The Ford Toploader was a three- and four-speed manual transmission gearbox manufactured by the Ford Motor Company. Introduced in 1964 to replace the BorgWarner T-10, the transmission received its name from the location of its access plate, on top of the main casing instead of on the side. The 1965 three-speed manual transmission appeared in many models including the Mustang, Falcon and Fairlane.
The 1965 Ford Toploader transmission came in three different case lengths that varied by model. The Fairlane included a 25.5-inch transmission, while all Mustangs and Falcons included a 24-inch version. All 1965 cases had a wide eight-hole maincase with a large overdrive-bearing retainer, compared to the smaller four-hole maincase with small-overdrive bearing retainers used the year before. It also used a 28-spline output shaft and one-and-one-sixteenth-inch input shaft on all engines with a displacement between 200- to 390-cubic-inches.
The torque specifications for the Ford Toploader transmission varied by location and included: 19- to 25-foot-pounds for the input-shaft bearing retainer to case bolt, 42- to 50-foot-pounds for the tailhousing to case bolt, 14- to19-foot-pounds for the lid to case bolt, 10- to 18-foot-pounds for the shift-fork to shift-rail crew and 18- to 23-foot-pounds for the outer-gear shift levers to cam nut. In addition the seven-sixteenth-inch flywheel offered 60- to 65-foot-pounds, while the five-sixteenth-inch pressure plate included between 30 and 35-foot-pounds of torque.
The Ford Toploader transmission requires approximately two quarts of 75W-90-gear lubricant for normal driving conditions in all climates with a change every 20- to 25-thousand miles. Heavy-duty vehicles and high-performance racing models should use 80W-140 lubricant especially in hot climates with a change every 10- to 15-thousand miles.
