I've got an 83 z and put the small block in, the 5 speed didnt work out so i put in the m21. Anyone else do this? I have yet to see one in person. I would like to know if you have any trouble with your clutch rod and linkage. I've got mine working, but it isnt like I would like it to be.

 

How did you hook up the torque arm and why did you use an M21? My brother built an off-brand, inferior pony car with a big block and replaced the T5 with a top loader 4 speed for strength, just for drag racing--same thing here?

 

The torque arm wasnt long enough to hook up to the trans, so i welded more metal to the existing one to get the length to reach the clamps on the trans. Then I ran into problems, with the new engine in with more power, there was more torque on the arm, when I would launch or spin the tires the arm would pull out the threads on the bolts going into the soft aluminum trans, and come out of the clamp and slam up and knock the bottom of the car. I had enough of finding new bolts and worrying about stripping out the trans, that i went and bought some lakewood traction bars. This completely took care of the problem.

The reason I stuck in this vintage muncie was due mostly to convience(had it laying around my barn) and price. I didnt have the money to buy another trans. The 5 speed wouldnt hook up to my bellhousing on the new 350(the trans hooks up on an angle,like it is turned 20 degrees clockwise, and my blowproof that was only thing that would hook up to the engine block was straight on and not on an angle). So the muncie would hook up so I decided to throw that in. I had to take the 4 speeds shifter and lengthen it and angle it and it didnt come out pretty, but it works. The car however has had prolems with the clutch linkage no matter trans is in it. I have a reinforcement metal tube around the clutch rod, which seemed to fix that problem, but it still isnt right. I had problems with the crappy pep boys clutch(money was an issue) so i had to take that out and put in a centerforce dual friction in and that solved that(should of done that from the get-go).

Has anyone done anything like this? Did anyone run into these same problems? If so any info would be great.

 

Well, the 5 speed is supposed to be on an angle, that is the way it is designed. If the only thing stopping you from putting in the 5 speed is the bellhousing, you can buy a Lakewood blowproof bellhousing for the T5 5 speed camaro/firebird at Summit for $339.95. Here is the link......

http://store.summitracing.com/defaul...od+bellhousing

Scroll down to part number LAK-15020

 

Lakewood has the bell housing for a hydraulic clutch but not for a manual clutch for a 5-speed.

 

The 1983 bellhousing, linkage and T5 will bolt up to any Chevy Gen I or Gen II Small block.

Your blowproof was not the only thing that would hook up to the block. Why yours "didn't" is a matter of conjecture.


Yes they do. It's PN 15015. It has the correct relocated (lower) ballstud and has both straight up (Muncie, T10 etc.,) and T5 bolt patterns so it is perfect for 82, 83 F-body and G-body applications.

 

I stand corrected. Has that bellhousing always been available or is it something new? I did not know they had a bellhousing on an angle for the T-5 for the manual clutch setup. I knew they had the one for the regular hydraulic clutch.

 

it's been around for a few years at least. Nice that our market is covered, eh?

 

Once again, money and time and availability was the issue. I had the bellhousing there to link up with the muncie instead of the 5 speed. I was told that there wasnt one for a manual clutch so I went with what I had at the time. More recently, I have the quirks worked out of it, and it works just fine. All I need now I some better linkage for the old 4 speed to help with those quicker shifts. It's really loose, and doesn't have that solid feel on the stick when in gear. I think some unbeaten/bent up linkage would definately tighten up the situation. The last run at the track, I was keeping up, maybe even pulling ahead of the other car until it came time to throw it into 3rd. The shifter got binded up, and I found myself missing 3rd gear. The other first gen went on to run a mid 12. So I definately need to get the linage straightened out.