[boblongtv]

I posted this in this section because I am currently in the market for another stang. 94-95 to be exact and I am not to familiar with the 5.0 motors or transmission. SO what im getting at is .... should there be things I should stay away from? Is high mileage a problem if im gonna build the motor? Im looking to spend around three grande. Thanks guys

[johnGT]

The 5.0 is a GREAT motor. I have over 350,000 miles on my stock motor. Main things to look out for are:
Harmonic balancer- throws the engine balance out of whack at idle and causes the front main seal to leak.
Rear main seal- leaks oil excessively if left untreated.
oil pan gasket- same as the rear main seal. mine minorley leaks, not as big as a deal, you have to lift the motor to replace it though..
Fuel pump/filter- Been through two of each since 1996. Not a big deal, but it does happen.
Head gaskets- look for white smoke out the exhaust and water in the oil!! Costly if you have it done. I have a tiny bit of white smoke in my exhaust every now and then and can smell a hint of coolant when I get on it hard sometimes..but there is no water in my oil and my coolant level stays very consistent so I'm thinking it's solid.

As for the transmissions, my AODE was rebuilt around 230,000~ miles. Started to slip after we moved up into the north GA mountains...just something to think about if you live in a hilly area.

I don't know as much about the t-5, I just know its not good for high HP applications. Only good to around 300hp..

[boblongtv]

ok thanks. I do plan on getting a stick. So I should remember to beef up the stock t-5.

[Digsj7]

stock t-5's are good for over 400 hp, just buy a good shifter.

[Cobraman1024]

I rebuilt my factory T5 at about 165,000 miles. First pass at the dragstrip on New Years day this year I sheared the teeth off 3rd gear. That was at 215,000 or so miles and with about 330hp/360lb/ft tq at the engine. I replaced it with a used ProMotion-built T5 with 60,000 or so miles on it.

Basic stuff about the 94+ up Mustangs:
1. Fuel filler neck gasket will cause fuel to slosh out of the tank when the gasket has deteriorated.

2. some minor issues with the combination switch and the headlight switch plug itself.

3. Odometer gears will eventually fail causing your odomoter to not work. Two gears need to be replaced in the instrument cluster, they generally sell for $20-$25 each.

4. the sensor inside the distributor fails causing the symptoms of a bad fuel pump except you'll find that the fuel pump still builds the proper amount of pressure to the rails.

5. The CCRM or constant control relay module has a very good shot at being the faulty component causing either the low speed, high speed or both speeds of the electric fan to fail.

6. If the car has sat without running for an extended length of time, turn the ignition switch to build pressure in the fuel rails and then start sniffing around the fuel line to rail connections and the flexible portions of the fuel lines in the engine bay. These will sometimes dry out and cause a fuel leak. Not too common but it does happen. Check out the sticky in the 94/95 section of the Corral.net forums for the fuel leak information.

7. caliper slide pins in the rear caliper brackets tend to get frozen in the caliper bracket if they are not properly lubricated on a regular basis. I check mine around every 6 months or so.

[johnGT]

+1 about the odometer gears. Mine stopped turning at about 196,000~. It still runs like it has that many miles on it so I haven't bothered replacing it.

Besides, that was nearly 5 years ago and it would still be off by A LOT. Me and my dad have calculated it multiple times and we know for a FACT that it has at least 320,000. I drive it everywhere though and don't account for many of the random trip miles. It may be closer to 400,000

[boblongtv]

Ok thanks for the information. Ill let yall know when I find one on craigslist and seal the deal.

[94bossgt]

keep a close eye on the strut towers mine rotted out and only has like 185k on it in the process right now of fixing that and trust me it sucks lol

[91sleeper]

look at the tq boxes as well and make sure there not ripped.

[Bullitt95]

Originally Posted by Digsj7 stock t-5's are good for over 400 hp, just buy a good shifter.

If only they were that strong. Most V8 versions of the T5 are rated at 300-310lbft which is only slightly more than stock, so they definitely need beefing up for any serious performance applications.
Agree about upgrading the shifter though and the MGW seems to be an excellent choice.

[99FiveOh]

Originally Posted by Bullitt95 If only they were that strong. Most V8 versions of the T5 are rated at 300-310lbft which is only slightly more than stock, so they definitely need beefing up for any serious performance applications. Agree about upgrading the shifter though and the MGW seems to be an excellent choice.

Agreed, however, we can't just slap a "HP" or "Torque" capacity on a transmission. It's all about how you use it. I had a S trim supercharged 95 GT making 425 to the tires and my T5 held up fine. I beat the snot out of the car on the street, on street tires. I had zero intention on ever running the car on the strip so the T5 was just fine for me.

A TKO or T56 should absolutely be in the cards if you plan to drag race period.

[91sleeper]

the clutch and shifter as well as the tires determines the life of a t-5