Clutch Install for 94-03 Mustangs
NOTE: Proceed at your own risk, as the author of this article will take no responsibility for any damaging effects caused by following (or not following) the instructions herein. This install was performed on a '01 Cobra, but the basic tips/procedure should be the same for any Mustang on the SN95 ('94-'03) Mustang v6/GT/Cobra. I also believe the install should be relatively the same for the '79-93 Fox Body Mustangs. Be sure to note what bolts go where, and not to confuse them. There should be a few long bell housing bolts, and a few short ones, so note their positioning. Also, make sure to note wiring harness locations, and which connector goes where. *DON'T FORGET WHICH BOLTS GO WHERE* This article written by Ashentep, please do not copy without proper credit.
Tools/Supplies needed:
Metric and Standard sockets in 1/2" and 3/8" drives
12point socket for driveshaft (can't remember size, but thinking 15mm???)
large breaker bar
butterfly impact is a huge help for the tight bolts
assorted extensions (short, medium, long, very long, very very long, and ridiculously
long)
4 jack stands and jack (or preferably a lift)
basic mechanical understanding
2-6 hours of free time
Optional 1st step: remove shifter while inside of the car. This may be the easy way out while working with jackstands as you'll be tight for space.
Step 1: Leave the car in neutral, jack it up, and rest it on jack stands. Under the K-member or front A-arms and under rear axle (except 99+ Cobras, which need jack stands under the rear lower A-arms) would be a good spot for this job. Use caution when supporting the car and make damn sure its not going to fall off before proceeding. You WILL be using a lot of force to get bolts loose under the car, and the last thing you want is a badly placed jack stand ruining your day.
Step 2: Remove H or Y pipe. Easy enough, and should be self explanatory. Remember to start by disconnecting the 4 O2 sensors. Use a long extension to reach some of the nuts at the header end. Next, remove the driveshaft with a 12 point socket. You should be able to rotate it to reach all the bolts, provided you left the car in neutral. Slide the driveshaft forward, pull the rear down, and the out. If you are unable to remove the bolts without the driveshaft rotating, slide the shifter into 1st gear. Put the car back into neutral afterwards.
Step 3: Remove the starter. On the 4.6, the best way was to use a very very long extension to come in from the front of the car. Go over top the swaybar & motor mount, then with the ratchet at the far passenger side of the car, have a 2nd person position the socket on the bolts (should be 3). On 3.8 and 5.0s, the starter is quite accessible, and should be easily removed. Now is also a good time to remove the K-member brace if your car was so equipped. Its a simple bolt at each side. Be sure to hang on to the speed nuts the K-member brace bolts go into.
Step 4: Remove *ALL* wiring from tranny. There were 3 or 4 different connectors on my tranny, but were all part of the same harness. Your car may differ. You don't want to drop the tranny, find out that you left a harness plugged in, and then find that the harness was broken by the weight of the tranny.
Step 5 (for 3.8 and 5.0): Remove rear trans mount, and support the trans with a jack, or have a 2nd person support the tail shaft. Remove the 4 bolts holding the trans onto the bellhousing. Shake the trans to loosen its seal from the bellhousing, slide it rearwards until the input shaft clears the bellhousing, then lower the trans to the ground.
Step 6 (for 3.8 and 5.0): Now remove the two smaller bolts on the front of the bellhousing holding the sheet metal plate to the bellhousing. Next, remove the 6 bellhousing to engine block bolts, and remove the bellhousing. Proceed to step 7.
Step 5 (for 4.6): Remove rear tranny mount and allow the rear of the tranny to hang down. Unbolt the shifter from underneath if you didn't do the optional 1st step. Its actually quite easy to unbolt the shifter from underneath while on a lift, though I imagine it would be quite difficult while on jack stands. Next, use a ridiculously long extension to come in from behind the tranny tail shaft (where the driveshaft would be) and remove the top bell housing to engine bolts. They should be in view now that the tranny is angled down some. Now remove the side and lower bell housing to engine bolts. A very long extension works well here. You may have to have someone support the tail of the tranny when removing the side and rear bolts.
Step 6 (for 4.6): Have a 2nd person support the tail shaft of the tranny and shake it violently to break the bell housing seal. If needed use a pry bar to help out. Once the tranny starts to come off the alignment pins, be sure to support it. Keep pulling towards the rear of the car until the bell housing clears the alignment pins and then the pressure plate. Expect the tranny to weigh around 150lbs, and two relatively fit guys should be able to safely lower it by hand. If you have room, pull the tranny out from under the car. This is where the tall jack stands will come in very handy.
Step 7: Note which holes the alignment pins are in on the pressure plate (as the new pressure plate will be installed in the same manner), then remove all but one of the pressure plate bolts. Have the 2nd person hold the pressure plate in position while removing last bolt. Lower pressure plate and clutch together and lower to the ground. You may have to pry the pressure plate off the flywheel, but be careful not to nick the flywheel.
Step 8: Determine flywheel condition. If the car has many miles (50k+) on it, you'll more than likely need a resurfacing. It is good practice to resurface the flywheel whether it needs it or not. Find a good local machine shop to do this for you. Cost should be ~$40-60. Also, check the condition of the rear main engine seal, front and rear seals on the trans, end play on the trans input shaft, clutch release arm and pivot stud for wear, and oil pan gasket for any leaks. Take care of these as necessary. Pay particularly close attention to the endplay in the trans. One secret to long, happy trans life is keeping input shaft endplay in check.
Step 9: After finishing with the flywheel and verifying everything is in good shape, reinstall the flywheel, along with the sheet metal plate that goes behind it, between the engine block and bellhousing. Next, grease the pilot bearing, and position the clutch alignment tool in the new clutch. Line the tool up with the bearing, then place the pressure plate on top and line up the positioning pins as you noted them to be in step 7. Bolt it back in place, using a star pattern to tighten the pressure plate evenly.
Step 10: Replace the throw out bearing on the clutch release arm. This should be self explanatory.
Step 11: Change tranny fluid. Again, self explanatory.
Step 12 (3.8 and 5.0): Reinstall bellhousing into position with clutch release arm and throw out bearing installed. Now raise the trans back into place and tighten the 4 mounting bolts. Replace the rear trans mount. The remainder of the install is the reverse of steps 1-4.
Step 12 (4.6): Raise tranny into place. The best way to get it back into place is to rotate the tranny slightly towards the driver's side, then go up, and once its raised to the proper height rotate it to match the bolt holes on the engine. You'll probably want to use a jack for this step. It can be done by hand, but its a bit tricky to line up and install the bolts this way. It will probably take both people to be able to line the tranny up, but make sure one person can hold the tranny in place once its aligned, and the other has a few bell housing bolts to put in quickly. From here out, the install is the reverse of the removal. Just be sure to reinstall everything. Remember to put the top bell housing bolts in place with the tail shaft dropped.
Step 13: This is the hardest of them all. Take it easy on the car until the new clutch stops chattering and becomes smooth. Its normal to have some chatter for the 1st 50-500 miles. Once it breaks in, it should disappear. If not, you may have an imperfect flywheel, pressure plate, or clutch disk.