I believe it will because the 4.0 V6 is based off of the 3.8 V6, Just find one for a small block ford.

 

I'm not sure about that, but I know that the 300, the 302, the 351W, all shared the same bolt pattern. I have never heard that the v6's were at all similar. I would check into that very closely.

 

I think the 3.8L is a 90 degree V6 where as the 4.0L is a 60 degree, might make a difference on bolt pattern and stuff.

 

The ZF fit's: 300 I6, 302 V8, 351W, 460, and diesel. Baisically just the fullsize.

HardworkinFORD, sounds like your as sure that the M5OD is as bad as I'm sure it's good! Well for the class it's used in anyway. I agree that the ZF is much more rugged and is definately needed for many applications. I also agree that some of Fords engineers should be floggeed about the head and neck too! he he Good job on the install by the way! My father has been using an original M5OD in his 51 Ford pick up for the past 9 years. It has a 410 stroker with over 400hp. He's broken a lot of things from speed shifting, (even necks sometimes ) but never the transmission. Even the Ranger M5OD has bigger gears and more bearings than the Borg Warner T5 used in the Mustang, Camaro, and S10. My opinions come from 10 years of rebuilding transmissions and a lot of trial and error. It is however just my opinion and I'm not trying to say anyone else has a bad one. I just feel the M5OD get's a bad rap because it's a Mazda. Don't forget the ZF is German, and in typical German fashion hard to work on. Anyhoo..... (stepping down off of my soap box now)

 

That is interesting to hear. My opinion comes from a M5OD that has rolled over dead on me twice! My truck is fairly new (140,000+ ha ha) and I do not us it in any extreme manner I just us it as it should have been designed. I pull a bass boat on occasion (with 3.55 gears), but mainly it just gets me to and from work. This transmission is too highly geared in my opinion for a pickup that sees ANY actual use. I am baffled by the recent failure since I had just serviced it about 3-4 months ago, and saw nothing alarming (no metal particles at all with fluid in good condition). I replaced the top seal and the three plugs again while topping it off with Valvoline High mileage Mercon fluid (I even added an extra .5 qt since I went in through the top). I checked it weekly for leaks, but when it started making noise I suspected low fluid. After I replaced it with the ZF I checked the fluid level in the M5OD (it started POURING out before I had the fill plug 1/3 of the way out). Anyway, this transmission was rebuilt about 40,000 miles ago and to me that was unforgiveable. I hope to have better luck with the ZF. By the way do you know the specifics on the master cylinders for the two of these? If I could rule out different operating volumes that would simplify the troubleshooting of my clutch symptoms after the switch. I can live with its operation, but I tend to be a perfectionist! Take care.

 

Oh yeah, I feel your pain on the difficulty of repairing German technology! I am an electrician in a steel mill and almost all of our equipment is from Germany. Even the high-dollar German specialists we have hired on occasion for large projects cannot understand all of the documentation! They are even from the same company that designed it for crying out loud! I hope I never need to work on this transmission!

 

I agree with ya there, one rebuild should last! Hard to say what the deal is. I think the ZF you have now will serve you well. Some of them are lemons and give me ulcers , but if you have a good one then it'll usually last a long time. Wish I could shed some light on the master cylinder. If it were me I'd just get the MC from the truck you got the transmission out of to be sure. Is the slave cylinder inside or outside the bellhousing? There was both and this could be the difference. Possibly still air in the line maybe? I'm sure you'll be able to resolve this problem.

An electrician for German technology? Wow I thought I had it bad! Sheesh!!