air to it.
I ordered a Mac offroad underdrive Smog/Ac delete pulley kit, so that will improve the performance somewhat.

I'm going to wait until I get a Cam/lifter/timing chain before I install those Crane rockers though. I'm going to get some new hardened pushrods as well. The headers and duals will go on at the same time.

[horns666]

Ya'll gotsta put all dat shit in my muthafuggin' cobra..so da shit blows up a muthafugga.

yeahhhh..

[roodyrocker]

Good idea on that PB Blaster, I'll do that today. Thats very cool that your car is a celeb! I'll try to find that issue.

I dont have torches either and I live right in town, which sucks. I have a small area beside my house where I can work on it though.

Been reading up on these 8.8's and I found out that I can re-use 2 of my old friction discs with 2 new ones and stagger them with the steel shims for better lock up with the traction lock.
I also read that the "S" spring from an F-150 provides better force and locks it up better as well.
Atleast for now I'll keep the 3.08's in it because that will lower my overall final drive/rpm and since 4th gear is getting really bad, I wont have to use it as much.
3rd gear is 1:1 so the 3.08's will be a little better than the 3.45's that are in it now.

I found some lightly used Crane 1.6 roller rockers and screw in studs / guide plates for $150, which is a great deal.

I need to mess with the timing a little today because when I go to start the car it cranks over really fast and takes too long to start.
Wonder if it's advanced or retarded in timing.
I should be ok w/ 13 degrees without pinging, but with no timing light I'll have to guess, and then drive it and see if it's ok.

Wonder if Autozone would rent a timing light?

It has a really old Holley Street Dominator intake, which I believe is a Single Plane if I remember right. They have been out of production for 20 years or better atleast.
I'm trying to find the original dual snorkel 5.0 H.O. air cleaner to get some cold air to it.
I ordered a Mac offroad underdrive Smog/Ac delete pulley kit, so that will improve the performance somewhat.

I'm going to wait until I get a Cam/lifter/timing chain before I install those Crane rockers though. I'm going to get some new hardened pushrods as well. The headers and duals will go on at the same time.

I did not use a torch on my car either. With PB Blaster sprayed on the bolts, hopefully they just loosen up. Bummer about having to keep the 3.08's in it. I'm so used to my 4.11's I just couldn't do it Now on those roller rockers and guide plates. Yes, you will need the hardened pushrods when you go to guide plates but what length? You normally have to measure for those. The other issue is if you have pdestal mount rocker heads then you need bolt down rockers. If they are not pedestal mount rockers, you need to mill down the stud boss by the thickness of the guide plate or it will raise all that stuff up and you can't adjust the valvetrain. For the timing, get a timing light! You can't just guess at the timing especially when you're talking about a degree or two. The new cam may require new lngth pushrods as well. Doing all the valvetrain pieces/cam/timing gear set at one time is a good idea. Are you going with long tube or short tube headers? Oh, for the air cleaner just get yourself a good aftermarket air cleaner with K&N filter. If you want the original dual snorkel, I've seen these pop up at the all Ford swap meet in Columbus, Ohio. That swap meet is held every spring and fall and has three to full buildings full at the Ohio State Fairgrounds. Great swap meet for Ford parts!

[metalchurch79]

I prefer lower gears as well, but given the condition of the SROD and the fact that this is my only car I need to plan my mods in order to minimize down time.
I'd really like to go with long tubes, because there really is no substitute.

I have a question regarding the 8.8:
The one I got had 5 lug axles, but the owner wanted them, so I get the 4 lugs out of another 8.8.

So, do i need a new crush collar now since the pressure was taken off of it when the axles were removed and the carrier wasn't tight against the pinion.
What about the "C" clips? Are they re-usable?

I am being told yes and no from various people, most of whom probably dont know.
Just tryin to have everything I need for when I do the swap.

Can I re-use the 7.5 backing plates/brakes, and drums onto the 8.8?
That would be nice, that way I wouldn't have to remove any brake lines.

Thanks guys
-Joe

Edit:
What about my driveshaft?
From what Ive read, the 8.8 drive shaft is 1-1/2" shorter.
So I'm wondering if it's ok that my d/s would be 1-1/2" deeper into the SROD because of the longer case of the 8.8
Just wondering if it'll take the fisting with a smile LOL

I'm not planning on any Duke boys jumps over Hazzard pond, or hauling fat chicks, so I dont think it would be that much of an issue, but then again....better safe than sorry

[roodyrocker]

I prefer lower gears as well, but given the condition of the SROD and the fact that this is my only car I need to plan my mods in order to minimize down time.
I'd really like to go with long tubes, because there really is no substitute.

I have a question regarding the 8.8:
The one I got had 5 lug axles, but the owner wanted them, so I get the 4 lugs out of another 8.8.

So, do i need a new crush collar now since the pressure was taken off of it when the axles were removed and the carrier wasn't tight against the pinion.
What about the "C" clips? Are they re-usable?

I am being told yes and no from various people, most of whom probably dont know.
Just tryin to have everything I need for when I do the swap.

Can I re-use the 7.5 backing plates/brakes, and drums onto the 8.8?
That would be nice, that way I wouldn't have to remove any brake lines.

Thanks guys
-Joe

Edit:
What about my driveshaft?
From what Ive read, the 8.8 drive shaft is 1-1/2" shorter.
So I'm wondering if it's ok that my d/s would be 1-1/2" deeper into the SROD because of the longer case of the 8.8
Just wondering if it'll take the fisting with a smile LOL

I'm not planning on any Duke boys jumps over Hazzard pond, or hauling fat chicks, so I dont think it would be that much of an issue, but then again....better safe than sorry

I'm not up on the 7.5 and 8.8 parts swaps between the two since I went to a 9" right off the bat. However, you mentioned your 8.8 had 5 lug axles which the owner kept. This makes me wonder whether someone swapped in Ranger axles as the Fox cars came with 4 lug with two exceptions. The Exceptions were the SVO Mustangs and the 93 Cobra R. Are you sure the 8.8 you got for it is from a Mustang?

[metalchurch79]

Yeah it's from a 92 GT, and he did have the 5 lug conversion on it.
I found the axles and rotors in the junkyard also, so I'm pretty much good to go.

I also found an '86 GT t-top w/out the motor for $300
Me and my brother are going 1/2's on it and I'm getting the T-5 out of it and he's using the body to swap the shit from his '87 GT onto it.
He wrecked it a few months ago, and the frame and quarter panels are all fucked up, so he needs a donor body
So I'm gettin a T-5 for $150 basically. Cant complain there man
I also found an 81 T-top Stang in the junkyard and I'm getting the complete Black interior includng the seats for $40

My 82 has Red interior, which is in great shape, but I want it to be all Black.

It's slowly coming together, but right now I can only do so much because of work and the weather.
I'm really enjoying this car alot, and it made turning 30 a little more bearable.
What I really like is that it's a rare car and I dont see any of them around here.
My girlfriend thinks it's ugly and she doesnt like riding in it, but thats ok with me. Atleast I know she wont ask to drive it or borrow it.

There's supposed to be a 15 acre all Ford junkyard around my area, but I dont know where it is exactly. My brother is doing some investigative work, so hopefully we can hit that up soon.

Do you guys have decent junkyards around your area?

[roodyrocker]

We have junkyards around here but not much in them as far as cool Mustang parts are concerned unfrotunately. If your girlfriend thinks the car is ugly I can get you shots of some more cars in competition from NMCA events that look downright wicked On the plus side, she doesn't want to drive your car so thats good. The T5 upgrade from a V8 car is good, now you just need some gears in that 8.8 rear like we discussed

[Cleveland Metal]

Pinion crush sleeve is fine as long as the pinion nut wasn't loosened or tightened.

Axle or carrier removal won't effect pinion crush sleeve. If you change carrier, or ring gear, then paint the gears for a pattern check and it's likely you'll need to re-setup the rear end for appropriate pattern.

[metalchurch79]

I got the 8.8 put in this past weekend and it's a dramatic difference in feel and performance compared to the worn 7.5 rear.
I added 4 clutches on each side of the traction lock, so it's locked up pretty good now.
It's a little wicked on wet roads, and I have to short shift it, or it throws me sideways, but I'm getting used to it.
The 7.5 had 3.73's in it, but I was told it had 3.45's.
I threw in some 3.55's for now, which is plenty for a daily driver.

I tore out the A/C, condenser, power steering, smog pump, and the clutch fan.
I added a '93 SHO Taurus dual electric fan, and the old style water pump so I can run my belt like the old V-belt style set-up.
Had to grab a ribbed water pump pulley from a '79 Grand Marquis to allow me to do this.

I found a double hump cross member in my shed, so headers and duals are on the list.
I threw in the Crane Roller rockers and some 3-3/4" Ford Racing alum valve covers.
Also did the 5 lug conversion and put the S/S Cragars on it and they fit really nice and add an old school look to it, which I prefer.

It's coming along pretty good considering I've had it for only 1 month at this point and the weather has prevented my from doing alot of stuff.

My only problem right now is that I'm getting some nasty wheel hop, but I'm going to get some good upper and lowers, so that should help that.

What type of control arms and/or traction bars are you guys using?
What about the rear sway bar? Would a thicker (87-93) sway bar help in this department?

Tryin to figure out how to get some pics up on here for you guys.
I might have to upload them on my friend's computer and then post them from his house. My usb port is fucked up....yadda, yadda

I found a '93 Lightning 351 Windsor motor, that's really making me think...
Looks like I'm gonna have to get another car to drive, cause this isn't gonna be out in the bad weather. I knew this was gonna happen, I just knew it!

Anyway, if you guys have any ideas on my traction problem, please let me know.
The 8.8 is from a 92 GT and has the Quad shock mounts, should I add those?
I heard that they actually hurt more than they help.

Thanks guys
-Joe

[Aso]

When you replace the upper and lower control arms on the rear take the time and weld up and box the torque boxes. It is really common for those to rip out on a fox body.

To fix the rear wheel hope just get a good set of upper and lower control arms. Mine has HP Motorsport Megabite Jrs but I don't believe they are made anymore.