[mlburgoon]

Here is some info I have gathered about the MTX transmissions. What this contains is a listing of all the MTX transmissions, their gear ratios, and the final drive ratios that SHOULD bolt right up and into the 1st gen escorts. Not positive about the MTX IV, but I included it as well.

I am new to the forum, so I hope I am placing this correctly. If not, slap my hands, tell me where it should go, and we will be good from there!!!! LOL

Also, sorry for the larger pics, but you have to be able to read the info in them.

 

[old86EXP]

Sure this is the right place. Good information.

 

[UnexplodedCow]

Excellent info. It shows there is no difference between late model GT and base transaxle gearing. Yes, it's in the right area. Thanks for posting it, along with all the other car models.

Edit: The MTX IV as fitted to the 3.0L Vulcan will probably have the same bolt pattern as the MTX III....and good lord, it's 1st gear is super low, I guess it's made up for with the final drive.

 

[win0857]

I have one of those 84 diesel mtxIII under my barn. I wonder if the difference
in 4th gear will help me in the 1/4? I was running out of gear at the end of the track, I was in 4th gear at 6,200rpm and doing arond 103-106 MPH.Gas is 1.02 and diesel is .98 bt is that so small it wouldn't make a difference?
Mark

 

[UnexplodedCow]

It'll make a difference, do the math.
Gasser overall ratio for 4th is 3.8046
Diesel overall is 3.4496

6200 rpm/3.8046 = 1629.6 axle/tire rpm
6200/ 3.4496 = 1797.3 axle/tire rpm.

Assuming it's the 195/60/15 tire (833 rotations to a mile, or 5280 ft.) the mph can be figured out.

Here's the math I used:

1629.6 rpm/ 833 = 1.956 miles per minute.
1797.3/ 833 = 2.157 miles per minute

Multiply 60 by 1.956 for MPH. 117.36 MPH
The diesel is 60x2.157 = 129.42 MPH

There is indeed a noticeable difference in the gearing. Obviously, fitting smaller or larger tires will dramatically affect the outcome, but it can all be figured out with math.

My guess with the slightly over 100 MPH, Mark, is that you either had a slipping clutch, or your tach or speedo may be off.

 

[win0857]

Good info UC,the clutch was good and the MPH was from the time slip. The tach was stock so that may be correct.
Mark

 

[UnexplodedCow]

One oddity I noticed. I remember collecting gear ratio info on the tranny that came with my car, since the label print had rubbed off. I remember doing 3k rpm @ 75 mph. So I started doing the math, and it seems I have a GT transaxle that came with my car...a CFI 4 door LX. I didn't know that was an option, but it explains the slightly better acceleration. And getting 42 mpg on it. Maybe I should slap in my tall geared Tempo tranny and see what kind of mileage I can cook up.

 

[twobit]

i swear that my 83 1.6L wagon tranny had a higher end ratio just because with the same tires as the gt at the time, the wagon was doing the same speeds at almost 800K less rpm. mtx-III 5spd..

i have recently found out that the mtx went though several transitions. same outside and gear ratios. but the guts changed a few times. early mtx-III have rev to the left of 2nd and the later ones to the right of 5th. also the 5th gear shaft size and syncro moved up to a larger size. and the late model ones had extra cover and fluid whip to help splash more oil onto the gear set.

I have the early style with the left of 2nd rev. having alot of trouble hunting down 5th gear parts for this thing. and the junkyards are drying up.

 

[UnexplodedCow]

This is very probable. The MTX-2 series had a higher 4th gear than the MTX-3 fifth gear, overall ratio that is. Starting in '83, by the picture data above, Ford started using the .81x3.04 ratio final drive MTX-2. That overall ratio is 2.4624:1....a bit higher geared than what I was using. So, if you were using the larger size tires (185/70/14, or 195/60/15...within 1 revolution per mile of each other), you'd be doing 3k rpm @ 87.75 MPH, about 3 MPH faster than what my tempo was geared for.

70.2 MPH would be 2400 rpm. 800,000 rpm less would put your engine doing negative revolutions...yes, I'm being facetious and technical.

 

[mlburgoon]

since someone asked the question about this again, I am bumping this to the top.

Maybe this info\thread should be stickied?

 

[UnexplodedCow]

I second that...keep this info on top so people have a reference.

 

[Walt]

My information suggests that the mtx-1 4 speed might also have been availible with a .95 4th gear ratio. I have a suspicion that my car may be so equipped, but I will need to check it with a tach to be sure.

 

[UnexplodedCow]

You need to know how many revs the tires do along with how many revs the engine does (as accurate as possible) and know the final drive. Then 4th gear can be figured out.

 

[TORKMONSTER]

So does this mean that it is possible to bolt a MTXIII to a 3.0 SHO block? Ive always wondered that. Because I believe a III is smaller in width than a IV. but then there is a question of an MTXIII handling the torque an HP of a SHO.

 

[UnexplodedCow]

No. The SHO block (3.8, there was no 3.0 SHO) uses a different bolt pattern as it's a Yamaha engine. The 3.0 Vulcan should fit, however nobody has confirmed it, and I have yet to see a 3.0 Tempo around here that didn't have an auto (seriously...why?).

The MTX-III will handle plenty more than a bone stock Vulcan can give. Note that people here, who have made plenty more power than the 3.0, are using MTX-3's. Late model MTX-2's have the same casing as a 3, but one less gear shaft internally (less internal friction, taller gearing), so they should be fine, too.

 

[TORKMONSTER]

Cow if I remember correctly, SHO's came in 3.0 liter and 3.2 liter for later model V6's...Im almost certain of this. In fact,...the SHO is closely based on the Vulcan in Bore and Stroke. Even SHO heads bolt on to the Vulcan, but the fun ends there. Im just looking into possibilities.

 

[UnexplodedCow]

You're right...got my numbers way off, sorry. For some reason I was confusing the SHO with the 3.8 pushrod engine that was also in the taurus. If SHO heads bolt to the vulcan, it would be a nice idea to start playing with one of those engines. But I'm pretty sure the tranny bolt patterns are different.

Also, the Vulcan is a pushrod engine, and the SHO is OHC. I've not heard of the heads bolting on, either. But I would like to see such mods. Furthermore, I just read on Temoptopaz that the MTX-IV will not bolt up to the 2.3 HSC engine, which is the same bolt pattern as the CVH. So, the 3.0L uses the same bolt pattern as the SHO.

 

[TORKMONSTER]

Yeah, the idea of the vulcan block/SHO heads has quickly diminished. I had got real amped at one point, but thats gone out the window. I got on a few taurus and tempo forums and was told a Vulcan cannot be modified to accept SHO heads

 

[UnexplodedCow]

That's what I thought.

 

[Shorty]

Someone once told me that the SHO came with an LSD stock. Can anyone verify this?