Ive been looking for a manual transmission to drop in da range. And i'm wondering if the manuals used in the 4 cyl trucks are different than the 6 cyl's? I've found quite a few 4 cyl rangers with manual trans, but im having a hard time finding a v6 trans in good shape.

 

for '90 and up rangers there are actually 6 different manual transmissions. each engine has a different bellhousing pattern (2.3, 3.0, and 4.0) and the 2wd and 4wd versions are different. so you will need to find a manual transmission for the exact engine you have and in 2wd or 4wd depending on what your truck is. the bellhousings are not interchangeable and the only way to change one of the transmissions from a 2wd to a 4wd is to completely disassemble the transmission to swap the output shafts and then reassemble it with the correct output housing on it. So basically find the correct transmission for your application.

 

As far as I know the 3.0 and 4cyl transmissions use the same tranny. The 4.0 SOHC engine uses a similar transmission but it's beefed up to handle the extra power the 4.0 puts out.

 

His profile says that he has an 84 Ranger. According to RPS, an 84 took a Toyo Koygo trans that was offered in 4 and 5 speed versions and it looks like it did have interchangeable bellhousings.

http://www.therangerstation.com/tech...nsmission.html

 

no, the 4-cyl, 3.0, and 4.0 all use different transmissions because they all have different bellhousing patterns. all of the engines technically use the Mazda M5OD-R1 however as i mentioned there are 6 different versions of that transmission. if you want to know what they are read my post above yours.

well he doesn't have a signiture and didnt put any information about the truck in the question so i gave the most common answer i could. also if he needs a new transmission there is no reason to replace his with another crappy TK tranny. the M5OD is a much better tranny and can be bolted into the older trucks with little or no modifications necessary, again it is just a matter of getting the correct transmission for the engine he has. if he has a 4-cyl then get an M5OD from a 90-up 4-cyl in either 2wd or 4wd (whichever he has). If he has the 2.8 or the 2.9 then get an M5OD from a 90-up 4.0 in either 2wd or 4wd (whichever he has). If he gives us some information about the truck and what he is planning to do I can give much more exact advice, however going off no information I just try and give the best general answer that i can.

 

Good point! My bad guys.
'84, 2.8, C-3 auto, 2wd. Looking for a 4 or 5 speed trans. If I can use a newer trans I probably will, I've found a fair amount of newer Rangers than mine in the yards. But I would like to get one that is tough, and reliable.

 

I cant give advice on what will fit, but check out EBay seller Kormex Transmission. I got a good rebuilt tranny from them for $700 shipped including a $150 core (that I have to return yet)

 

ok cool, the 2.8, 2.9 and 4.0 all have the same bellhousing, and the Mazda M5OD-R1 (the ranger 5-speed tranny) from ANY 4.0 2wd ranger will work for you. switching from an auto to a manual will require a few more parts than just the transmission. first of all for the transmission, again anything with a 4.0 and 2wd will have the transmission you want, so try and find a low mileage one in the junkyard, normally junkyard trannies around me are about 300 bucks or so... and remember to get it from a ranger with a 4.0 and 2wd between 90 and 06. you will also need a flywheel and clutch, now i believe you can use the 4.0 flywheel and clutch, however let me do some research to make sure that you dont need to stick with a 2.8 flywheel and clutch (the auto doesnt use a flywheel which is why you need that too). you will want to get the interior parts like the pedal assembly from a 1st or 2nd generation truck and you will want the hydraulic clutch mater cylinder from a later 2nd gen or possibly a 3rd gen truck. you will probly want the shifter and boot setup from the same truck as you get the tranny from if you can grab it and you will need to make a small hole in the floor plate of your truck for the shifter to fit through. stick with the newer boot because the actual shifter for the M5OD tranny is different than the older trannies (again, this should be an easy part to find as it can be from any 90+ 5-speed truck). and I think the last part you should need is a driveshaft from any 5-speed 2wd truck from 90ish-up that is the same configuration as your truck, be it extended cab, or regular cab short bed or regular cab long bed. the driveshaft for each body style is a different length and you have to have a shaft that was behind a 2wd M5OD. if you have an extended cab then it may be worth getting a 98+ one piece driveshaft to replace the 2 piece shaft with the carrier bearing (this requires a couple small things to be done, but nothing major). and again, it will need to be a shaft that was behind a 2wd 5-speed truck from 90ish-up because the output of the 5-speed tranny is different from that of the auto. I'll check on which flywheel you will need in the next day or so and get back to you. let me know if you have anymore questions.

 

Sweet! Thanks for the info. Ive done a 5 speed conversion before so I know ill need a flywheel, clutch set, pedals, master/slave cylinders, all that good stuff.
Yes, the driveshaft was going to be my next question. I figured I would have to swap that as well because of differences in the length of the two trannys but, do all of them have this round thing at the end just past the u-joint, (I dont know wtf its called, some sort of coupling I guess?) with a bunch of bolts going through it?
If so do I need to get that too or can I just pop the u-joint out and take the rest? Or will I have to pull the whole damn thing out of the diff?
Second, what are the chances that the shifter for the manual will line up with the hole that the auto floor shifter uses? I dont mind some minor cutting to make it larger, but I dont have a welder to use if it needs to be patched and moved completely.
Also does the flywheel require longer bolts to attach it to the crank? I ran into that problem during the last conversion I did, and wound up spending alot of money for those 6 little bolts, and putting off my project another 2 days.

 

i still have to look into the flywheel figure out which one you should use along with which clutch and actually which starter also so I will be sure and see about the bolts too.

that piece at the end of the driveshaft is a flange, you take out the 4 12mm 12-point bolts and the driveshaft disconnects from the rear end. you dont have to mess with the u-joint at all, its a pretty nice little setup. what configuration is the cab and bed of your truck?

 

Regular cab, long bed.
The starter bolts to the trans bellhousing doesnt it...? Im glad you brought that up. I didnt pay any attention to it when I was under there yesterday.

 

Just curious if you ever did figure anything out about that clutch/flywheel. Ive been digging around some over at TRS, lots of good tech info there, but I didnt seen much about trans swaps. Ill keep looking though.

 

oh hey, thats where this thread went, sorry, i have a pretty precise list for you if you want to go with the good 5-speed tranny.

so the tranny you will be using with the M5OD 5-speed.

-you will need the flywheel from a 91-97 4.0L engine (the 98-up 4.0 switched to an 8-bolt crank so it wont work) because of this you may want to get the rest of these parts from a 91-97 4.0L 2wd 5-speed ranger (although everything but the flywheel can come from newer than 97, but if you find something that has the tranny then you can grab everything from the same vehicle, know what i mean?)

ok so from a 91-97 4.0L 2wd 5-speed ranger
-flywheel (6-bolt crank) and bolts (bolts especially)
-clutch and bolts (bolts are most important)
-starter
-transmission
-shifter and boot assembly from interior
-clutch master and slave cylinders and clutch line
-tin plate between engine and tranny (will come off once the flywheel is pulled)
-possibly transmission crossmember?

from a truck as close to the same year as yours
-5 speed pedal assembly (newer assemblies will probly work, but will most likely requre modifications to actually work correctly) this may be the hardest part to find if you dont have older trucks in the yards around you.
-you may want to grab an old hydraulic master cylinder, or at least see if the newer trucks and older trucks bolt up the same way. you will still need the clutch line from the same truck as the transmission though because the fitting that goes into the slave cylinder is different than the old clutch setups. the clutch line is just held into the master cylinder with a roll pin though, so if the masters are different you should be able to use the newer line in an older master (if the master is different of course, if it bolts up to the firewall the same then just use the newer one)

lastly you will need the correct driveshaft. find a driveshaft from a regular cab long bed with a 2wd M5OD 5-speed transmission (should be from 90-up or so) this shaft will be the correct length and it will have the correct front splined piece to slip into the 2wd M5OD. the rear flange at the axle MAY have a different bolt pattern, but it is very easy to swap that flange on the rear axle for the other pattern. if that is the case ask me how and I will tell you. again the rear flange of these shafts just has 4 bolt and unbolts with a 12mm 12-point wrench so you dont have to mess with u-joints to get the shaft out. just unbolt the 4 bolts and slip the shaft out of the tranny.


ok, i think thats everything. the tin plate will slip right on the 2.8 and the 4.0 flywheel (6-bolt version) and clutch will bolt right to the 2.8, the M5OD from the 4.0 will bolt to the 2.8 and the starter will bolt to the tranny (i dont know if you will need to move the wireing around at all, but thats not difficult) the shifter will pop through the floor. if you get the right pedal set they will just bolt in. the hole SHOULD be there for the clutch master cylinder in the firewall, i dont know for certain, but thats not that difficult a part. and then with the correct driveshaft it should just slip right in place. the clutch line will run right down to the slave cylinder and then it will just need to be bled properly (oh yea, make sure to get the reservior with the master). any more questions feel free to ask and if you come upon anything else while doing the swap go ahead and ask. and good luck.

 

Sweet! Thanks alot for the info. I would deem this thread worthy to be a Sticky.

I plan to get a new clutch and flywheel so I mostly needed to know which engine to get it for, but ill be sure to grab all the bolts off the truck in the JY. My driveshaft is a solid shaft with no carrier bearing, and the yoke on the transmission end slips in and out of the extension housing. Is the driveshaft used with that trans going to have a carrier bearing that I have to swap as well? Or is it gonna be a one peice like mine?

 

yea, i specified about the clutch and flywheel so you can grab the bolts mainly and save having to find and buy them, plus you ahve to pull off the flywheel to get the tin plate off anyway. also check to see if there is a core charge on the new flywheel, if so then you can use the one from the junkyard as a core, or better yet take it to a machine shop and have it turned for 20-30 bucks as long as the teeth on it are good.

the driveshaft should also be a one piece, only the extended cab trucks got the carrier bearing shafts. the only thing is it will probly be a different length because i believe the tranny is a different length, and i believe the output shaft of the M5OD uses a different spline pattern than the auto.

 

I have a 1990 ranger xlt long bed air auto trans look to swap to manual have a 5 speed from a 96 just trying to figure out what clutch and fly wheel set up I need from what I gathered from my research is that both the 90 and 96 clutch and flywheel are two completely different part numbers I have the trans it's self with new slave have pedal assembly and shifter and boot there's a factory removable plate in the trans hump as well as the fire wall have the fluid resivor all I need is clutch flywheel and drive shift any ideas?