Cobras with t56 Magnum's step in

03' White Snake

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What first gear ratio did you go with, 2.66 like the stock t56 or the 2.97 gear set? Stock rear gears, ect? IRS or SRA? What shifter handle did you use? Do all the connectors plug right on on the magnum? What about the reverse solenoid, I keep reading varying info on this. Plug or block off needed for the extra speed sensor hole? Anything needed off my stock transmission for the install?

I did not want to have to calculate the rear gears and mph so I was learning toward the 2.66 first gear.

Any complaints, pros or cons with each gear option?

Looking to pull the trigger this week, so I need input on which to go with.

Thank you.
 

cj428mach

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I'm pretty sure changing the transmission gear ratios has no effect on the speedo as its going off the output shaft and that relationship is still the same with the rear tires.

I went with the 2.66 transmission, while the .5 overdrive of the 2.97 transmission is tempting the traction issues most Magnum owners have makes the 2.97 a bad idea. You can get custom transmissions built with the 2.66 1st gear and the .5 overdrive but I think its an extra grand.

You have to slightly open up the bolts on the transmission mount to fit the T56 Magnum bolt holes.

The harness is plug and play but the transmission is different so there aren't places to plug the harness retaining clips into the transmission to hold the harness in place. Thats no big deal as you just need some zipties and you'll be good to go.

A speedometer cable block off is required, and can be found on ebay for about $15-25 shipped depending upon how fancy you want it to be.

I had to have the driveshaft shortened approx. 1" with the Sonnax transmission yoke T3-3-2491HP that everyone likes to use. Theres some good info here.
https://www.svtperformance.com/foru...um-im-getting-conflicting-info.1052764/page-3

I originally used a Pro 5.0 shifter handle on the T56 Magnum and it worked fine, I've now switched to a Steeda Tri ax handle which I like better. A friend of mine told me he just reused a stock handle on his T56 Magnum and it works well for him. Pretty much any 2 bolt handle is going to fit and work.

The only thing I'll add is that the transmission tunnel will need to be massaged. I tried to use counter sunk bolts in the shifter base but the floor still touched the shifter base not the bolt heads. I got a ton of noise coming from the transmission/drivetrain until I found where it was touching and clearanced the floor up slightly.
 
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03' White Snake

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Thank you, this is exactly what I was looking for. My car makes pretty good tq, so I was concerned with the 2.97 first gear. I thought it would make traction hard to get in first gear.

Same with the speedo block off, no one mentions them in the swap.

I have the Sonnax yoke on order already. I have a brand new ford clutch fork, Ford Racing TOB, Spec 3+, mcloed rebuilt my flywheel, anything else needed from the stock transmission to complete the swap?
 

cj428mach

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No i think you should be good to go. The clutch fork clearance can be an issue on twin disc clutches with the Magnum t56 as the front plate is different.
 

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