Many dragstrips
require a safety bellhousing (scattershield) if you are running 11.99 or
quicker with a manual transmission equipped car. This is not a problem
for many vehicles because safety bellhousings are available for the popular
combinations (such as the 5.0L Mustang with a T-5). Since finding it was
quite easy to bolt on some performance parts and run mid 11's with my '96
4.6L SOHC Mustang GT, I had to install one. However, there is no direct
bolt-on safety bellhousing for the 4.6L/T-45 (engine/transmission) combination
yet. Aside from the fact that the aftermarket has not yet begun production
on the full spectrum of 4.6L products, two other reasons are readily apparent
when working on the newer Mustangs:
-
The 4.6L uses a
different bellhousing bolt pattern than the 5.0L engine.
-
The T-45 bellhousing
is integral with the front face of the trans (if you remove the bellhousing
you will be looking at the gears inside the trans).
Checking around
to see what other people had done clued me in to an easy solution. Even
though the 5.0L bellhousing bolt pattern is different than the 4.6L, it
is very close and allows the use of a 5.0L bellhousing with some simple
modifications. So while I can't take credit for the idea of attaching a
5.0L safety bellhousing to a 4.6L engine, I figure I can at least share
a method with anyone who wants or needs to duplicate it.
I knew people
using 5.0L safety bellhousings with T-5 and Jerico racing transmissions.
I chose a 5.0L/T-5 Lakewood Safety Bellhousing, available through SVO (SVO
part number M-6392-A) or many other sources. The SVO Universal Safety Bellhousing
(SVO part number M-6392-C) was not available but would be the preferred
choice, when/if it becomes available, since it should fit a Tremec transmission
also. The transmission choice was a fairly easy decision for me to make
since the Jerico racing trans costs a few times what a T-5 cost. I figured
I wouldn't be making enough torque to warrant the extra cost and the T-5
has proven to be quite stout for many people racing it. So I bought a new
Heavy Duty T-5 transmission (SVO part number M-7003-Z), since it is the
strongest T-5 available.
