Need some major help here guys :-/

[MustangMatt1966]

Ok, so i have a few things to ask. I have a t-5 conversion. The transmission works fine, but when the car gets hot and the transmission gets hot, i cant put the car in reverse, the gears grind to the point it wont go in gear. Also, it gets harder and harder to put the car in gear the hotter the car gets. So my only guess is my transmission oil is low and getting to thin to the point the gears grind in revers and its hard to get it into gear, but when i get going it shifts ok...And then comes the point where i dont know how to check and see if the trani oil is low and then i dont know how to fill it...this whole situation is becoming a pain in the butt and its kinda getting me flustered when i have to push the car out of the parking spot cuz i cant put it in reverse.....can someone please help me

 

[MustangMatt1966]

bump please

 

[bdcardinal]

its normal for the t5-t45 transmissions to be hard to get into reverse. i know my 98 GT is almost impossible to get into reverse unless you put it in first and go forward a few inches. to check the fluid level, you need to get teh car into the air. there is a fill plug that you take out. the fluid should come up to the bottom of the fill plug.

what fluid was used? you really should use a synthetic ATF like Mobil 1 ATF or Redline ATF in a t5/t45 trans.

 

[MustangMatt1966]

i am not sure what fluid was used....the shop that put it in did it....so the car has to be in the air to check/fill the fluid.....it really pisses me off that i cant get it in revers, it shouldnt be that hard...

 

[Pathfinder65]

There are two drain plugs on the passenger side. Use your 3/8 socket handle to open the top one. It should be filled until fluid just starts to drip out. Unless you're skinny enough to get under there without lifting it, it's gonna have to be up a bit. Sometimes it's easier to get it in reverse if you go into 2nd gear before going in reverse.
Dave

 

[MustangMatt1966]

haha dave, u are talking to the right skinny person lol, ok, so use the 3/8ths socket on the TOP drain plug and fill it till it starts to leak out...now to what fluid to use??? bdcardinal said to use a synthetic in there, i was thinking about using royal purple?? would that work, if so what weight?
thanks for your help dave

 

[Pathfinder65]

ATF only. Manufacturer recommends Dextron II or III or Mercon. When I first installed the tranny I used the cheaper stuff until I was sure it was all in and functioning right(didn't want to have to drain away good expensive synthetic if something was buggered up ). Everything was fine so I drained that and put in a good synthetic.
I used a cheap pump designed for getting oil into motor boats. You should be able to pick one up at auto parts stores. It has a pump that fits into the bottle and a plastic line that you stick into the plug opening then start pumping away. Looks like one of these http://www.boatersworld.com/webapp/...48881&storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10051
Without one it's not going to be easy getting the ATF in there.
Dave

 

[wannabegt66]

use the royal purple max atf, works well and is what i used in mine. you can also use just regular dextron-mercon3. check your clutch cable adjustment this might be the reason it wont go into gear. also if you dont have one, get a shifter that has stops and eliminates that stupid rubber divider, it was the reason i over shifted second and ripped all the teeth off the gear...

 

[mdjay]

When it does that, shove it into first gear real quick, then back to reverse for another shot. Should resolve it.

 

[iskwezm]

Dont know if it will help you but,Ford had a TSB a while back on the T5,your supposed to put the trans in 5th then into reverse to align the synchros.

 

[nds03]

5th then reverse works every time

 

[meanroy]

Ok, so i have a few things to ask. I have a t-5 conversion. The transmission works fine, but when the car gets hot and the transmission gets hot, i cant put the car in reverse, the gears grind to the point it wont go in gear. Also, it gets harder and harder to put the car in gear the hotter the car gets. So my only guess is my transmission oil is low and getting to thin to the point the gears grind in revers and its hard to get it into gear, but when i get going it shifts ok...And then comes the point where i dont know how to check and see if the trani oil is low and then i dont know how to fill it...this whole situation is becoming a pain in the butt and its kinda getting me flustered when i have to push the car out of the parking spot cuz i cant put it in reverse.....can someone please help me

The transmission should be filled through the fill plug located on the passenger side of the transmission. Proper fill level is achieved when oil reaches the fill plug hole when transmission is level. It's a pain to fill. Some people use a funnel with a long hose on it, others think it's easier to fill through the shifter.
The T5s did NOT use gear oil, rather they used simple ATF fluid.

Your problem sounds more more like clutch isn't throwing out all the way to me. Is it hard to put in forward gears?
Do you have a hydraulic, original lever, or cable linkage?

Roy.

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Jeeze! I didn't see a single reply when I started this post. Must have been a brain spasm!

 

[MustangMatt1966]

original lever, its not a cable or hydralic.....i think it could be the clutch linkage because my pedals need to be adjusted, my clutch is almost to the floor and may not have enough "play" for the transmission to get into reverse.....i think my best bet would be to have the clutch adjusted and then have the transmission filled when its in the air, seems like too much of a pain in the butt to do while under the car....

 

[meanroy]

Diy!

original lever, its not a cable or hydralic.....i think it could be the clutch linkage because my pedals need to be adjusted, my clutch is almost to the floor and may not have enough "play" for the transmission to get into reverse.....i think my best bet would be to have the clutch adjusted and then have the transmission filled when its in the air, seems like too much of a pain in the butt to do while under the car....

Adjusting your clutch is not a big deal. You CAN do it yourself if you have two wrenches.

Jack it up, put jack stands in place (do NOT crawl under without jack stands!), and crawl under and look. It should be obvious how the adjustment works. Loosen the jam nut and screw the pointy thing (technical term) toward the throwout arm. Adjust so you have at least 1" of play at the top of the pedal. I set mine with about 2" of play.

It will make you feel good and remove some of the mystery to get some "hands-on" with your problems.

Roy.

 

[MustangMatt1966]

thanks roy, BUT, i think my problem is deeper than that....when i got my engine put in, the guy siad that, in early mustangs, there is a bar that runs across, parallel that the clutch, brake attach to, and there are bushings on them, he said mine are worn, and are causing my brake and clucth to slowly shift more and more, so my pedals are all crocked....so the bar needs to be replaced and its hard to get to....so that needs to be replaced no matter what, so i figured they would adjust the clutch when they replace that, and when they are doing that i am going to have them put a centerforce clutch in, and check the trani fluid level....so then hopefully all of my problems would be solved hopefully...let me know what u think

 

[MitchGT]

I would say to try adjusting your clutch to get more pedal travel. If you have to put the clutch pedal to the floor to shift, then the clutch plate might not be disengaging from the flywheel. I put in a hydraulic setup in mine when I put in my 5 speed, and I didn't adjust it properly. It was very difficult to put into reverse, and the pedal went almost to the floor.I could still shift into forward, but when I put the car in the air(on jackstands) and put it in gear, the tires would spin even with the clutch pushed all the way down! Definately needed to adjust that. It might be all you need. Also, they make a roller bearing clutch pedal support bracket. It might be overkill, but I like mine( and I needed a different bracket anyways as I used to have an automatic).

 

[MustangMatt1966]

yeah, i need to pretty much smash my clutch pedal to the floor and if it isnt all the way to the floor it wont go.....it needs to be adjusted..definately...