Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Transaxle The transmissions on these cars suck!!!

The tougher MTX's in the V6 were the early 'rod' shift, they hardly ever break,in 12 months I have had ONE for syncros thru the shop, the rest are ALL CABLE SHIFT, on the later 'Focus' MTX75 a NUMBER of changes & upgrades have been carried out on the internal components over & above even the last/latest MTX75's fitted to Contour/Cougar.....I see this because I have transmissions from all years/vehicles etc in the shop....even 2002 'Focus' MTX's.

Originally posted by Terry Haines:

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The tougher MTX's in the V6 were the early 'rod' shift,
they hardly ever break

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...per Ford they are the weakest. Input shaft & syncro wise.

The are also on the road in the smallest numbers compared to the cable shifted version.

The diff is stronger on the rod shift, only have to look at the gears,never had a failed input shaft on a rod,a couple on cable,syncros last longer,last rod shift I changed syncros on had 104,000 on the clock....'More cable than rod repairs .....per HMS Inc

i just got a 98svt last season and within two days the third gear went. i got a new tranny right after. well now i feel third syncro starting to go after only 4 months of driving. i now how to drive stick perfect on this car and i never whip it around scince i know the tranny isnt the best. whats the deal with that, i heard this happen before, and my warranty is up on the tranny. i have no money for this and please help

Originally posted by Terry Haines:

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The diff is stronger on the rod shift, only have to look at the gears,never had a failed input shaft on a rod,a couple on cable,syncros last longer,last rod shift I changed syncros on had 104,000 on the clock....'More cable than rod repairs .....per HMS Inc

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One thing to consider (do I dare venture into a transaxle discussion with
Terry Haines, after all, I install and maintain computers for a living, LOL)
is the sheer numbers of the cable shift vs rod shift.

IIRC, rod shift was only used in 1995, while the cable shift has been
used here every since. If that is the case, then you probably have
have about 7 cable shift trannies for every rod shift.

Now, if I'm wrong about the years and rod shifts were used say upto
1997, then the difference is probably only about 2:1.

I want to be clear that I'm not arguing about what Terry is seeing, but
rather offering another possible reason why such an apparent
disparity exists.

I do believe that Ford would change parts and what not in the middle
of a products life. If they decontented the interior bits, whose to
say Ford didn't also use less expensive bits in the transaxle.

TB

Rod shift 95-97 (earlier in Europe as 18 months before launch in USA) BUT with so many high mile rod shifts around,no qty...miles , you would expect them to be wearing out by now ...but they don't.....

I was thinking about that; with all the 'unreliable' remarks on this forum. Other than the 'cocktale cure' I have never had any complaints- concerns with the MTX-75 in my '95 SE, even in comparison with other manuals. Yes, a regular brake bleed (including the clutch) keeps the shift action crisp. I wish I had similar longivity reliability, with ATX vehicles (no other option) that I have owned. I have also bought 'high miler' other, single owner, used vehicles with no concern about the power train - after taking a 'how fast' demo ride with the owner. Maybe, I can't properly drive an automatic!

Originally posted by Terry Haines:

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Most dealers prefer to swap rather than repair,I know the failure modes of these transmissions because,in most cases,we strip & repair,without that the dealer cannont give you a definative 'why'...I have offered many times to have seminars on the MTX but it appears that most owners will not invest time or money in this level of understanding....its not a 5 min 'how too' to explain all the issues etc with the MTX75...

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So the dealers ought to be sending the dudes on the tranny line to your seminars! I recall when I was in Ford training after I got out of the service, we didn't even go into manual transimissions, only automatics. This was back in the mid '70s. It was probably because there was more money in doing auto-tranny services where with the manual all you mostly ever did was change the oil once in a while.

Karl

Karl, the main problem you discribe is spot on.More auto trans shops than you can shake a stick at,but when it comes to stick shift ........oh no!....need a new trans sir!....it a 'history' thing, I grew up with stick shifts you guys have autos (mainly).....And yes I would be more than willing to re start the seminars but it takes a fair bit of time & planning but for the above average diy guy (or gal) its not rocket science....what more can I add...I'm willing to teach if you guys want it.....

well i had about 50,000 miles before i got buldog box from terry (wich i love ). I was hard on it at times, (especially right before i brought it to terry) banging gears and what not and never had any problems. I think there were 2 worn syncros and some burn marks on clutch/flywheel, nothing major. But besides going into a few gears roughly my stock trans held up great.