86-95 5.0L Clutch Swap Help

5spd GT

"the 5.0 owns all"
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Aug 7, 2002
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How A Clutch Works


Clutch Kit Part Numbers for 86-95 5.0L

Looking for 10.4-10.5 Inch Clutch Disc – 10 spline – 1 1/16th input shaft

Ford Racing Heavy Duty Clutch (30%) - FMS-M-7560-A302N
Ford Racing King Cobra (30% - Lighter pedal than HD) - FMS-M-7560-C302N

Centerforce Stage I Pressure Plate (30%) - CF-360048
Centerforce Stage II Pressure Plate (60% more holding power) - CFT-360048
Centerforce Stage I Pressure Plate for 93-95 Cobra - CF-360057
Centerforce Stage II Pressure Plate for 93-95 Cobra - CFT-360057
Centerforce Clutch Disc for Stage I/II Pressure Plate - CTF-381021
Centerforce Dual Friction Clutch for 86-93 (90% more holding power) - CTF-DF021048
Centerforce Dual Friction for 93-95 Cobra (Fits 86-95 but has more clamping force) - CTF-DF021057
Centerforce DFX series for 86-95 (Lightweight Centerforce Clutch Disc) - CTF-LM021057

Spec Stage I Clutch Kit – SF481 (30% more holding power)
Spec Stage II Clutch Kit – SF482 (60% more holding power)
Spec Stage III Clutch Kit – SF483 (100% more holding power)

Centerforce has the lightest pedal in the aftermarket.


Throwout Bearings and Bearing Retainers

Ford Racing Throwout Bearing - FMS-M-7548-A
Centerforce Throwout Bearing - CTF-N1714
Ford Racing Steel Bearing Retainer for 1983-1993- FMS-M-7050-A
Ford Racing Steel Bearing Retainer for 1994/1995- FMS-M-7050-B
D&D Performance Steel Bearing Retainer for 1985-1993 – AC3
D&D Performance Steel Bearing Retainer for 1994/1995 – AC34


94/95 Bearing Retainers are 17mm longer.

Clutch Cables and Quadrants

OEM Style Ford Racing Clutch Cable/Clutch Fork for 79-93 - FMS-M-7553-A302
Adjustable Ford Clutch Cable and Quadrant - FMS-M-7553-B302

Miscellaneous Bolts/Clutch Alignment Tools/Seals

Ford Pressure Plate Bolts - FMS-M-6397-A302
Ford Pressure Plate Bolts and Flywheel Dowel Pin Set - 397-M-6397-A302
ARP Flywheel Bolts - ARP-100-2801
ARP Flywheel Bolts - ARP-200-2802 (slightly stronger strength)
ARP Starter Bolt Kit - ARP-450-3501
ARP Thread Sealer - ARP-100-9904
Mr. Gasket Clutch Alignment Tool - MRG-6942
Centerforce Clutch Alignment Tool - CTF-52010
Transmission fluid – Dexron/Mercron III ATF fluid for the T5
Ford Racing 79-95 Aluminum Driveshaft - FMS-M4602G
Rubber Rear Main Seal - FELPRO BS40644 or Napa JV1635
Teflon Rear Main Seal - FPP-2941*

*A Teflon seal over a stock rubber seal provides a higher temperature rating (500*F), wide fluid compatibility, good mechanical sealing properties, lower friction, & reduced shaft wear compared to stock rubber. They are very small differences though.

"Speedi-Sleeve" for crank by Chicago Rawhide P/N 99362.

The Speedi-Sleeve is if your crank has a little groove where you rear main seal is, it is a bushing type seal that sits over your crank and gives it a smooth surface. Your local parts stores may have the crank sleeves as well for cheaper.

Suggested Parts and Checklist for Clutch Install

Clutch Disc
Pressure Plate
Throwout Bearing
Pilot Bearing*
Rear Main Seal*
New or Resurfaced Flywheel
Steel Throwout Bearing Retainer*
3 quarts of Mercon ATF fluid for the T5 (Takes 2.7 Quarts)*
Clutch Alignment Tool
Loc-Tite (Driveshaft Bolts)
Bearing Grease
RTV Silicone*
Gasket Scraper*
Degreaser*
Torque Wrench
Ratchet Wrench with combo of swivels and extensions
Shifter Bolts – 1/2 (13mm)
Manifold to H-pipe Bolts – 5/8"
H-pipe to Catback Bolts – 5/8"
02 Sensors – 7/8"
Driveshaft Bolts – 12 point 12mm Wrench
Starter Bolts – 3/8"
Speed Sensor Bolt – 10mm
Transmission/Bellhousing Bolts – 5/8"
Pressure Plate – 7/16 or 1/2"
Flywheel – 3/4"

*If needed

You can reuse all bolts if they are in good shape during a clutch swap and keeping a nice array of sockets and deep well sockets is a good idea.

Torque Specifications

Flywheel Bolts – 75-85 ft. lbs
Pressure Plate – 24 ft. lbs
Steel Bearing Retainer Bolts - 24 ft. lbs
Bellhousing Bolts– 45-65 ft. lbs
Transmission Bolts – 45-65 ft. lbs
Starter Bolts – 6-11 ft. lbs
Driveshaft Bolts – 70-95 ft. lbs
Shifter Bolt into Transmission Housing - 6-11 ft. lbs

Transmission Speedometer Gear Chart

Steel/Iron and Aluminum Flywheel

Ford Racing Iron Flywheel Stock Replacement – 21 lbs - 397-M-6375-B302
Centerforce Aluminum Flywheel – 11.9 lbs - CTF-900320
Centerforce Steel Flywheel – 27.6 lbs - CTF-700320
Fidanza Aluminum Flywheel – 13.5 lbs - # 186501

Clutch Swap Disassembly, Install, and Reassembly

Disclaimer – Do at your own risk and research.

First jack up the car safely and securely on all four corners and the more room underneath the better so you can remove and install items much easier. Proper jack and jack stand placement is key for safety. A friend or two is probably the best way to go about the install. You will find yourself needing more hands than you have pretty quickly.

Go ahead and disconnect the negative side of the battery. Go ahead and remove the shifter (or at least the handle) so you can drop the transmission without the shifter holding it in due to rubbing. Four bolts hold it to the transmission and two bolts hold the shift lever on the shifter base. Pull up on the shifter using the handle if you choose to remove it completely. It will give you better leverage but be careful when it finally pops loose because you might go flying back or scratch interior pieces with the shifter. I put towels around the console to prevent this. Next I would go under the car and start unbolting your mid-pipe, which is held on by a total of 8 bolts (2 for each point of connection). They can be a pain to remove if they haven’t been removed in a while they can seize to the studs/bolts. Use some wd40 or Liquid Wrench to help with this process. A combination of extensions and a swivel would be a good start to getting to the manifold/h-pipe connections. Make sure before you completely drop the pipe that the 02 sensors are disconnected. You can use a flathead screwdriver to pop off the harness connection. Pull the mid-pipe from underneath the car. Now would be a good time to clean it off from all the road grime. Next I go to remove the driveshaft which is held in by 4 bolts in where you will need a 12 point 12 mm socket or wrench to fit over the bolts perfectly. The driveshaft bolts are commonly very stubborn to get off. If you can get a break-over bar on the bolts then you should be able to break them loose. I use the appropriate wrench and put a hollow bar over it and break them loose that way. It helps on the leverage. When you go to remove the bolts you will need to rotate the driveshaft to get an angle on the bolts. When you find the right angle put the car in gear (take your shifter and temporarily install it on the transmission and stick it in gear) and put on the e-brake to prevent the back tires from turning so you can break the bolts loose. Once you have removed all 4 bolts you are now ready to remove the driveshaft. When you pull the driveshaft out from its trans housing do not be surprised if transmission fluid comes out (normal). You can buy the driveshaft “plugs” that will be placed where the driveshaft was inputted or you can use a rubber band and Ziploc baggy and rig it up to catch any of the fluid so you don’t loose to much.

Now that the driveshaft is removed you can go ahead and undo any transmission connections that are on the transmission. You need to remove the neutral safety switch that pulls off and the speedometer gear which is held on by one 10mm bolt. Pull them out of the way so they don’t snag on anything. Remove any other connections that you may notice like the clutch cable which is held onto the clutch fork and also held on by a small C-clip so do not lose it. I then start to remove the transmission bellhousing bolts, typically just keeping the transmission and bellhousing together. Most of them are 5/8’s bolts with a couple smaller ones near the bottom. Make sure you loosen all the bolts because some go up near the lower intake of the engine and can be accessed thru the engine bay or if you have smaller hands, you can reach them from the bottom. Your transmission crossmember and bellhousing alignment dowel pins are holding the transmission right now. I next remove the starter, which is held on by 2 bolts, and I don’t undo the connections and just zip tie underneath the car and out of the way. I would go ahead and start bringing a good jack underneath the car accompanied with your buddy to get ready to remove the transmission. Two bottom bolts hold it on and two studs go through the side mounted to the body of the car. Remove all 4 of these with the jack properly supporting the transmission while your doing this. Make sure the jack sits flush and has a good balancer on it to accompany the bulkiness of the transmission. With all the bolts and connections undone you can go ahead and start pulling on the transmission towards the rear of the car as to release the input shaft from the pilot bearing and clutch assembly while also letting the bellhousing coming off the dowel pins. Make sure the engine is supported because it doesn’t have the transmission’s weight to counter the tilt. Another jack would be nice. Put a board to even out the weight distribution over the oil pan. Once the input shaft is clear of the clutch assembly (as not to get damaged) and you have wiggled it loose go ahead and drop the transmission slowly while not tilting it so you don’t loose transmission fluid through the speedometer gear hole. Remove the transmission out of the way from the bottom of the car. It would be a good time to clean the transmission, crossmember, and driveshaft at this point. Use some degreaser and some “elbow grease” at your local car wash to help you out. You can clean up the bottom end of the car the same way. Good time to do it right? Check your input shaft bearing retainer and shaft itself for scouring or any other kind of damage. It is a good idea to replace all your clutch assembly parts together. Now you can go ahead and remove your pressure plate/clutch disc. If you want to reuse the pressure plate and disc for some reason, back the 6 pressure plate bolts off evenly as not to warp the plate or disc. When you loosen it watch out because it is heavier than one would think so be ready to catch it or have your friend hold on to it. Once removed you can check the disc and pressure plate for problems and wear to see what is going on with your car. You can now see the flywheel that is held on by 6 bolts as well. These bolts are on pretty tight and I personally use an impact wrench to remove the bolts. I do them evenly as well to prevent any kind of warping. The flywheel weighs 21 pounds or so, so be ready to catch it as well. Remove the flexplate (goes between bellhousing and block). Once the flywheel is removed and out of the way, inspect the teeth on it and condition of the clutch disc mating surface. You may need a new teeth ring gear or you may not. You will want to have your flywheel resurfaced, aka turned, at your local machine shop. They can charge anywhere from $25-$40 bucks for the resurfacing. It will provide for a nice smooth, unspotted, fresh surface for your new disc and pressure plate to work with. Well worth the money if you consider the negatives of not doing it. Since the flywheel is removed you can now see the rear main seal and pilot bearing. If the rear main seal is not leaking DO NOT touch it because it is doing it’s job. A rear main seal install can be tricky. If you see you need to remove it because it is leaking, you can use a flathead screwdriver to pinch the seal and remove it. You can use a slide hammer as well. You DO NOT want to scratch the crankshaft at all when removing the seal. If you do you will need to put on a sleeve to prevent it from leaking. So be very careful on the crankshaft end. Some have put a screwdriver on the block side of the seal and pried it out CAREFULLY to remove it. Once removed, clean up the crankshaft and block area where the seal goes into it and put some oil in there to help the seal to go in smoother. I would go ahead and clean the back of your heads and block while your at it. Simple Green and some nice clean smooth rags will be suffice. To install the new rear main seal you want to take your time with this. Put some oil on the inside ring of the seal where it rides on the crankshaft itself. Install the rear main seal EVENLY. You can use the old rear main seal to tap against it to put the seal in the housing. Tap it in a circle slightly and put it flush with the block. Don’t bottom out the seal. Some like to put silicone on the outside ring of the seal (where it meets the block) – it acts like a bridge to keep the oil away. Don’t put any high-temp silicone on the seal part where it meets the crankshaft because it needs to turn, not like it would stop it from turning.

I would go ahead and inspect the pilot bearing by rubbing your “clean” finger in the hole to see if you feel any scouring or rough edges that could affect the ability for your input shaft to function properly and smoothly. If it seems smooth and visually looks good I would go ahead and keep it in there. You can change it out if you like replacing parts while you are doing the transmission swap. Put some grease in the pilot bearing hole and get a brass punch the same diameter of the hole. You then stick the punch in the hole and hammer the punch into the grease to remove the bearing hydraulically. The bearing will push out as you use the grease as a displacement. You may need to add grease a couple times as more surface area is revealed and it will eventually come out. You may also use a slide hammer on the pilot bearing as well. Most pilot bearings are pre-greased from the factory but I put a little more bearing grease on the inside/outside to help with lubrication. Take your bearing and install it how it came out. Tap it in a circular motion evenly so it doesn’t become offset. Make it flush with the block as well I believe. You are now ready to reinstall the flywheel. Take the new or resurfaced flywheel and rotate it so the bolt holes (they are offset) match with the flywheel holes and put in a couple bolts to hold the flywheel up there. Before doing this though I would clean up the crankshaft threads a bit of any oil. Just as well MAKE SURE you clean all the clutch assembly parts well before installing them with some carburetor or brake cleaner to take off human grease and rust inhibitors. Anyways, once the flywheel is held up there go ahead and get some loc-tite and apply them on the threads of the flywheel bolts. That is all I have needed and I have no oil leak. Some use thread sealer for extra security from leaks. Put all the bolts in with some loc-tite and go ahead and start tightening them in a “star” pattern evenly. Torque the flywheel bolts to 75-85 ft. lbs. Make sure you clean off the flywheel of any oil or grease from your hands so it doesn’t effect clutch performance and grab. Next you can go ahead and get your clutch disc ready and I’m hoping you got a clutch alignment tool (10 spline – 1/16th input shaft size) and make sure the clutch disc is facing the correct way. Most will be labeled either ENGINE SIDE or FLYWHEEL SIDE. Put the alignment tool in the clutch disc and stab it into the pilot bearing. It may support itself. Get your buddy to hold the input shaft as evenly as he can while you take the pressure plate and set it on the flywheel alignment dowel pins (you need those alignment dowel pins to align and balance the pressure plate properly). The pressure plate will sit on the pins and hold itself. Now get your 6 pressure plate bolts and start threading them in. Go ahead and tighten the pressure plate bolts in a star pattern (evenly and go thru it a few times so you don’t warp the plate). While it is being tightened have your friend have the clutch alignment tool centered for best performance. Torque the pressure plate bolts to 24 ft. lbs. It probably wouldn’t hurt to put a bit of loc-tite on those bolts but it isn’t completely necessary. You now have the clutch assembly put together. Remove the clutch alignment tool.

Go back to your transmission and check your throwout bearing (TOB) for wear but I would suggest replacing it anyways because it is fairly cheap. Pay attention to how the old one is installed on your retainer shaft. Remove it off the clips and install the new one and check to see if it rides smoothly and turns. You can do this by moving the clutch fork (natural movement) up and down the shaft. Put some high-temp grease on the throwout bearing where it mates against the pressure plate forks. A tip: The big end of the throwout bearing goes against the pressure plate teeth. You are now ready to install the transmission. Put it on the jack for support and get your buddy to help you jack it up there. Keep in mind that the input shaft on your transmission has to slide in smoothly into the input shaft. You may need to spin the input shaft so it will slide into the disc. As you are getting the spline to line up you need to make sure the bellhousing alignment dowel pins are still in place and that the bellhousing slides over them which will help align everything properly. Go ahead and install the bellhousing and transmission bolts and tighten them up to 45-65 ft. lbs. If it doesn’t slide in you need to check for any clearance issues or objects in the way. You should not have to pull the transmission on with any bolts, so be mindful of that. Tighten all the bolts down tight so they won’t come loose. Start reconnecting the clutch cable with the clip and onto the clutch fork. Reinstall the speedometer gear (a good time to replace it by the way if it is all chewed up) and the neutral safety switch. It would be a good idea to go ahead and put on the crossmember to hold up the transmission and then remove the jack from underneath the car. You may now get ready to install your driveshaft. Pull your fluid plug or Ziploc bag away and slide the driveshaft splines into the transmission and start threading in the driveshaft bolts. Put loc-tite on them because you definitely don’t want them bolts to come loose. Torque them down to 70-95 ft. lbs. Go ahead and put on the mid-pipe and check for any kind of wires or connections that might melt on the exhaust pipes. Fix it with a couple zip ties. Screw-in and plug up your 02 sensors. Do a quick visual check underneath the car for anything loose or not needed. Go inside your car and reinstall your shifter. Clean the shifter mounting area with a gasket scraper of the old silicone or gasket being careful not to get any in your transmission. Lay down a bead of high-temp silicone around the mounting area and bolt the shifter down (4 bolts) and reinstall the shifter lever/cover/and knob after your sure you got the stop bolts and shifter shifting properly. Just as well make sure the cover is installed around the shifter to keep dirt out of your interior and road noise down. Finally reconnect the battery and clean-up.

The install is now done but when aftermarket pieces are applied you will need to adjust where the clutch engages and disengages to your liking. There are aftermarket pieces like clutch cable firewall adjusters, adjustable clutch cables, and aftermarket quadrants from Maximum Motorsports, UPR, Steeda, Summit Racing, etc. Replacing the stock plastic quadrant is a good idea and can soften up your pedal as well with the feel. I have seen and learned from personal experience that an OEM non-adjustable cable with a firewall adjuster is a great combo to have and keeps the pedal feel softer than what it could be.

Follow proper break-in procedure by being easy on the car for the first 400-500 miles to properly seat everything.

Using an Adjustable Firewall Adjuster

Facing the firewall and turning:

Turning the firewall adjuster clockwise adds more slack to the cable. This causes a lower point of engagement.

Turning the firewall adjuster counterclockwise removes slack from the cable by tightening. This equates to a higher point of engagement.

If you turn the firewall adjuster to much counterclockwise, you remove all the free play and start to preload the cable. The pedal will feel harder.

Shoot for no slack and no preload, getting a happy median between the two.

Finally, Good Luck!
 
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its a good write up... just get a McLeod kit from maximum motorsports... they will suggest the right setup for your type of driving. Mines amazing..i took a sprung hub with a stage 2 disk..super strong and a nice pedal feel..about 30% stiffer than stock
 
i would also suggest getting a steel bearing retainer ( thats the thing that the TOB slides on) on the input shaft of the tranny . TOB = throw out bearing. and also when you install the bearing retainer, be careful not to damage the seal (on the insisde). torque the 4 bolt to 24ft-lbs.
 
ohhh..and the thing about centrforce having the lightest pedal feel is bull****. Try a Mcleod, trust me. high quality stuff man

Please keep the language out of this:)

I have actually had my 'foot' on the pedal of a McLeod. Nice feel, but it was not as soft as the 3 Centerforce clutches I have had/tried. Centerforce has the lightest pedal feel for the performance for sure. The Dual Friction holds up too 2x the stock power and has a stock pedal effort. I did not say it was the best clutch, but the softest aftermarket.

Other than that, thanks for the tips.
 
Would something like the Centerforce Dual Friction clutch be "too powerful" for a car that was pretty much stock with probably a rebuilt t5? One thing you could enclude in the write up is maybe what HP range your Mustang should be in to use a specified clutch. I'm trying to decide which one I want but I don't want to blow anything up because it is too powerful.
 
Would something like the Centerforce Dual Friction clutch be "too powerful" for a car that was pretty much stock with probably a rebuilt t5? One thing you could enclude in the write up is maybe what HP range your Mustang should be in to use a specified clutch. I'm trying to decide which one I want but I don't want to blow anything up because it is too powerful.

Well typically the stronger clutch can take a toll on your transmission, but with the stock style power you have, and even with the weaker link t5, you should be good to go:nice:

I did put the % increase in power the clutches can hold over stock power which is 225hp and 300 ft. lbs of torque (stock). So then you just have to do the math:)

Georgie - Yeah, I try to comment on parts I have tried:nice: Those McLeod clutches are extremely nice, and some a bit steep in price - similar to Centerforce. I was just giving you information on what I have felt/seen and heard about.
 
A wonderful tutorial back from the dead! I wanted to add, for those replacing their Throwout Bearing Retainer with a steel one, you will need an input shaft seal. My local auto parts store has one from National Oil Seals, part #7412S. This brand is apparently owned by Federal Mogul, so it should be a good seal.

You'll also have to remove the front wheel bearing inner cup and a shim from the old Throwout Bearing Retainer, but in my case I was able to gently wiggle them out without damaging them.
 
I got a heavy duty and the pedal is a little stronger than stock but I like it. My budy had the king and it was either in or out. There was no play in it. I also have the bbk cable kit but I took off the alm qud but left the wall adj because it was too tight.


First post from phone.

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