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Condition.  That’s the word that has to be used for a majority of Foxbody purchases these days.  There are a few that mileage is of concern and those usually fall into that small 10% of low mileage trailer queens. Many of those you can see on Bring a Trailer changing hands.  And we’re talking about those cars that have 15,000 miles or less.  Beyond that you get into cars with mileage because 90% of these cars were used and some were abused all in the name of fun. Let’s be honest, that’s where most of us fall in line with the budget to buy as well. We’ll gladly admit we have a wine taste with a beer wallet. Ha!

So this could be put out there as something to be aware of. The pictures you’re seeing here are of a lower mileage T5 where the factory clutch was still in it and in good shape.  There was no reason to pull the transmission out other than the fact that we were cleaning and reconditioning it and while we had the engine out we decided to put a new clutch in.  Standard fare if you’re tearing a car down to refurbish and refresh it.

It’s obvious from the pictures of this transmission that the throwout bearing race is shot.  The pitting is really bad and there’s two grooves worn into it.  From the little bit that we drove the car and used the clutch you’d never know this was the case with the race. The failure here is a result of an aluminum bearing race that was used on a majority of Borg Warner T5 transmissions. The aluminum wears easy. 

Fear not, there is a solid solution that can be purchased easily. But the word you need to look for in the description is “STEEL”.  It needs to be a steel bearing retainer and throwout bearing race.  That will hold up better over time.  

Our friends at NPD have a solution for you. You will need the throwout bearing race AND a seal that gets pressed into it.  

NPD T5 Bearing Retainer/Input Shaft

Whether you buy from NPD or elsewhere, the key word you need to look for is STEEL. That makes all the difference.