85.03 Crown Vic Coupe "CVGT"

[sly]

I agree with that... but my knees don't any more... so I stay with the slushbox.

[88Vic]

Um, I believe Logan's is a 2 door & pretty fast......

I hope to see it run down the strip @ S.F.

It's not a Town Car either, I was referring to my car. Maybe if mine had at least an Explorer engine, I might consider a manual. If it had a torquey engine like a Lightning 351 with a roller cam and headers, I'd for sure do it. I've got a 5spd in my Sierra but with an old 305 it's not really fun to drive. I definitely prefer it to an auto, I specifically looked for a pickup with a manual, but I wouldn't go to the trouble of swapping a manual into a slow car, needs the engine power to be worth it.

[Bobcat]

Brother has a box Town Car with a stick in it and it's plenty of fun. Stock lopo.

Also,
My car will not be running at the track. Since it'll be down there most likely on the last leg of its rear end and tranny.

PS: Lightning motors aren't the choice when building a 351. You want a roller block or a 60-70s block, if you're going to convert to roller. Lightning motors are junk overall. Weak blocks, solid lifters, shitty cam, low compression. Not much of a gain, other than heads and intakes.

[gadget73]

A lot of really fast cars run autos just for consistency.

Dunno, I like manuals, but not in a panther. The shifter setup looks way too truck-like for it to really work for me.

[pantera77]

I had 275 40 18s on the front of my coupe, on an 18x9 wheels.

They did not rub, and I did not cut the fenders. There are certainly pictures around here somewhere.

Which front sway bar did you run?

With my 92+ Addco my 255's rub at full lock, although I've never had an issue with the fender lip. IIRC some people had rubbing issues with stock size tires and that bar though, so I'll blame the sway bar.


As for the standard vs. automatic argument, it really depends on the car. I'd never put a stick in my 92, it's far too slow and boaty. The 89 on the other hand was very different.
My 92 is extremely boring to drive, but I get in it, turn the key and go, so it has it's purpose. Driving the Dakota is much more fun. It's not fast, but the 4.7 puts out enough power to be fun, especially when rowing your own gears.
I fully plan to put my t5z in the tudor when I get a chance. It's fun with it's WR AOD and lentech v/b, and it will bawk the 1-2 hard, but it would be more fun if my left foot was controlling the bawks. That's far down the project line though.

What sucks is that there's not a good cheap trans for us, the modular guys have way more options in that regard. Not to mention any used t5 you find has probably had the shit beat out of it already. They aren't known to be the strongest trans in the world, and add another half a ton to move around with some more power it's just a matter of time. That's the main reason I deiced to buy that street terminator AOD for the 87. If I could have found a used TKO for the same price I may have gone that route instead, but a manual puts a lot more stress on the driveline at the track.

It's really a matter of preference. Most modern auto's will out shift a manual and get better if not equal fuel economy. An AOD is far from a modern auto though, and in stock form they are complete rubbish in these cars IMO. It's a dieing breed of those who want to row their own gears. Besides for sports cars or super base model econoboxes, good luck finding one today. Also, I'm a big fan of the old school through the floor shifter. No center console BS.

[Bobcat]

You make some pretty respectable points.

The story behind my T5 is that it came out of a 93' LX vert and was put aside as a backup track tranny for a drag racer. It never got used and he wanted to liquidate all of his mustang parts, so I bought it. I must say, when I put it in.. It shifted great, no gears whined and everything was splendid. Then third started to whine. (It would spin first and second and then hook third) Then second started to whine (I figured I should stop beating on it so hard, so I only would boil the tire through first and then chirp second.) Fourth started to grind going into gear. Reverse pops out and makes noise in the gear, even if the clutch is in. At this point, I'm assuming my tranny fluid has a very very nice metallic look to it.

My T5 would've been great, if I never dumped the clutch so often and just drove it casually.

[88Vic]

Also shifter stops help in a T5, my 87 LX 5.0 had them with a B&M shifter and it was great, loved the mechanical stop feel in all the gears. It saved you from banging gears and ruining the transmission.

I want another fox so bad, with a mild cam, GT40 heads/intake and headers/exhaust they're a super fun car, to me it was a rush to drive every time.

[Bobcat]

My vic gives me a rush to drive everyday..

Because you always have that slight feeling, that you're going to die. Because racecar.


I knew what would've helped my T5 from the get-go. I was going to get a cluster support and a shifter. But I figured why even waste my time, when I'm going to blow it up regardless. Let it be now, with the open diff or farther down the road with wide tires and a traction lock.

[P72Ford]

More often than not, I have found that people's inability to shift a standard transmission quickly boils down to their fear of blowing it up.

I used to run my Mustang at the track about twice a month. '12 GTCS (loaded car). 3.55s, Kook's cat back, stock airbox, stock tune, MGW shifter, UPR rear suspension (everything), and drag radials. I ran a best of 12.68 @ 110. One night when it wasn't very busy at the track, there was a newer Camaro, and a newer challenger in the staging lanes. Both were cammed, headers, intake, all kinds of goodies, and the Challenger even had slicks. Both standard shift cars, and both running in the 13s (I ran 12.80s that night). On seperate occasionas they both approached me to ask abvout my set-up. Neither could believe I had a stock tune, etc.

When I watched these guys run (granted, they were both heavier cars), I just don't think they knew how to launch the car (with sticky tires, its a fine line between bogging the engine and going up in smoke), or shift it. You have to shift it like you mean it; but you also can't be a cave man either. I read these stories about guys snapping shifters off and I am like...

Swift, and without a fear of grenading it is the best way to shift it. It also helps to have a transmission that will withstand the rigors of its atmosphere.

I agree on the lack of an affordable robust overdrive manual. TKOs are great, but the 2-3 shift inefficiences in stock form almost mandate additional Liberty upgrades out of the box. $$$. You have to pay to play, though. I don't have a plan yet for my '65, but it will definitely be a stick, and I will definitely be racing it on sticky tires. So... probably need something better than a T5 in there, even at 2500 pounds.

[mitymerc]

I ran liberty gearsets (all fwd gears except 5th) in quite a few t-5's. Sweet powershifts, but a bear to drive on the street.

[Bobcat]

I'm currently tied between rebuilding this one over the winter or upgrading to something else. I still fear that I'll blow up the upgraded one, being that.. As Nate knows.. I constantly.. Beat on the car. My clutch cable has been adjusted shitty for awhile so I don't shift at the speed it possibly could be shifted at. I also try to be a little slow, so that the trans will last somewhat longer than it could've. The car isn't being built for comfort, I want it to have the full ability to go up to limerock and not just be a shitty land yacht, hence all the time I've been putting into planning my suspension. I also plan to drive the car across country, sometime soon. So I always try to mind the idea of having a low overdrive, that's one of the reasons I've contemplated selling my 3.73s I've got laying around and going lower. But also factors into that, is that when I run a single turbo on the car, the gears may be too low (Too high of a number.) and break the tires loose when it hits boost. I drive the car like I don't care to break it, because I truly don't. I've built the entire drivetrain up to the rear and I have no fear of swapping out pieces of it.

Things that are currently on the to-do list.
- Get new rear tires mounted when they show up.
- Headlights (Atleast put some new sealed beams in.)
- Aero rear end
- Brakes all around, I'm planning to use EBC pads (Going to call them and talk it over some more.) and drilled and slotted rotors all around. (I get rotors cheap from work, then I know a guy who zinc coats and does Dotting, slotting and drilling)
- Bilstein or Afco shocks.
- T5 overhaul
And eventually..
Powerstroke turbo with an intercooler.


Hopefully one day I'll be proud of the car. Probably not. But atleast it'll do good burnouts and as the all mighty Nate Fox would classify it as: Bigggg.. Steammm..

[sly]

If I were you, I'd be getting the TKO or something else beefier than the T5 ready for when the T5 totally shits itself so it's a quick swap. Always better to have the stuff ready to go than to have the fun car down for weeks on end.

[gadget73]

My method for keeping transmissions together was to never drive one that pretended to be sporty. You can't speed shift a VW Beetle, even if it has dual carbs and you're a dumb teenager. All that happens is the shifter moves or the linkage comes apart and you lose the gears until you put it back together. Same if you're driving a pickup truck. The transmissions simply will not shift in a manner that is conducive to blowing it up unless you're the "grind it till you find it" sort.

[88Vic]

Gonna have to change the fluid in my Sierra to GM Synchromesh fluid, otherwise it might not last as long as the 305, and I need it to last while I decide what engine to drop in: 350 or LS3.

Also with how much you say you beat on that car, if I were you I'd keep a set of 235/60 on the turbines so you can burn rubber a lot cheaper than 18's. Burn through a set of 18's and you might as well set a stack of 100's on fire.

[DerekTheGreat]

No slushbox for you, do it right, get a TKO. I might fork over the cash for one when my NV3500 goes out in my truck and I build a fresh 350 for it.

We've got a SM465 in the GMC but with 4.10's out back it's top speed is about 50mph haha. I'd like to throw a NV3500 in it's place so when do you think you'll be taking yours out?

I like manuals because I've never driven an auto that shifted it where I wanted it to. Not as bad when you've got plenty of power but gets worse the slower the vehicle. We have an International 4300 straight truck at work with an auto and it annoys me, always shifts early or late. Had a Freightliner M2 106 at my last job with a 6spd manual, had more power and you could drive it so much easier.

That said, I probably wouldn't put one in my car, just doesn't seem right to put a manual in a 4-door Town Car, much less a dirt slow stock one. When I have my AOD rebuilt, I'll just have a small aux cooler and shift kit installed for firmer shifts and extend its life a bit. Other that that, AOD is fine for a big slow luxury boat. In a smaller, quicker car like a Mustang, a manual is the only option.

I like manuals for that reason too, I like only having one clutch and less moving bits. I do think autos are fine for luxury boats so I'd never put a stick in one either, would be fun to drive though.