Jim, Nice metal work on the trans cover.
The shifter location on a T5 is much farther forward than that of the T56. The T56 is a bit longer than the T5 and has the shifter in the rear only.
Bill, As stated, determine the use of your truck. I myself would sell the bench, put in a pair of comfortable seats (maybe from a BMW 7 series) and put in a center council. Then again, I would most likely want to use the truck for towing, so I would opt for a built 700R4 or 4l80e.
However, based on your comments, my guess is that you really want to keep the bench seat.
