Installing an A-Five
Installing parts in 'Stangs is what B&D Racing's Mason "Mase" Rowland does best.
After taking delivery of his Astro Performance A-Five, Mase had the complete transmission swap complete in about three hours. Granted, B&D Racing has all the equipment on-hand to make this type of operation go smoothly, but there's no reason why a mechanically adept enthusiast won't be able to install a new stick trans in the driveway in about the same amount of time.
This is the type of transmission carnage that became somewhat normal for Mase after a day of hard driving at Willow Springs Raceway. Note how Fourth gear is completely obliterated-a perfect example of stock equipment that can't keep up when big-time torque and horsepower meet high rpm.
Per Astro's recommendation, we're installing McLeod's Series 500 10 1/2-inch clutch disc (PN 260570) for the new tranny. Installing an A-Five unit requires stepping up to a 26-spline clutch (stock is 10-spline). The Series 500 clutch is designed for heavy-duty street use and some off-road applications. It features a bronze-button surface on the flywheel side and organic material on the pressure-plate side. We're also adding a blower-friendly 10 1/2-inch aluminum flywheel (PN 563100-50), a throw-out bearing (PN 16100), and a diaphragm-style pressure plate (PN 360048) to the mix.
Mase separates his broken T-5 from the factory bellhousing. Astro doesn't provide bellhousings with its A-Five trannys, so the original must be reused or a newbellhousing needs to be pro-cured before you begin.
Mase uses a tranny jack to pump his new transmission into its new home. This part of the install procedure is straightforward. Once the trans unit is in place and the crossmember, clutch cable, and exhaust are reinstalled, the Cobra is lowered and ready to test.
"This tranny isn't going to break," is the assessment Mase gave us after a few weeks of driving with Astro's A-Five in his Snake. "It shifts smoothly, and it's really cool having an overdrive that lets the car continue to pull in Fifth gear instead of having to downshift." Astro recommends putting about 500 easy miles on an A-Five tranny before turning the wick up.