whats the max horsepower for a WC t5? My engine puts out about 500 HP will a world class t5 hold up?

 

Depends on how you drive it. If you mash the pedal and shift hard it won't last long.

 

Transmissions are rated in TQ. The testing is done for 24h in 1st gear. Whatever max TQ it 'lives' at is the TQ rating. I think the WC is 305 'lbs TQ. So, what this means is that these trannys have a thermal problem. I don't like ATF in manual trannys! It is supposed to be for the 'tight'clearances and fluid galleries. Uh huh... ATF has a very poor film strength. It is a hydraulic fluid, not a 'gear' oil. The T5 has a few things going for it. It has an aluminium case to better dissipate the heat. Though that means that it is a little more prone to warping under load. The key is to eliminate the heat by using better lubrication. Synthetic fluids are far superior to mineral oils, and have a much better tolerance for temperature, that won't burn away untill about 800 deg F. Use a good synthetic oil like Redline, that is not too thick. Don't use motor oil of course. Even a synthetic ATF is better. Good oil and nice treatment will make the T5 last in high HP/TQ setups. Just don't shock it too bad, use a light flywheel, be carefull with 3rd and 5th, and don't power shift. Also an aftermarket shifter will allow you to setup the shifter stops which limits the amount of movement, and doesn't stress the forks and dog teeth as bad.

 

Arthur thanks for the advice I will be sure to run redline and an aluminum flywheel.

 

No problem, though aluminum flywheels are not always the lightest. In '86, the IROCs came with 11 pound flywheels. I don't have much more info on these, and have searched around for one at the wreckers etc. The flywheels on the 305s are about 15.5 lbs. The ones on the post '86 one piece rear main anyway. These will have an extarnally balanced flywheel, and if used on a 350, one or two piece rear main, will have to have the flywheel balancecasting removed and rebalanced as the 350s are internally balanced. The pre '86 305s were intarnally bal also, but with the new crank design, they were unable to add weight to the counterweights. Hence the extarnally balanced flywheel. The 350 however has heavier pistons that balance everything out. That said, a 15 lb flywheel is pretty good for spool up, and easy on the tranny when shifting etc. (less inertia to shock tranny) But it is a must to slip the clutch a little to start( more so than a 30 lb flywheel) which leads to lots of clutch wear. Worse with a 3.08 rear. I don't think an aluminum flywheel is the way to go. There are a number of manufacturers of nodular iron flywheels that are 14 lbs, for about $138 US. Though I forget their website, I was impressed. Ihave never seen an aluminum flywheel less than 15 lbs. Good luck with the project!