martinb Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 Successfully removed the gearbox from my Spit 1500 to deal with stuck clutch. Clutch is now fixed, but struggling to get the gearbox back in. Have spent most of the day wiggling and jiggling, getting bruised and scratched but cannot get the gearbox back in for love nor money.I can get to the point where there is a gap of an inch or two between the bell housing and the engine, but try as I might I cannot get the two to come together.Anyone have any tips? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 How did you centralise the clutch plate? If by eye you may have issues, I make it easy by using an old input shaft......Also, a helpful tip is to put a pair of long studs in the top holes of the engine /backplate, that helps guide it into the correct position, but you need to get it all in line or it just will not go. Somebody twiddling the output flange (with a gear engaged) helps too, as it gets the splines to line up.And a bit late now, but stuck clutches can usually be sorted without gearbox removal.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinb Posted June 29, 2014 Author Share Posted June 29, 2014 cliftyhanger wrote:How did you centralise the clutch plate? If by eye you may have issues, I make it easy by using an old input shaft......Also, a helpful tip is to put a pair of long studs in the top holes of the engine /backplate, that helps guide it into the correct position, but you need to get it all in line or it just will not go. Somebody twiddling the output flange (with a gear engaged) helps too, as it gets the splines to line up.And a bit late now, but stuck clutches can usually be sorted without gearbox removal....I used a clutch alignment tool to centralise the clutch plate.I tried all the tips I could find on these forums to sort the stuck clutch but didn't have any success. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorkshire_spam Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 I found when re-fitting my 1500 box with OD on that I had to remove the rear mounting to drop the back of the box low enough to line up with the engine evenly, then I rocked the output as I slid the box forward. Some swearing and sweating but it went in ok Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheepy Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 Before you fitted the clutch to the flywheel, did you try the friction plate on the gearbox input shaft?Depending on what make, some clutches are not as precise as original, and I see it before where the splines were tight or damaged.on Dirk's renown, the replacement clutch friction plate had one or two of the splines slightly burred over, a quick clean with the file and the box dropped in easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 Hmm, must have been stubborn...Anyway, aligning everything is essential. It is very easy to end up with the back of the engine too low making it impossible to get the box back in. (assuming engine still in car)I use a length of steel tube (old jack handle, about an inch diameter) and use that to adjust the height of the box. Keep at it wit regular breaks. Eventually it will just fall into place and you will be wondering why it didn't before. Just don't try to find out..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinb Posted June 29, 2014 Author Share Posted June 29, 2014 cliftyhanger wrote:Hmm, must have been stubborn...Anyway, aligning everything is essential. It is very easy to end up with the back of the engine too low making it impossible to get the box back in. (assuming engine still in car)I use a length of steel tube (old jack handle, about an inch diameter) and use that to adjust the height of the box. Keep at it wit regular breaks. Eventually it will just fall into place and you will be wondering why it didn't before. Just don't try to find out.....The engine is still in the car. I think alignment is my problem. As I can't push the gearbox forward sufficiently, the prop shaft is preventing the rear of the gear box dropping into a fully horizontal position, so it's on a tilt with the rear higher than the front. Is it safe to jack the engine (under the sump) to lift the engine to align with the gearbox? (At the moment the engine is supported by a number of planks of wood stacked on top of each other under the sump). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheepy Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 Yes jack it with a piece of wood on the jack pad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrendanD Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 The worst job in the world... I feel your pain.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorkshire_spam Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 First time I spent ages trying to fiddle the engine on a jack, second time I made sure I had the prop dropped and out of the way and the rear gearbox mounting out of the way - it took about a tenth of the time the second time around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham1 Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 I always found when you spend a lot of time in the car aligning the gearbox however if you look at the engine back plate and bell housing, get this parallel, things fit well.Hence the long bolt approach. You always need to Jack up the rear of the engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Bancroft Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Almost certainly sounds like you need to get the back of the engine at the right angle.Use a trolley jack and piece of flat wood to spread the load under the sump to do this, relatively easy when all lined up.When it pops together, it seems so easy and one wonders what why was it so hard to do!!!Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 And keep an eye on the front of the engine when raising the engine, it may all go a bit close to the rad! Or pull the rad hoses about too much. probably ok, but you can't be too careful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velocita Rosso Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Have you :a, got a sliding prop shaft(if so push it right back so its out of the way)?b loosened the front engine mounts to allow it to move free and easier to lift up?Also its wiser to have a narrow steel box section placed between sump and back plate ,so you can jiggle to your hearts content without causing damage to the sump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Hammond Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 All of a sudden it'll just click and slide in, it's a bit like losing your virginity, a lot of fumbling and grunting and then it slides in with a satisfying clunk, you'll wonder what all the fuss was about.....Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JensH Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 ... and you will see blood coming from your fingers 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
don cook1 Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Oh deary me Jens!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinb Posted June 30, 2014 Author Share Posted June 30, 2014 Thanks for all the tips. It'll be trying again at the weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferny Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 1218 wrote:All of a sudden it'll just click and slide in, it's a bit like losing your virginity, a lot of fumbling and grunting and then it slides in with a satisfying clunk, you'll wonder what all the fuss was about.....MarkClunk??? Surely that means you've run out got to put extra in the money slot? ??) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinb Posted July 4, 2014 Author Share Posted July 4, 2014 No world cup football to watch on the TV last night, so thought I'd give it another go. Went back to the start, made sure the clutch was aligned properly, jacked up the engine so it looked in alignment with the gearbox slid the gearbox into place, and, as if by magic, it all just went together first time! No drama, minimal wiggling around.It's all so easy when it works!All that remains is to tighten up all the bolts on the bell housing and reconnect the prop shaft.Thanks again for the hints and tips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave mc Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 I am having exactly the same problem with my Vitesse. Have jacked up the rear of the engine and have spent far too long getting it to "slide in"I ran out of swear words last weekend but have learnt a few more this week ready for tomorrow.It came off so easy! Cant believe what I thought would be a simple 10 minute job can waste so much time.And it gets flipping' heavy very quickly, especially with the overdrive unit on the end.Oh well, fingers crossed for this weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cook1e Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 I've always found the Gt6 (same as vitesse ) a hell of a lot easier to get back in than a spit 1500. The spiffy unit has a really heavy cast iron bell housing and is front heavy whereas an overdrive gt6/ vitesse box with the ally bell housing is much better balanced and easier to man handle. I always remove the prop completely (only 4 more bolts!) and also jack the engine up at the back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave mc Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 I ended up taking the clutch plate off and tried it on the shaft to make sure it was the right one. It was so tight at first that I thought it was wrong.Tried a bit of emery cloth on the splines and it seemed better. Put it back together and went in first time. Tightening up bell housing nuts and one fell inside the bell housing. So all off again and then back on.Then realised the oil filter on the end of the adaptor was baulking on top of the chassis and holding the overdrive mounting off the chassis.So, undo engine mountings, jack up engine engine again, move filter so its not baulking, then tighten engine mountings again.Propshaft won't quite marry up with diff so need to move engine and gearbox forward about 1/16th of an inch.All good fun, NOT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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