To Forum Readers,

My truck has a ZF 5 speed, and it seems that either the syncro, or the shifting fork is bad in it, and is stuck in 3rd gear. Could someone clarify if I'm right about this situation? If so, where can I find a rebuild kit with syncros? I've called just about every auto parts store in my area, and no one carries a 5 speed manual tranny rebuild kit for my truck, only the c-6 and e40d automatic trannys. Another question I have is, has anyone been in this situation before with the same tranny?

-Dan

 

disregard this thread. misunderstood the read first threads.

 

If its stuck in 3rd gear and you can't pull the shifter out of position, then most likley the synchro hub has come apart and jambed the slider in place.

The reason nobody sells "manual transmission rebuild kits" is there is no such thing. For a manual transmission overhaul you simply order the parts you need to replace. And I have never heard of a regular autoparts store carrying manual transmission parts. You will have to find a manual transmission parts distributor. Don't know where you are but in the SE US there is Man-Trans in Tallahassee Florida and Southern Gear in Atlanta.

Steve
'95 Clubwagon XLT

 

If it is an F-150, it should have the Mazda M5OD transmission. I believe the ZF 5 speeds were only available in the 3/4 and 1 ton trucks.

 

Sorry, my bad. I just checked the used parts interchange and a ZF was offered in a 150. Sorry, I guess you learn something every day.

 

http://www.rsgear.com/zf.html is a distributor for ZF Industries manual car/truck transmissions.

The Helms Factory service manual does show how to rebuild the S5-42 ZF transmission if that is what you have.

ZF parts are not cheap. Good Luck.

 

yeah, my i found that out today. my buddy told me i would be better off changing teh tranny to something else, because the ZF transmissions are actually junk. I heard that syncronizers could be anywhere from between $100-$200 EACH SYNCRO! What a rip off! Oh well. Guess I'll be buying a completely new tranny.

-Dan

 

A 95 F-150 does not have a ZF unless it was swapped in.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/s...d.php?t=453784
Post #28 has a photo of what a ZF looks like.

A ZF is a heavy duty truck transmission. It has a low first gear for towing/hauling.

The M5OD is what you should have in your truck. It's a light duty truck transmission without a low first gear.

I don't believe the synchros are that expensive, might want to check around.

A rebuilt M5 is around $700, a rebuilt ZF is about $1200-$1400.

Careful who you talk to or listen to...you wouldn't believe how many times I've seen "my buddy said" and whatever their buddy said was completely wrong.

Neither transmission is bad...they're both good transmissions.

The M5 has a known plug problem, check the tech articles section (link above) for an article about it.

The ZF is a bulletproof tranny that a lot of us use for swaps. It's almost a direct swap in place of an M5OD.

 

you were right, it is an M50D transmission, it has very long, and his verticle and horizontal ribs on the side of the tranny. miraculously, i went to my truck this morning, and the tranny works fine, but 3rd and 4th gear do not work at all. took on it a test drive. I read another article on this website about the M5OD tranny, about some sort of seals going out and leaking oil while the truck is in motion...causing internal break down of the transmission. when i pulled back in my driveway, guess what...there was fluid dripping down from my tranny...really dark brown color....im guessing that is gear oil. Well, I will start my search for a rebuild M5OD....

-dan

 

The oil in the tranny should be red, or dark red...it's suppose to be ATF.

The M5 is also known for having worn/bent shift forks, might want to look into that as well.

Those trannies are a dime a dozen...grab one from a junkyard if you wish...

 

Big Dan you can have an F-150 with a ZF. I have an 88 with the 300 I6 and a ZF from the factory. I'm sure you already crawled underneath and read the serial plate. The ZF isn't junk its a very good strong tranny- everything wears over time- you can pull tree stumps out with it in first.

 

According to the papers I have, the ZF was only an F150 option in 88. However rumour has it there is the odd "Friday" F150 kicking around with ZF trannies, although I have never directly heard this confirmed by anyone saying they actually saw an F150 with a factory ZF.

 

yeah, just about everyone has told me it has been a shifting fork...but...there is only one way to find out. this weekend me an my buddies are gunna take that tranny out, open her up, and see what exactly is wrong with it. good thing i have friends that know more about this **** than i do.

-dan

 

I've heard of it being avail. on 88's...but outside of that year they weren't an option. I don't know why as they should of been since they've very interchangable but for whatever reason they didn't want to offer it as an option. Regardless, a ZF in an F-150 is a needle in a hay stack unless it was swapped. For as long as I've been on here I've seen, maybe 1.

The M5 is more car-like which makes sense in an F-150 since it's a light duty truck but it's just a tad too light duty if you ask me, the first gear should of been a little lower. But it probably would of been too much to mess around with and they left it as is. The ZF is more truck-like and I can see that most people wouldn't find it comfortable to drive day in and day out unless they understood it like most of us here do.

 

you can get kits and individuals pieces from www.drivetrian.com for decent prices for the m50d and the zf