hey guys, i'm fairly new to the site and have been using the search button looking for info on a 5 spd swap for my truck. i have a 97 f150 supercab short box 4x4, it has a 4.6 and an auto now and i would like to have a five spd. can anyone tell me what trans i need and any parts to go along with? i know i need pedals and master cylinder, but do i need things like a 5 spd ecm and drive shaft or will the stuff in the truck work? also the truck is a lariat and has the switch on the dash for the 4x4. will this still work or do i have use a different transfer case and all. thanks in advance for any replies.

 

Find a 4x4 M5OD. Any model year 97-03 will fit as long as it is for a 4.6. What is the 8th digit of your VIN. A W is for a Romeo engine and a 6 is for Windsor engine. The Romeo engine uses a 6 bolt flywheel and the Windsor uses an 8 bolt flywheel. The thing to look out for is the shift housing The 99 model year housing was moved back 55mm to the rear. When cutting the hole for the shift lever this will have to be considered. The following picture shows the difference in the shift lever location. The one on the right is the 1999 plus transmission. on the left shows the location of the 97-98 model.



Regards

Jean Marc Chartier

 

Why would a hole for a shifter have to be cut out?

Shouldn't the shifter hole just be covered by a plate that just needs to be popped out?

The proper corresponding ECU will be needed.

 

the automatic trucks have solid floors

you can turn off the trans features on an auto ECM, it's the manual ECM that has to be changed when going from a stick to automatic

 

Jasonxl...I have a 97 with the 4.6 and M5r2 Mazda 5 speed. I've been doing a little research myself concerning 5 speed swaps 'cause the Mazda box sucks. Ask JMC about durability of the M5r2(...is that a pic of tranny #4 or #5?). Your automatic trans is a torque multiplier, so if you swap to a 5 speed, you might be dissapointed with the results when you go to pull out into traffic...you will want more HP, and when you add that, you will destroy the tranny...its just not made for even the 4.6 in my opinion. I love having a manual trans and I love the 97-03 F-150, but this is one set up Ford sh** the bed on, and is probably the reason they stopped making v8/manual F-150s all together. I think I'm going to try to tackle a ZF tranny swap (5/6 speed manual from F-250) or a NV4500 (very popular transmission...commonly found in Dodges). There is very little to no info concerning this swap into 97-up F-150s, and, from the few measurements I've taken, very little room to jam these heavy duty trans under our trucks...but there's gotta be a better way...