New member with several questions

If you are wise, you will replace everything while you are in there. Pressure plate, pilot and throwout bearings and resurfacing the flywheel is a must do. You don't want to get it all back together and something go wrong and have to do it again. Good Luck!

Ok so it was cheaper to get a new flywheel than to get mine machined so i ended up getting a new one.

I am going with the perfection clutch/flywheel as this is what money allows for the time being. I am not overly concerned with issue but it does worry me a bit the perfection flywheel is heavier and doesnt have the surface finish i would have liked to see. (Looks like the insert was just about shot when it was machined.)

pressure plate has some pretty bad hot spots and some warping didn't think i could salvage it. so its new

throwout and pilot bearings both came with clutch kit so they are replaced as well.

Only trouble now is its to cold to get any of my frineds to help and i cant get the tail end of the tranny around the cat and line everything up without an extra pair of hands.

ok tranny is in only thing left is starter, cross member, and driveshaft.

I am a bit confused as to how much fluid to put in i found on here someone saying 2.6 qts, but at the auto parts store they told me factory is 3.5 pints which is closer to 1.75 quarts.

Planning on using valvoline high mileage dexIII/merc is that going to suit my perpose ok?

T5 = 2.6 quarts, Dexron II or III

OK clutch has been fixed for about a week now and timing belt is finished.

Car runs YAY!!

Downside is it now has a really bad miss so either the guy who did my belt doesnt have the timeing set right or I have more issues.
(I took it to a guy who does a lot of work for some friends as i dont know anything about setting timing.)

I am pretty sure the car jumped time before i had the belt replaced. it would run but had no power and barely would stay running at idle. Replaced the timing belt now it runs at idle but starts missing as rpms go up. Higher the rpm the worse the miss gets at 3k it spits pretty bad.

Any chance this is fouled plugs from driving the car with the timing that far off?

Another interesting note. I forgot to drain the transmission before i dropped the driveshaft and spilled about 1/2 quart of transmission fluid on the cat and inside the shroud. I am thinking/hopeing that is should mostly burn off rather than clog up my cat.

ALso i would like to say thanks to the people here who helped me out with advice and whatnot it is appreciated.

Setting cam timing on a 2.3 can be tricky the first time or 2 you do it. Even if your mechanic / friend is good, has he ever done a cam belt on a 2.3T? Not too many Lima 2.3s around any more, and lots of mechanics under the age of 30 might not have ever worked on one before.

Fluid spilled on the outside of the cat can not clog up the cat, but can put on a good smoke show and smell really bad until it burns off.

i dont think he has.