transmission replacement and BW1354 elec - Drivetrain Tech - Tech Section

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MelRaymond
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Greetings to all! Hope you are faring well through the Virus excitement.

I am in the beginning stages of a clutch/transmission replacement and hoping to convert the TC from electric to manual operation to help ensure that flat-towing our truck behind the motorhome is not damaging the driveline. I am big on doing my research, and I don't recall where I saw it, but my feeble old brain remembers reading somewhere that to flat-tow my 1998 Ranger 4X4, 5-speed manual with electric shift TC, all I had to do was make sure it was in 2 wheel high and put the transmission in neutral. So far, we have towed the truck about 5000 miles. Current mileage on the truck is about 225,000. After hearing some driveline noise, I had my local shop take a look, and they found fine metal particles in the transmission oil. So, I don't know whether the damage resulted from the towing process or whether the transmission just gave up at this point in it's life. If anyone has experience to share on this, it will be greatly appreciated.Regardless of the cause, I've got to fix it anyway. I have not crawled under to verify it yet, but it seems that the transmission is the Ford/Mazda M5R1 and the TC is a BW1354E. Where the transfer case is concerned, I will replace it if need be, but I ran across a conversion kit from Behemoth Drivetrain {behemothdrivetrain.com} which claims to convert the BW154 from electric to manual operation and in the process provide a dual stick shifter giving 2H, 2L, N, 4H,4L selections. In the electric shift configuration, the the 2L and N selections do not exist. I am waiting for a response from Behemoth to verify before I order.

Has anyone out there had any experience with this conversion, or have any knowledge about it?

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I have been an electrician forever, and I still enjoy building, repairing and creating projects. Do a little welding and fabrication. My two primary hobbies are messing about with vintage motorcycles and attempting to do my blog site justice (ridingmybucketlist.com)My wife of 51 years and I are in our 3rd year of travels in our motorhome.

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410customs

Posted: Fri Mar 20th, 2020 10:18 pm

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Idahome

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N does exist!!!!!!! it is between 4 hi and 4 low
It is not marked on all of the cases, but if you shift it to that position it will stay in N (both front and rear d shafts spin freeley)

On both the 1354e and 1354m t case (you can put the t case in Neutral)
1354m: Manual shift you simply put the level in N
1354e: Electric shift you remove the t case shift motor and turn the knob by hand
or use the behemouth shifter or the advance adapters hand shifter knob
I think that behemoth peice might be hard to actually get your hands on and its pricey. Better off locating a 1354M t case, its a direct bolt it

To flat tow a ranger I would put my transfer case in N and then manual transmission also in N
I bet your 5 speed bit the dust from the old output shaft spinning while flat towing but not slinging lube........
Flat tow Ranger must remove driveshaft OR put transfer case in N

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Posted: Sat Mar 21st, 2020 10:00 am

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Idahome

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https://ford-rangers.com/view_topic.php?id=2027&forum_id=55&highlight=flat+tow

we were just discussing flat towing and some of the options for 4wd rangers

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Posted: Sat Mar 21st, 2020 02:30 pm

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MelRaymond
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Thanks so much for all of the insight on this problem. I have felt all along that the trans failure was because of the towing, I just didn't have the knowledge to know for sure.

What is a good source, in your experience, for a 1354M TC? I hear that LKQ has a pretty good reputation. If I cannot find a good local shop to rebuild my M5R1, I will get a reman or possibly a new transmission.

I'll also give the folks at Behemoth a rattle and see what the availability is on the shift kit.

Once again, thanks so much for sharing your knowledge.

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Posted: Sat Mar 21st, 2020 03:20 pm

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Idahome

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No problem! It is what we do here
Now this thread will be here for eternity and countless other "googlers" will find the answers they seek

Ebay is an excellent source, some of the largest and most reputable wreckers in the country sell on there.
The key is to make sure you get the shifter bits, interior cowl and boots......

Otherwise find one on your local Craigslist or junk yard
They are out there. When I see them at the junk yard I bring them home because I can sell them for $350-500
At the JY they cost $60-80

Since your ranger is a 98 you do not have a speed sensor in your transfer case
You can use any 1354m from 1990-2011, it cam come from any engine truck, 4 cylinder or 6 cylinder. Just make sure you get the 1354 and not the 1350 (1350 is 1983-1989)
You NEED to make sure your 5 speed tail housing has the two holes required for mounting the t case shifter linkage
I WOULD NOT give up my 5 speed core with that tail housing on there....those tail housings are also getting rare (with the holes) because in like 04 or something they quit casting them in there

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Posted: Sat Mar 21st, 2020 05:35 pm

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MelRaymond
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Appreciate the great tip on the trans tail housing, as well as all the other good stuff.

All valuable information! More than kind of you to share it.

Thanks again.

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Posted: Sat Mar 21st, 2020 09:15 pm

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Idahome

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Found some manual shift 1354's on Ebay
You can sort through these pick the latest model with the lowest miles.
Try to source the shifter/boot some of those adds might come with? If you contact the seller many times they are willing to pull the parts and ship with the t case

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=1354+manual&_sacat=6000

We should note that your 98 Ranger uses the Cv style front driveshaft, so you will want to use a 98+ 1354 to match
The pre 98 1354 in the Ranger and Explorer came with a U joint style front d shaft at the t case
Yours has a CV axle style joint at the t case
So for example if you were to find a say 1996 1354m t case you would need the front d shaft as well

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Posted: Tue Jun 9th, 2020 12:39 pm

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MelRaymond
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Thank you so much for all the great information! I am a pure heathen dog for not getting back to you sooner, but life gets in the way. We have traveled full time for four years , and have had no major issues on teh road, but 2020 has more than made up for all that good luck. Old motorhome died on us on the way back to home base in Charleston, SC in January. Sold it and found a newer, nicer one and I would have had my hands full even without all of the Virus stuff. Anyway, I appreciate you more than I can say!

I actually talked with Jacob Clark, the owner, inventor, builder, janitor and chief toilet flusher at Behemoth Drivetrain in Leitchfield, Ky. He indicated that I could indeed get my hands on the shift kit that I needed. He had also added a single stick version of the kit that did not provide a 2 wheel Low selection as did his twin stick model. I opted for the single stick version for $299. That was on May 6th. I am still waiting for a confirmed ship date. Jacob seems like a genuinely good guy and maybe has created a monster and is up to his ass in alligators. I don't want to throw him under the bus, but I sure would like to get my shift kit.

Failing that, I am going to follow up on the 1354m TC that you suggested.

About a year and a half ago, we spent a week in Colorado City and did the Royal Gorge train ride and stuff. How close did we get to you?

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Posted: Wed Jun 10th, 2020 09:51 am

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Idahome

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I got married at the Royal Gorge bridge in 2008 :)

We did the helicopter tour 4 times!!! We did the dinner train too........
that was 2.5 hours south of where we lived in Conifer Colorado
Now we live in North Idaho, 1800 miles away from there

Behemouth has a history of taking a long time to ship things......... but he is still in business so we just be patient!

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Eddie Money

Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 12:14 pm

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MelRaymond
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I would love to do the helicopter tour, but I would have to go by myself. Dear Wife likes to keep her feet on the ground.

Great picture! Because of all the virus stuff, I don't think we will get to do it this year, but a West Coast swing is still in the plans. My first duty station in the Air Force was in Neah Bay Washington in 1968 and we spent our first year and a half of wedded bliss there. 53 years later, we are still on speaking terms and hanging out in our 40 ft. diesel pusher. I would really like to go back out to the Great Northwest one more next time before the plug gets pulled on me.

Thanks again for all the great information. When I spoke with Jacob Clark (Behemoth) he said that his long term goal was to sell the production rights to all of his creations and take the royalties. Probably a good idea, because he isn't worth a flip at customer service. I am a patient person, by nature, but not having the neutral in my TC is holding us up right now. I changed the ATF in the transmission yesterday and it shifted better and was a lot quieter in 3rd and 5th gears. My long term goal with this truck is to do a complete drive train makeover. I thought about putting a 302 in it, but it seems to me that you can massage a 4.0 a bit and get quite a bit of power out of them still have a very reliable daily driver with out upsetting the dynamics of the vehicle.

I also know that the M5odR1 is a light duty trans, and I see that there is an R2 that is said to be a bit more HD. Would that be a logical option and would the 1354M hang on to the back of an R2 or wouild I need to look at another TC?

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Posted: Thu Jun 18th, 2020 10:44 am

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Idahome

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the 1354 fits all V6 Ranger transmissions from 1983-2011
The a4ld, 4r55e, 5r55e, and m5od all have same tailhousing

The M5odR1 is a pretty good transmission by 1998 they had it sorted out pretty well, any 5 speed that came behind the sohc engine (98+) was pretty stout!!

the m5od R2 is used behind the 5.0L V8, 4.2L v6 in F150!!!!!!!! totally different bellhousing and tailhousing will not work with v6 anything

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mazda_M5OD_transmission

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Posted: Mon Jun 22nd, 2020 12:28 pm

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MelRaymond
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That makes perfectly good sense. Thanks so much for the insight.

I removed the electric motor and drive assembly from the TC and took it apart to see what I could use to be able to shift the TC manually while I am waiting to see if I actually do get the parts from Behemoth. I was able to use the gear that fits on the eccentric shift shaft and select the mode needed to flat tow. It was a little extra effort, but it worked great. Since I am not doing any hard-core 4 wheeling, this is a workable solution in the near term.

Really do appreciate your time and information on all of this!

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