350 Engine

[schreff]

Originally posted by Tyranitar@Mar 14 2005, 01:45 AM
I fail to see why you would need a new drive shaft.* Consider, the the drivetrain is basically the same tranny and shafts as an RX-7.* The RX-7 can put out plenty of power.* Also, consider that the tires are gonna burn out long before the drivetrain really gets stressed.* The manual tranny itself is nearly indestructible.* The clutch might need to be upgraded to a high performance racing clutch.* Now if you do something wild, like put on bigger tires, or wider tires, then you will need a new driveshaft.* But if you stick with stock type tires, I really don't see a need to.* I actually know a guy with a b2200, who has a ford 5.0 in it.* He lives about 80 miles away, and yes, he had modified some things under the hood, but still, it is very roomy in there.* He left the drivetrain pretty much as is, except he lowered it about 6 inches.

[snapback]256040[/snapback]

So the 5.0 will bolt right up to the stock tranny?

[Tyranitar]

You will probably need some kind of tranny adapter, but the tranny can handle it. You may want a performance clutch however. You will just have to see how well the engine and the tranny match up.

[schreff]

The reason I said you would need a new drive shaft is bc if they dont make this adapter for your tranny, the you would need to get a new tranny and the tranny is probly longer or shorter than the stock one.... so you would need a new drive shaft.

[schreff]

This is what has to be done!!!!!!!!!!!

this part is easy; remove the old power train including driveshaft. label all electrical leads and tape them out of the way to avoid damage.
mark a line on the frame 3-1/4 inches forward of the existing motor mounts. line up this mark with the groove on the new motor mount.
use a clamp to make sure that the new mount to the frame making sure the top edge of the mount is flush with the frame. drill the holes in the new mount through the frame and fasten with the nuts and bolts supplied. repeat this procedure for the other side mount.
the old motor mounts can be cut off. the new mounts utilize standard g.m. rectangular cushion mounts.
measuring in from the ends of the oem crossmember, mark a line at three inches and make a clean cut. saves the pieces and reinstall them back in their original positions.
install the new crossmember and fasten with 1\2-inch bolts supplied.
preparing the tranny mount is easy if your truck has a standard shift. if yours has an automatic, you'll need to purchase a mazda standard shift tranny crossmember. make sure to remove the automatic tranny mounts.
elongate the factory holes on the standard crossmember with a file or die grinder and install a standard gm tranny mount.
you’re almost ready to slide the v-8 inside, but first some body massaging is required on the firewall. the are marked has to be massaged back for motor clearance. this may take some trial and error work.
once the engine and tranny are in place, you'll need to address the drive shaft issue. the stock shaft is a two piece model and too weak for the new power plant. you’ll have to come up with a new one. the other side of the coin is that the corresponding flanges don’t work together. there’s a new spicier u-joint flange in the kit that will need to be fitted to the original pinion flange; but not before the oem flange is modified. the pilot hole needs to be opened up and holes drilled and tapped to receive the new spicier u-joint flange.
another way is to have your drive shaft shop weld the new flange mounting plate to the factory pinion and machine it round. this is one of those things better left to the pros. once the job is done, the new flange can be attached to the rear end. for a new driveshaft, measure from the tail stock of the tranny to the front of the pinion flange for the correct length and you won’t have to take the truck to the shop.
moving onto the radiator modifications. it’s time to hit another shop for re-coring your oem radiator. ask them to make it into a three core, tight fit pattern to factory outer dimensions as it’s going back into its original location.
once back into your shop, the grill and bumper will have to be removed from your mazda as well as the center support bar and latch. trim the radiator opening with tin snips or a jigsaw including the four tabs on the radiator. use the diagrams in the instructions that come in the kit.
the inside lip of the core support has to be rolled under for clearance and can be handled with rubber mallet. install the new radiator from the front and fasten with oem bolts. the kit gives the correct part numbers for the upper and lower radiator hoses.
as far as the heater hoses go, you’ll need to hook up the right side, engine hose to the heater outlet. the other starts on the driver’s side with the oem hose attached to the water pump and block. using a steel coupler, join a length of hose from the coupler to the other heater outlet.
for distributor clearance (especially if your using a hei model), you’ll need to cut away part of the lip that extrudes out from the firewall. when wiring, you need to extend the following wire assemblies: alternator, coil positive and gauge sending units if stock.
the stock throttle cable should be discarded for a gm unit, part number 1248086. the speedo cable needs to be from an automatic mazda and will be trimmed one inch on the drive portion as well as being filed square to match the gm tranny. make sure your wiring is right on and fire it up. be sure to top up the fluids. depending on how much your new v-8 is built up, you should notice a substantial difference… and you can thanks your friends at ultimate customs.

[Tyranitar]

Nope, you can't buy an adapter, but one can be fabricated. You do however need the clearance to mount the adapter. I guess a new drivetrain is a lot less headache.