S197 2012 Boss 302 Build Thread Profile - S197 Mustangs

[jarredc900]

This is the Build Thread for 2012 Boss 302. Reply below.

 

[Bill Pemberton]

I have owned 4 White Mustangs over my lifetime so , I , of course, love the look of your Boss. Do tell everyone about your transmission conversion , as I know there will be plenty of interest in your T3160 install!

 

[Champale]

Wow yes I have been dreaming about getting another Boss and putting a 3160 in it! I love that transmission. Please give us the story of that installation, what clutch, etc!

 

[jarredc900]

Thank you for the comments guys!

The installation is pretty straight forward!

I bought a new in box Ford Performance 3160 with the internal cooler pump (the one for the GT350-R).
OEM Ford GT-350 clutch with a lightened steel flywheel.
OEM GT-350 shifter assembly. The ANY MT82 shift assembly will not work because of the selection orientation. It is opposite in the MT82 vs the Tremec.
The S197 Ford Racing one piece driveshaft is what I had before the tremec swap and the length works perfectly. You just need to have a driveline shop install the correct transmission side yoke.
As for the cooler lines and breather;
I made a loop line for the cooler lines on the transmission with help of adapters MMR.
I then ran a breather line from the port up to an overflow bottle I mounted in the engine bay.

A tune is required for speed sensor to communicate properly to the car.
I got help with that from Lund as well as 30 extra HP with no mods. The Roadrunner is an extraordinary engine. The things revs to 8K now and still pulls.

Gear ratios in the 3160 vs the MT82 are incrementally taller up to 5th gear which is still 1.00:1
I cant think of a better combination than a Roadrunner and a 3160. Though I am biased.

 

[Champale]

Thank you for the comments guys!

The installation is pretty straight forward!

I bought a new in box Ford Performance 3160 with the internal cooler pump (the one for the GT350-R).
OEM Ford GT-350 clutch with a lightened steel flywheel.
OEM GT-350 shifter assembly. The ANY MT82 shift assembly will not work because of the selection orientation. It is opposite in the MT82 vs the Tremec.
The S197 Ford Racing one piece driveshaft is what I had before the tremec swap and the length works perfectly. You just need to have a driveline shop install the correct transmission side yoke.
As for the cooler lines and breather;
I made a loop line for the cooler lines on the transmission with help of adapters MMR.
I then ran a breather line from the port up to an overflow bottle I mounted in the engine bay.

A tune is required for speed sensor to communicate properly to the car.
I got help with that from Lund as well as 30 extra HP with no mods. The Roadrunner is an extraordinary engine. The things revs to 8K now and still pulls.

Gear ratios in the 3160 vs the MT82 are incrementally taller up to 5th gear which is still 1.00:1
I cant think of a better combination than a Roadrunner and a 3160. Though I am biased.

Wow so that actually doesn't sound like too terrible of a job. Thank you for posting.

I have owned 2 B302s and now own a GT350R and the 3160 is such a pleasure compared to the MT82. I hadn't done gearing comparisons but that is nice to know. And yes, a tuned Roadrunner is a very special thing, especially when you have a clutch and gearbox that can handle the high rpm shifts! I enjoy the OE GT350R clutch a lot more than the RST I had in my 2013 Boss LS.

I've been trying to figure out what my next car project was going to be and had been debating between another Mitsubishi Evo (I've had 3 of them!) or another Boss. The 3160 swap might just put the Boss in the lead!

Thank you again and I really appreciate your information!

 

[jarredc900]

Wow so that actually doesn't sound like too terrible of a job. Thank you for posting.

I have owned 2 B302s and now own a GT350R and the 3160 is such a pleasure compared to the MT82. I hadn't done gearing comparisons but that is nice to know. And yes, a tuned Roadrunner is a very special thing, especially when you have a clutch and gearbox that can handle the high rpm shifts! I enjoy the OE GT350R clutch a lot more than the RST I had in my 2013 Boss LS.

I've been trying to figure out what my next car project was going to be and had been debating between another Mitsubishi Evo (I've had 3 of them!) or another Boss. The 3160 swap might just put the Boss in the lead!

Thank you again and I really appreciate your information!

Wow so that actually doesn't sound like too terrible of a job. Thank you for posting.

I have owned 2 B302s and now own a GT350R and the 3160 is such a pleasure compared to the MT82. I hadn't done gearing comparisons but that is nice to know. And yes, a tuned Roadrunner is a very special thing, especially when you have a clutch and gearbox that can handle the high rpm shifts! I enjoy the OE GT350R clutch a lot more than the RST I had in my 2013 Boss LS.

I've been trying to figure out what my next car project was going to be and had been debating between another Mitsubishi Evo (I've had 3 of them!) or another Boss. The 3160 swap might just put the Boss in the lead!

Thank you again and I really appreciate your information!

I mean the Boss with a 3160 is a COMPLETELY different car. Definitely would not regret it!

 

[Champale]

That is so cool. I am so glad you were the guinea pig and got everything figured out. The Roadrunner is such a special engine (especially the sound with Borla S Type axlebacks).

 

[Adam Ginsberg]

@jarredc900 - where did you find a NIB FP 3160? I see it's still shown in the 2020 FP catalogue (Part # M-7000-M8S), but so far, I haven't found one in stock.

Great looking B302.

 

[jarredc900]

@jarredc900 - where did you find a NIB FP 3160? I see it's still shown in the 2020 FP catalogue (Part # M-7000-M8S), but so far, I haven't found one in stock.

Great looking B302.

I had to do some digging and luckily found one on eBay.

 

[HI RPM]

Thank you for sharing the transmission swap info.

As a past 2013 BOSS owner, I can say that 3160 is exactly what that car needed.
I currently own a 2022 Mach 1 HP car. Its great in its own rite, but IMHO, it doesn't deliver the thrilling drive that the BOSS did.

What wheel tire combo are you running?

 

[Bill Pemberton]

Having owned three Boss 302s I will agree they are a super fun machine and one of my favorite cars of all times. Yet, once I slapped on a set of Apex 19x11s, some GT4 racing studs from Capaldi Racing, maxed out the Handling Package front camber plates with as much negative camber as possible and then popped on a set of Hoosier R7s, I can honestly say the Mach 1 was my absolute favorite street Mustang ever! Those massive front rotors would allow me to outbrake Porsches, Vettes, BMWs, etc. and I found the stock Magnaride suspension perfect for jumping curbs and reacting in milli-seconds to the change in attitude. Plus the car is so beautifully neutral I echoed Ford's feeling it was the best handling Mustang ever. Since the Mach 1 took some upgrades from the GT 350 and the GT 500 I honestly felt no difference on shorter courses over a GT350 ( I had owned a 2017 ). So many of us had time to tune the Bosses and given just a bit more ideas I believe the HP Mach 1 will go down as one of the most desirable Blue Oval Track Horses ever. It almost is too easy to drive and one must toss it around like we all did with the Boss to get the full potential. I do believe that raw feeling of the Boss is not immediately apparent, but as one gets more and more used to a Mach 1 it rears it's head and screams for more -- just my opinion, but a great machine and do get a MGW short shift kit to make the TR3160 a super slick shifter!

 

[302BOB]

Nice to hear the Boss is still in the conversation........I'll have mine 13 yrs in Oct........still not missing a beat and loving every second I take that bad boy out for some exercise................Heart Doc says keep it under 6K rpm's for my own sake, not the Bosses..........LOL....................He also mentioned all that clutching and shifting mimics a rehab machine........I just gotta get my left side involved..........I'm not getting a UK car!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[jarredc900]

Thank you for sharing the transmission swap info.

As a past 2013 BOSS owner, I can say that 3160 is exactly what that car needed.
I currently own a 2022 Mach 1 HP car. Its great in its own rite, but IMHO, it doesn't deliver the thrilling drive that the BOSS did.

What wheel tire combo are you running?

It's hard to match the way that roadrunner revs honestly.
I am currently running SVE 19x10 wheels all the way around with 285 RE71RS.

 

[jarredc900]

Nice to hear the Boss is still in the conversation........I'll have mine 13 yrs in Oct........still not missing a beat and loving every second I take that bad boy out for some exercise................Heart Doc says keep it under 6K rpm's for my own sake, not the Bosses..........LOL....................He also mentioned all that clutching and shifting mimics a rehab machine........I just gotta get my left side involved..........I'm not getting a UK car!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The car is timeless man.
Love to hear you're still enjoying yours!

 

[stevbd]

Pulling this transmission discussion back up, I'm curious why the 3160 swap doesn't seem to be as popular as the MagnumXL. It seems like the 3160 is lighter, has arguably better gear ratios 1 through 5 (or at least more similar to the old MT82, for good or bad), excellent shift feel and high rpm shifting, and although it might not have as big a torque rating as the Magnum it seems like it has plenty for a NA 5.0? What am I missing? What are the downsides of the 3160 vs. the MagnumXL?

 

[jarredc900]

Pulling this transmission discussion back up, I'm curious why the 3160 swap doesn't seem to be as popular as the MagnumXL. It seems like the 3160 is lighter, has arguably better gear ratios 1 through 5 (or at least more similar to the old MT82, for good or bad), excellent shift feel and high rpm shifting, and although it might not have as big a torque rating as the Magnum it seems like it has plenty for a NA 5.0? What am I missing? What are the downsides of the 3160 vs. the MagnumXL?

Sourcing a 3160 is one of the hard parts to be fair. Its also nearly $6k from a dealer without a core exchange.
Also in the world of mustangs the T-56 swap has been around forever.
Maybe people don't know enough about the 3160 in general.

From my standpoint, having a an NA car, mechanically and operationally there are ZERO downsides.
The gear ratios are incrementally taller while keeping the 1:1 5th gear which make it the PERFECT transmission for my application.