t5 question

[toddf]

I don't have a 5th gear anymore
So I am wondering if I can rebuild to 2.95 world class specs, or do I need to get a 2.95 WC trans.

It seems like there are a million different t5's out there.

I have around 425ish horsepower so that is why I figure I should upgrade

thanks

todd

[wraithracing]

I don't recall all the specific differences between the non world class and the WC T5. I know one of the biggest difference was bearing quality. The WC used tapered roller bearings in locations that the Non WC did not. I believe that required changes in the actual case to fit those bearings. So I am not 100% sure what modifications if any it would require to change your NWC case to work with the WC setup. I would recommend talking with one of the T5 specialist such as Astro, Hanlon, GForce, etc. to verify.

Also truthfully, at 425HP you are well above the rating for a WC T5 and I believe even above the T5Z. I am not saying you can't keep a T5 alive behind that kind of power, but most likely you will want to consider an aftermarket upgrade well above the standard WC T5. The Saleen clone project I am working on for Erratic50 plans on @ 400-450 HP and he just spent well over $2K to upgrade his WC T5 to full G Force specs just as an FYI. Good Luck!

[erratic50]

The advantage of the Gforce and Astro gear sets is that when coupled with proper bracing they can hold huge power. By the time you factor in all the bracing and the gear sets you end up being rated at over 600 ft lbs.

Astro makes an aftermarket case that holds even more.

the one piece steel bearing retainer is as critical as the case bracing

I went with a Gforce 2.95:1 low, 0.59:1 overdrive set. Rear gears are 3.55. That overdrive gets it back to the cruising RPM of a 3.08 when rolling down the freeway with the acceleration and performance of 3.55’s in 1-4.

The RPM drop 4-5 will be 41% but that’s just fine. The car will be rolling way faster than I’ll ever want to drive it by the time 4th is at 6500 and it’s time to find 5th.

[homer302]

What are the numbers off your transmission? It's likely you already have a WC T5, which is nothing to brag about. The 4 cylinder T5s were World Class too. Doesn't make them strong. The Chevy S10s had WC T5s at one point. As stated above, forget about the whole WC myth and get some (GForce or others as mentioned above) parts.

[erratic50]

There is a way to build a WC T5 with 93 Cobra specs. It gets you a 2.95:1 low and 0.63:1 OD just like the T5Z from Ford Racing, but the down side is they are still only rated to 330 ft lbs.

There are metal treatments that can be used to step up and build for more torque but knowing what I spent to have that done on one it was a HUGE waste of money. $1100 plus the rebuildable case is not worth it.

The 1352-169 I had built for my 86GT got full Z spec and gear treatments, etc. It was warrantied at 1 yr/10K miles by the builder at up to 400 ft lbs. Guaranteed my worn out old mill barely breaks 330 but it’s had its way that Z build. It’s already making noise and within a year it will be on the ground again most likely. Granted I’m not nice to them at all.

That builder runs 3 stages on NOS for a total of a 350 shot of Nitrous on his E7 head forged internal 88 coupe. 650 ft lbs and 600 HP on slicks. He’s ran as fast as 10.20 and routinely hangs the hoops for the first 60 feet+, but he has to pull the T5Z build out for a full rebuild every season.... And honestly seeing my experience with his builds I’m not convinced that’s all he does.

The Gforce and Astro kits are a much better direction to go in.

I paid $2000 plus supplied a good working order 1352-169 T5 for the case. Got a complete gear set back in a box along with a built Gforce equipped transmission. When I total up the 13+ T5’s I’ve went through over the years it was nonsense to mess around with the factory crap.

If I had it to do again, I’d go to an Astro steel case to get the additional 150 ftlbs of rating the gear set show they will hold.