Colt45's Trans swap chronicles

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No, unfortunately I had to use the cash for the gear swap on the trans. That's how I was able to pick it up the day after I blew this one, you see.
This aluminum shaft is good to 115 with 3.55s (factory speed limiter in CVPIs). So thats 5300rpm. Reversing it back out and correcting for my slightly larger tires it looks like the limit is 100mph on the dot.
I'd like to find a Alcoa AMMC (Aluminum metal matrix composite) out of a MY2000 CVPI. They had 130 limiter with 3.55s. Looks pretty close to 6000rpm. Little bit better at 114mph.
The AMMC shafts are hard to find, being one year only. I'll probably end up buying a Dynotech driveshaft. They have both aluminium and carbon fiber driveshafts available for the Crown Vic. Ill probably buy whichever will be okay to 7000. Thats 133; more than enough.
 
Good, just glad you are aware of the stresses by shorter gears.

Lots of folks find out after they destroy the floor pan after failure!!!

My sympathies on the cash thing, this sort of stuff never happens when you're ready for it...
 
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Good, just glad you are aware of the stresses by shorter gears.

Lots of folks find out after they destroy the floor pan after failure!!!

My sympathies on the cash thing, this sort of stuff never happens when you're ready for it...

Yup, I seen pictures where someone put 4.10s in a CV and left the civilian steel shaft in.
I think he was going 95mph and the transmission tailshaft housing exploded. Caused a lot of damage underneath as the thing flopped about until he got it stopped.
Course, the trans was gone too. Not only was the tail housing gone the casing itself was cracked.
Thinking about it, itll probably be worth it to invest in a driveshaft loop. Metco makes one for these cars.
 
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Originally Posted By: Colt45ws
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Good, just glad you are aware of the stresses by shorter gears.

Lots of folks find out after they destroy the floor pan after failure!!!

My sympathies on the cash thing, this sort of stuff never happens when you're ready for it...

Yup, I seen pictures where someone put 4.10s in a CV and left the civilian steel shaft in.
I think he was going 95mph and the transmission tailshaft housing exploded. Caused a lot of damage underneath as the thing flopped about until he got it stopped.
Course, the trans was gone too. Not only was the tail housing gone the casing itself was cracked.
Thinking about it, itll probably be worth it to invest in a driveshaft loop. Metco makes one for these cars.


I grenaded a stock Mustang yoke and it blew the tailstock off the transmission. I was probably only doing about 80(km/h) but holy *bleep* did that make a lot of bad noises banging around on top of the H-pipe
crazy2.gif
It marked up the tunnel quite badly.
 
shaft.jpg

CVPI shaft with Civi Yoke next to CVPI yoke (longer). I put the standard yoke on the CVPI shaft in order to make it compatible with the standard transmission. I had to use a custom conversion joint. I originally ordered a u-joint for a 2004 CV. But, it was too small for the CVPI shaft. So, I ordered a 1330/1350 conversion joint. That didnt work either because the 1330 caps were too small for the standard yoke. That was a headscratcher. Some sort of custom Ford size. But, I found that the actual bearing diameter of the Ford caps (1340?1335?) was the same as a 1330. So, I took two caps from the first joint I bought and put them on the conversion joint.
Bam, custom conversion.
All that work, and now it has to come back off. Ah, well. Itll be better this way with a nice Spicer sealed joint rather than that Moog junk.
Back on track, I pulled the pan. Well, first, I pulled the drain plug.
magnet.jpg

Lots of metal flecks. As many as it can hold, anyway. I dropped the pan, and the filter is still firmly attached to the VB, so that eliminates that possibility. Ill have to go deeper to find out why it failed. Oh, yeah, I didnt get a pic, but lots more flecks floating in the bottom of the pan. I put it back on so I have a place to jack from. The manufacturer says thats okay as long as a piece of wood is used underneath.
 
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New tool time.
milwaukee.jpg

Had trouble getting the nuts off that hold the cats to the exhaust manifold. Finally just went and got an impact driver. I bought it as I am familiar with them; I use them at work all the time. I wanted one with a 3/8" drive and not the 1/4" drive with an adapter, but this was all they had. Its the same gun, but my experience is the 1/4" drive fatigues and eventually explodes. But that's in an industrial setting; constant use. Hopefully Ill get a few years out of it before that happens.
So now I have these out, thanks to it.
cats.jpg
 
So, um, after you somehow got the cats unbolted from the manifolds using a cordless electric screwdriver did you then buy a lottery ticket? If not, it might be a good idea to go do that now.
 
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Originally Posted By: yonyon
So, um, after you somehow got the cats unbolted from the manifolds using a cordless electric screwdriver did you then buy a lottery ticket? If not, it might be a good idea to go do that now.

lol, its an impact. Mighty handy and more powerful than you would think. Like 133ft/lbs. I said that the 1/4 drive end on it tends to explode eventually. I wasnt kidding. I use them at work all the time and deal with the aftermath of untrained children (adults) that think giving it full gas on a 3/8" bolt is OK.
Anyway, so Im currently at a stop because the crossmember is giving me trouble. Yeah, Im that far. Its the only thing keeping me from pulling it. The fit on the 03+ Panthers is REALLY tight. I think the pockets on the frame that it sits in are way undersized and they just force it in there when it is built. what makes it worse is there really isnt anyplace to leverage off of that is sturdy enough. Ive got my crowbarr out, but it isnt really helping. Got my mallet too, but its not helping much because theres no room above to get a swing on it. Ive dropped it about 1/2" on one side and about 1/4" on the other.
 
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: Colt45ws
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Good, just glad you are aware of the stresses by shorter gears.

Lots of folks find out after they destroy the floor pan after failure!!!

My sympathies on the cash thing, this sort of stuff never happens when you're ready for it...

Yup, I seen pictures where someone put 4.10s in a CV and left the civilian steel shaft in.
I think he was going 95mph and the transmission tailshaft housing exploded. Caused a lot of damage underneath as the thing flopped about until he got it stopped.
Course, the trans was gone too. Not only was the tail housing gone the casing itself was cracked.
Thinking about it, itll probably be worth it to invest in a driveshaft loop. Metco makes one for these cars.


I grenaded a stock Mustang yoke and it blew the tailstock off the transmission. I was probably only doing about 80(km/h) but holy *bleep* did that make a lot of bad noises banging around on top of the H-pipe
crazy2.gif
It marked up the tunnel quite badly.


Mine came right through the floorboard in a 63 cadillac! Ripped the back seat to shreds and would have been a REAL problem for anyone back there!
 
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: Colt45ws
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Good, just glad you are aware of the stresses by shorter gears.

Lots of folks find out after they destroy the floor pan after failure!!!

My sympathies on the cash thing, this sort of stuff never happens when you're ready for it...

Yup, I seen pictures where someone put 4.10s in a CV and left the civilian steel shaft in.
I think he was going 95mph and the transmission tailshaft housing exploded. Caused a lot of damage underneath as the thing flopped about until he got it stopped.
Course, the trans was gone too. Not only was the tail housing gone the casing itself was cracked.
Thinking about it, itll probably be worth it to invest in a driveshaft loop. Metco makes one for these cars.


I grenaded a stock Mustang yoke and it blew the tailstock off the transmission. I was probably only doing about 80(km/h) but holy *bleep* did that make a lot of bad noises banging around on top of the H-pipe
crazy2.gif
It marked up the tunnel quite badly.


Mine came right through the floorboard in a 63 cadillac! Ripped the back seat to shreds and would have been a REAL problem for anyone back there!


WOW!!
shocked.gif
 
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Colt45ws Yup said:
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/graemlins/crazy2.gif[/IMG] It marked up the tunnel quite badly.


Mine came right through the floorboard in a 63 cadillac! Ripped the back seat to shreds and would have been a REAL problem for anyone back there!


WOW!!
shocked.gif

Driveshaft loops are amazing things haha.

The amount of damage a drive shaft can do is downright scary. I've seen a fair share of it from a few different friends who followed the classic style of big engine, leave everything else stock. Lets just say i'm glad I wasn't in back.

Same with trans... Some can become a bomb when pushed outside their limits.
 
That reminds me of a rather crazy one I saw: The flywheel on a Camaro come off at the strip at WOT and fly out the cowl in pieces. It cut through a chunk of the trans tunnel and was extremely close to removing the driver's gas pedal foot from what I learned later.
 
If its one thing that will catastrophically destroy a drivetrain its the strip haha. The worst i ever experienced was in our superbee. 4100 lb car, built 440 on a 150 shot, and a mildly built 727. Let off the transbrake at launch and grenaded the front drum inside of it.

Thankfully it was only a temporary transmission while the th400 was being rebuilt and we had a scatter shield/diaper under it. It completely blew the center out and ripped the shield right off. The tail was still hanging from the rear mount and the bell housing was still bolted to the block...just nothing in between. Without that shield I cant imagine the things that would have came through the floor pan.
 
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: Colt45ws
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Good, just glad you are aware of the stresses by shorter gears.

Lots of folks find out after they destroy the floor pan after failure!!!

My sympathies on the cash thing, this sort of stuff never happens when you're ready for it...

Yup, I seen pictures where someone put 4.10s in a CV and left the civilian steel shaft in.
I think he was going 95mph and the transmission tailshaft housing exploded. Caused a lot of damage underneath as the thing flopped about until he got it stopped.
Course, the trans was gone too. Not only was the tail housing gone the casing itself was cracked.
Thinking about it, itll probably be worth it to invest in a driveshaft loop. Metco makes one for these cars.


I grenaded a stock Mustang yoke and it blew the tailstock off the transmission. I was probably only doing about 80(km/h) but holy *bleep* did that make a lot of bad noises banging around on top of the H-pipe
crazy2.gif
It marked up the tunnel quite badly.


Mine came right through the floorboard in a 63 cadillac! Ripped the back seat to shreds and would have been a REAL problem for anyone back there!


Liz lost the driveshaft on her Grand National a while back. Note: some u-joints do not like wrinkle-wall slicks, 3900lb cars, and 800+HP! No major carnage (didn't even take out the trans!), but the last foot of the drive shaft took on this interesting "S" shape...

The car now uses non-greaseable (read: not drilled for grease passages) Spicers. And yes, it DOES have a scattershield!
 
Originally Posted By: Jarlaxle
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: Colt45ws

Yup, I seen pictures where someone put 4.10s in a CV and left the civilian steel shaft in.
I think he was going 95mph and the transmission tailshaft housing exploded. Caused a lot of damage underneath as the thing flopped about until he got it stopped.
Course, the trans was gone too. Not only was the tail housing gone the casing itself was cracked.
Thinking about it, itll probably be worth it to invest in a driveshaft loop. Metco makes one for these cars.


I grenaded a stock Mustang yoke and it blew the tailstock off the transmission. I was probably only doing about 80(km/h) but holy *bleep* did that make a lot of bad noises banging around on top of the H-pipe
crazy2.gif
It marked up the tunnel quite badly.


Mine came right through the floorboard in a 63 cadillac! Ripped the back seat to shreds and would have been a REAL problem for anyone back there!


Liz lost the driveshaft on her Grand National a while back. Note: some u-joints do not like wrinkle-wall slicks, 3900lb cars, and 800+HP! No major carnage (didn't even take out the trans!), but the last foot of the drive shaft took on this interesting "S" shape...

The car now uses non-greaseable (read: not drilled for grease passages) Spicers. And yes, it DOES have a scattershield!

So much destruction in this thread, and I haven't even torn down the old trans yet!
 
Went and bought some Schaeffers #204SAT from a local distributor.
204sat.jpg

I love this stuff. Cost me a pretty penny. Im probably going to use a whole case just to get it running. Then I have to also refill the power steering since it shares the cooler with the transmission. That's a couple quarts. Need some for top-up from changing the Racor filter. I think Ill probably have about 6 quarts left all said and done.
Also did this.
flexplate.jpg

Yeah, I painted the flexplate. Yeah, Im a dork. No Im not trying to avoid going under it and actually working on it. Stop looking at me like that.
 
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So, I got tired of not making any progress.
I bought three prybars trying to find one that would help me remove the transmission crossmember.
I finally had enough when I had a 3ft prybar stuck in the crossmemeber, and Im standing up, jumping on the thing and its not moving at all.
All I had managed to do was bend the crossmember and the frame mounts.
It'd probably be different if I had a car lift and could work under it, but with the limited clearance it really hindered getting a swing with a hammer and how the prybar could be positioned. Really limited stuff to get leverage off of besides the floor pan.
So I bought this stuff:
grinder.jpg

I started off trying to cut it through a thin spot to let me leverage one side out, then the other.
Then I got the idea to just make a relief cut in the top of it on one side. That worked beautifully. I had to make a large cut in the bottom to get my small 4 1/2" grinder in there, but once I did that and made the cut it slid out with relative ease. Then I wiggled it up and down, hammered, wiggled it some more; eventually worked it out of the other frame pocket.
cmout.jpg

I have another crossmember I bought off ebay on the way. This one is scrap.
Trans should be out here soon.
 
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I know I can attract some views with some...
DESTRUCTION PHOTOS!

First bad thing that came tumbling out was the large stub shaft piece. Everything before that was good, even the [censored] OD band was prestine.
stub_shaft.jpg

Once I got the direct clutch out, I had to hammer the small piece out of it.
direct_clutch.jpg

Yeah, thats scrap.
wiped_bearing.jpg

Also scrap.
direct_burnt.jpg

Clutches were a bit wierd. The first three (coming in from the front of the trans), were good to near mint. Then the forth one was tore up on one side a bit and wiped clean on the other. The rest following were also wiped clean.
 
So, I talked with someone knowledgeable in these transmissions and the bushings getting torn up and seizing on the sun gear and planetary are fairly common.
What is uncommon is the stub shaft breaking at my power level. Its a known weak point, but really only affects modified cars 400RWHP+
Not really 220RWHP (On a good day) lightly modded vehicles.
We discussed the probability of it being the tune. He said there have been complaints coming in lately about shift issues with the person I had do my tune.
I told him I had put a wideband on the car and found the tune was giving me a WOT AFR of ~14:1 which is [censored] lean. Surprised I havent melted the cats. Good thing its N/A or I would've surely melted a piston.
That has nothing to do with the trans; but it makes you wonder how the rest of the tune is.
Before I bring it back into service Im getting the SCT Pro Racer software and Ill build my own tune which is the purpose I bought a wideband for anyway.
 
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