Nothing special to do, Just bolt it up.

 

The only pointer I can give you is....once you unbolt it from the rear end, dont pull it out. Jack up the rear or the transmission or even both so the fluid doesnt run out and make a mess. If you plan on replacing the fluid then no big deal, but if you want to save it, jack up trans and rear end....you will have to unbolt the trans mount but that no big deal

 

Or you could just jack up the rear of the car higher than the front, that way you don't have to unbolt the trans mount and jack up the rear of the trans...just a thought.

 

Found these two for your year in case you haven't bought one yet.

https://www.jegs.com/p/JEGS/JEGS-HD...-1?year=4294829833&make=4294829830&model=4294829436&submodel=4294829424&engine=

https://www.jegs.com/p/Ford-Perform...-1?year=4294829833&make=4294829830&model=4294829436&submodel=4294829424&engine=

 

I'm not saying dont do it.. but the alum driveshafts dont hold up to abuse and launching hard.. they can make them stronger but the ones out there that are cheap are usually not that great.

 

At what point do the start failing?

 

It may be hard to locate one in undamaged condition,depending on whether the yard used a forklift or tow vehicle to bring the vehicles onto the lot,but if you don't need it asap and youve got time to search Pull-A-Part for one,the 92-97 AWD Aerostar vans came with a aluminum driveshaft that fits the Foxbody just like the 3.5" FMS shaft does.The AS driveshaft is 3" in diameter,but I haven't heard/read about it being weaker than the FMS piece.You need the rear driveshaft,not the front.The 92-95 driveshaft will require Napa 353 u joints to be installed & the yoke from your Foxbody oem driveshaft swapped onto the AS driveshaft,unless you wanna buy a new/reman yoke instead.I believe the 96-97 driveshaft is a direct bolt on and doesn't require anything,but I can't remember 100% on that,so research before buying.Pull-A-Part lists the price of a driveshaft around $30 in my area.Going this route will take some of your time & some cash for the shaft,u joints and the removal/installation of your yoke (if its a 92-95 model) but its much cheaper than a FMS driveshaft.Im not sure if Ford marked the driveshaft flange and pinion flange during assembly of the car or not,but if you see marks present on both parts and the AS driveshaft is also marked,it might be a good idea to line the marks up when you install the driveshaft.Since its coming out of a totally different model than the Foxbody,it might not help any to do this.If you bolt the driveshaft up,take the car for a highway drive so you can get it above 60 or 70mph and you feel vibration occurring,go back to the house.Use a marker or Witeout,write #1,2,3,etc on the side of the pinion flange at each bolt hole then draw a mark on the side of the driveshaft flange at the bolt hole thats currently lined up with the #1 marked bolt hole on the pinion flange.Since you experienced vibration with the driveshaft in the current position,unbolt it and rotate it one position so the driveshaft flange mark will be lined up with the #2 pinion flange mark,then take it for another test drive.Repeat the process until no vibration is present.

 

Im not a fan of them.. Especially in 94-98. If your car is lowered it will hit inside the trans tunnel where the ebrake cables mount and there really isnt a solution. Trimming the bracket gives maybe an extra 1/4 of an inch and then the bracket gets weak.. It tears up the driveshaft and it tears up the bracket... My personal opinion.. Stick with the steel one, replace the ujoints, have it balanced and be happy.

 

Are you referring to the FMS driveshaft or both aluminum driveshafts?? The Aerostar shaft is the same size as the oem steel shaft.When you say 94-98,you mean the sn95 models are more susceptible to this than 86-93 models,correct??

 

Ill just say this.. My car was making less than 500 whp when i broke the crank 2 years ago which was the last time I used my aluminum shaft. After disassembly and inspection I could remove the u-joints by hand on the aluminum side at the diff end.. they are supposed to be press fit and if they loosen up that easily, and I cant them in high HP cars.. at least not the 300$ jegs/summit/FMS run of the mill drive shafts rated to 500hp. Yea, im good on that

 

I’ll have to check my fms aluminum ds. I make 500 at the wheels and dump the clutch on slicks 5500-6500. Honestly I never gave it a thought or knew they were only good to 500 hp. Thanks.

 

zero issues with my 93 coupe and FMS aluminum driveshaft.. when you go to install make sure you have the rear end raised so when you pull your stock shaft out of the trans it doesn't dump the trans fluid all over.

 

I think the aluminium driveshaft is great on a street car.

 

your street car needs to make more HP... lol just pulling your chain.. i agree with you.. stock fox with maybe HCI... etc.. not your 1149rwhp turbo sleepers...

 

Isnt the oem steel driveshaft 2.75" in diameter??

 

3" OD 0.065" wall.