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50Deep
Jockin' GT350's
302 Hi Pro said:Nice, looks great and hope she comes together so you can drive her very soon. We have 2 days here with temps forecasted in the 70's. Nicest February weather that I can remember, and no salt on the roads! Boss time for me.
Good Luck,
302 Hi Pro
Getting close!!
shiznit just got real! Finished up the transmission swap and getting the MGW all settled inside of the car. As well as a fresh oil change. So far it has been a very successful venture, but I need to get some miles on the car. Here are a few things I wanted to highlight...
Oil Change:
After seeing and experiencing the drama with messy oil changes I had a bit of an @Epiphany (see what I did there). I had a small funnel laying next to me as I pulled off the inspection cover and thought it would be a perfect way to catch oil coming out of the filter. Turns out I was right. The funnel is wide enough to catch all the droplets, and sits low enough to allow clearance to reach up behind the wheel and unscrew the filter. All the oil is directed into the pan and I had VERY LITTLE run off. I think all that try this will be pleased. Saved me a bunch of time.
Oil Separator Draining
During the oil change I disconnected and drained both oil separators. This was after approximately 6500 miles of street driving. I was very surprised at the amount of fluid that came from the passenger side of the car. The driver side was bone dry. If you are operating your Shelby without one, I would purchase at least the passenger side ASAP.
Driveshaft Install:
Ford has made all the driveshaft bolts one time use. Transmission flange, center bearing, and differential flange. The install instructions did not include the torque figures, but the Helm info I got from @Epiphany specified 41 ft/lbs. as I Installed the bolts to the differential they wouldn't thread. I looked a little closer and saw these 2 wax rings on them. Presumably to mark a used bolt, and prevent the bracket from coming off. In either case these need to be taken off before install. Peels off easy with a nail or screw driver.
Transmission Fluid:
Once the transmission was all attached I went to add the required 3.3 quarts of fluid. I nestled in under the transmission with my fluid pump ready to go. The bolt was a little hard to remove so I had to muscle it. Then all of a sudden BOOM! Red transmission fluid all over my face, and now I know how a porn star feels. I thought Ford shipped these dry!, but I was very wrong. The transmissions comes filled to the top plug. Seeing as I am the guinea pig, the rest of you can save some money at the parts counter. I still needed to fire up the car up for 2 minutes with the clutch engaged so fluid could circulate and then recheck
MGW Install:
The interior portion of the install was easy thanks to the video. I managed to pull the center console and reinstall it without breaking any clips. The new boot @MGW includes went on in place of the foam contraption. I did need to adjust my lock out a tad, but once that was done it felt damn smooth. Cutting of the leather shift boot plastic was accomplished without fuss using my hack saw. Screwed on the shifter ball and marveled at the car. I have to applaud @MGW for all the forethought put into reducing NVH. The rubber gasket on the rear shifter mount plate, rubber caps on he shifter body, extra interior sound deadening. I am not an engineer so I wouldn't know what locations were susceptible to noise, but I see how much work that must take to identify. Fully installed I cant help but admire the craftsmanship on the shifter coin and base. So glad I had @MGW do the custom coloring for me. DEAD SEXY!
I very nervously attached the battery cables, fired up the car, and it came to life. At this point I did not see any leaks and only the feint smell of transmission fluid as it began coursing through the coolers new vanes. No smoke, no bangs, no weird sounds. I hope the first drive goes well, but currently working on bleeding the clutch. pumping the pedal did not result in a proper bleed, going to need a vacuum pump.