Baxter

Took the carpet out and measured up: Oh, sideways.  Whichever way, this support bracket is too big to fit in the allocated space.  Besides, I'd need to drill new holes through the top of it.  Has anyone really seen one in a GT6 mk1? As the PN 810681 bracket is hard to come by, I'll have a bit of a search/wait, and then make something to fit if need be.  Let me know if you've got one lying around on your spares shelf!

So many options! Thanks for all the suggestions and comments. I just ordered the ones glang suggested above. Once anything gets too chunky, I think I'd rather just fit the standard units or a period under-valance job.  Will see how it goes and report back.  May take a while as I'm about to move workshop/garage and have a couple of jobs still to do before the car can make the journey without the trailer this time.

2nd link was wrong: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Daytime-Running-Light-White-Driving/dp/B077F5J4CD/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1OSKAVQPXH8S3&keywords=flexible+drl+led+night+%26+daytime+running+light+strip&qid=1582034997&sprefix=flexible+drl%2Caps%2C157&sr=8-5  

Thanks Howard. Just given myself a headache scouring ebay, etc. trying to find some slim enough to fit on the lip at the bottom of the valance. That's only 1cm though, and most waterproof LED strips with some sort of lens/cover seem to be double that or more (plus often even greater depth).  I think placing one in the middle, then, going just below the valance would be discreet enough.  Like the look of this one, but can't find it available: https://www.dhgate.com/product/2x-flexible-12-led-light-bar-auto-drl-lens/155640724.html This one is similar, just with unwanted black surround: https://www.dhgate.com/product/2x-flexible-12-led-light-bar-auto-drl-lens/155640724.html I guess there's no rush as I can drive the car without reverse lights, and just keep an eye out for the right ones.  Certainly more pressing problems trying to complete my project!  

Sounds like a decent call, thanks.  Might give that a go before cutting any metal. Will post you a pic when I get round to it

Evening all, Can't find a thread covering this, other than Hazen showing his refurb of the one type for his mk1 (you still around Hazen?).  Putting final parts of my project together now following fitting the tunnel; so onto carpets, seats and... dash support.  The one that came with my project seems way too tight to get into position, though my tunnel carpet is pretty rough and hard to lay flat.  Thought I'd check parts and find the following (courtesy of Canleys): GT6 mk1:   Spit 1/2:   I have the fascia support bracket from the top drawing; the dash support from the lower drawing. So, the two drawings have different brackets but both include GT6 mk1 on their model list.  Is that right?  And if my 'curvy' bracket is indeed correct for my model, will it fit onto the #709691 bracket?

At the start of this thread I wrote to Autosparks, makers of the new harness.  They tell me that my order for a 66-68 Mk1 GT6 RHD harness was made using a harness from an original donor car as a pattern, and so the single breakout for reverse is deemed correct.  It really seems that may not be the case, based on what Rob and Tim say above, plus the fact that the original harness I removed from my car had the double breakouts. Anyway, onto more important matters.  I popped onto the forum just now to confess to glang that I've come round to his way of thinking.  Funny to find Tim supporting the same view too - to my eye the rear looks even better without the reverse lights.  Have to decide now whether to go for a discreet under the valance or bumper light, or a bigger (but obviously not trying to hide) rally style Lucas WLR576.  Going without would give the best look from behind, but the only times I've modified car bodywork in the last 30 years both involved reversing into bollards in the dark! Not the right car/bumper spec, but to give an idea:

Thanks for the answers. Glang, I'm with you on not wanting to cut the paintwork...it all looks so nice as it is.  But I don't really fancy anything hanging under the valance either.  Two standard light units arrived this afternoon, so I will just bite the bullet - if I've got suitable drill bit/cutter. Meanwhile I see that the new loom only has one GN cable for reverse light and it exits the harness alongside the plate light cable in the centre.  Old loom had two cables, one each side close to indicator as you'd expect.  Was there a combined plate/reverse light?  I see one on ebay - maybe US spec.  Nothing is ever straightforward on this car!  Anyhow, it's not a problem to wire up the two lights from the one cable.

Quick sanity check: I'm about to add 2x reverse lamps to my 67 GT6 as it doesn't have any.  I've just fitted a new wiring harness and have some redundant cables.  I think the rear panel was replaced by the PO and he simply drilled and fitted rear flashers, as I was under the impression all GT6s came with reverse lamps. However, flicking through the WSM last night, on matters unrelated, I happened upon a drawing seeming to show a GT6 without reverse lamps: Where any such made? In case it's relevant, my commission number is down in the low KC7000s Assuming the reverse lamps should be fitted, is there a template to help find the correct position, or a simple measurement I can make from my flasher lamps? B  

Gearbox back in and clutch now working.  Thanks for all the help!  Particularly using a couple of long studs to help locate and guide the box in.  Thought it would never go, but found it was first fouling the bulkhead around the starter, and later hooked over the flange on the propshaft.  Took me forever, but I don't mind because I followed Tim's advice on stuffing a rag in the release arm hole - and avoided a heart attack when I dropped the first nut onto it!  Maybe it'll all be a lot smoother next time. Wonderful to drive the car. albeit no more than 5 metres.  First and Reverse both working.  Clutch smooth!  Will now wake the paperwork from pre-SORN era and get car ready for a trip to my local classic-friendly MOT station. Cheers, Baxter  

The two long bolts method has removed the cloud hanging over the refit, thanks.  Almost looking forward to it now. Will order some seals and gaskets and proceed per the above comments - hopefully next week.  Not sure about using the diesel, Clive, though that sounds like a tip for when it's all back together so can decide then.  I did drain and refill the box in readiness for my maiden 10 yard drive.  Will drain again, and inspect to determine how much flushing required.   Also, I do have OD and didn't know to drain it separately last time, so will be good to do that properly along with the filters.  Starting to sound like a stroke of luck I had to take the box out now!

Definitely a good lesson! I've still no idea how good the gearbox is.  Feels like all gears can be selected, that's all I can say.  Not been used for decades and no notes from whoever last used it.  As it can be such a pig to get in and out, I'd love to do any maintenance now, so will investigate a routine overhaul plan if not too complex.  Otherwise, happy to give it a go and see how it performs.  If it needs to come out again I can try to beat my time 😀

Well, I took the gearbox out today - job and a half that was - and it is indeed a relatively simple case of friction plate the wrong way round. I'd apologise for the anti-climax of the murder mystery ending up more like a wild goose chase, but there is still a little mystery to be enjoyed here.  Turns out I had followed WSM and installed longer boss towards gearbox.  So it seems my clutch does not match WSM spec.   I know it's the wrong way round now, not just because of all the great advice on this forum, but because it's possible to find the writing 'HccL SIDE' on the side I had facing the gearbox, if you know what you're looking for. Also SCHWUNGRAD SEITE a little clearer.   Took me much longer to get the gearbox out alone than engine+box.  Probably much easier with 2 people, whereas a good crane and load-leveller make the engine job simple on my own.  Really not looking forward to trying to support it and line it up to put it back in. Any advice before I start reassembly?  There are a few iron filings to clean up from where the metal around the springs bit into the bolts attaching the flywheel.  Doesn't look significant damage at all.  The white grease I was advised to smear thinly on the splines seems to have dried to a lumpy brown.  I should clean it off and check I have correct product.

This sounds quite promising then, Clive, glang and Rob, as something is clearly wrong, and flipping a friction plate round is going to be a lot easier than playing around with carrier and push rod lengths looking for a solution.  Only my pride would be hurt this way, and there's not much of that left after almost 5 years of trying to get this thing back on the road! I see the WSM says to work under the car to remove the rear mounting bracket [from the chassis].  Do I have to do that?  When I've taken the engine+gearbox out together I just undid the fastening between the rear extension and the mounting bracket - following Autopress manual I think, as it's easier to read than the WSM.  Is this a no no?  It's always safer and more comfortable not having to work under the car. Probably won't get to this today now, as real world jobs have intervened.

Spent the morning with my nose in the WSM and it does indeed say longer boss of the splined hub towards the gearbox.  Is that not the way round I have it?  Is the boss really longer on the other side?  Here's the image from the WSM...

Okay, based on your advice, I'll briefly investigate further while it's all still assembled.  Probably don't need to spend too much time peeking inside the housing, as I have a photo (below) showing flywheel and clutch during assembly.  Is the friction plate the right way round? Moreover, with the engine started in 2nd gear, I'll see if I can operate the release mechanism with large screwdriver or packing of the slave cylinder.  Might give useful clues for what needs to be done.   Then I'll crack on and take the box out.  Goodness knows it'll make a nice change from taking the engine out, and it's already a few degrees less cold in my shed than during the last operation.  Will try to get on with this today while I have so many helping and hopefully enjoying the murder mystery.

Nice blogspot, and your car is looking great!  Seemingly a happy and productive time tucked away in the shed, out of the Dutch winter. All my shed hours so far this year have involved filling it with fumes, wondering why it's surrounded by so much mud and rotting leaves, making no progress on my car, and dreaming of a better shed

Evening chaps, I'm almost overwhelmed by the level of help you're offering, and sorry to have been out all day taking my son and his friends to the football.  It seems there are questions to be answered! I may not be able to answer correctly, so first let me tell you how all these parts came to be in my workshop. The GT6 had apparently sat first in a garage and then out under a tarp from 1979 to 2011 when the PO bought it and restored almost the entire chassis and body.  The rest (including rusted-up clutch, release arm, bearing/carrier) arrived in many boxes, and as the car had laid untouched for so long, I think most items are original.  The original engine arrived whole, and I plan to completely rebuild it, slowly and carefully. To speed the project up and have a bit of fun - or so I thought! - I bought the 2500 MM engine as an interim: it came out of a GT6 mk3, had since been rebuilt, and came with flywheel attached.  I've since found out (and documented in a previous forum post) that it had a saloon sump and was a bit too much of a squeeze between bonnet and steering rack for my car.  So, can I trust that the flywheel really is from a GT6.  Probably not.  I guess there's going to be a quick way to determine this. The seller also provided a new Borg and Beck 3 part clutch set that he said was correct for the engine/GT6.  He was a very experienced and trustworthy member of this forum, whereas I knew very little, so his answer will stand here. The slave cylinder I would have purchased by looking up the part for a GT6 mk1 at Canleys, James Paddock or maybe Rimmers.  Should I be buying parts for a GT6 mk1, I always ask myself, if they're being fitted in relation to non-GT6 mk1 items? So my tentative answers are: Engine backplate, flywheel, clutch - all GT6 mk3 Slave cylinder - GT6 mk1 Carrier - GT6 mk1 (this is the only answer I have faith in!) Given what Steve P says about carrier length matching flywheel, I'd best establish which flywheel I have.  Maybe it's then worth me taking a look at the whole setup in operation like Clive did...find out if I can also see the bearing, and if a long screwdriver could help.  

Here are the parts I used, though I replaced the release bearing with the new one from the clutch kit before fitting. There only seemed to be one way to fit everything together, with the recess/clip (on the back of the release arm in my photo) clipping over the fulcrum pin inside the bellhousing, and the pins on the end of the release arm fitting into the groove at the RH end of the bearing carrier.  This left everything lined up with the slave cylinder (which I sourced new, but matching the heavily corroded one found among the project parts). Depressing the clutch pedal, I've always been concerned that there is not enough movement.  Unless there are any more ideas, I will proceed with gearbox removal.  Not such a problem, as everything so far has needed overhauling or replacing, so I've been expecting to need to work on the gearbox anyway.  Would just have liked to try driving it first to assess function.  I've never worked on a gearbox, so can anyone recommend how to get it assessed before I put it back in.  I'm based in Cirencester but generally happy to drive a fair distance to get things sorted.

So, reading the above, it's certainly a GT6 box rather than a saloon one. Slave is top right of bellhousing. No adjustment back and forth (other than possibility to add non-standard washers/spacers and use longer fasteners).  Took all the care I could to ensure correct assembly and yoke in right place before sealing. But I've not done it before and mistakes can be made.  Not convinced there is enough travel to disengage clutch.  Will post link to video of operation here: https://1drv.ms/v/s!AmjW3mQn-IqAjKlcSCCbXRLUtMpzpQ Meanwhile had another good session using the 3 release methods detailed in above posts. No joy. Hard to describe what happens...maybe a jolt and a slipping/rubbing sound trying glang's approach. Clive's #1 plenty of force evident but nothing else. #2, just faster spinning of back wheels with each flick.  I guess a video might be useful next time. Thanks for all the help

Pretty sure its the original box for this GT6.  I don't know how to tell them apart, but the entire project I purchased appears to be GT6 and it was just the 2500 saloon engine along with HS6s and manifold that I introduced.  No gearbox

Tried Clive's methods 1 and 2 so far.  No joy after about 8 attempts the first way. Onto method 2 and likewise nothing happening after many 'light flicks' so I tried a slightly heavier flick and it stalled.  Went to have another go, but the electric fuel pump has become unusually vocal on turning on the ignition.  Fuel gauge doesn't seem to work, and not really sure how much is in the tank after a number of idling and tuning sessions, so will rectify that before having another go at the clutch. As for using it - can't wait!  My 12 month project is approaching 5 years now...and once the clutch is sorted, if there are no gearbox or diff problems, I'll probably be back asking for ride height advise, as it's sitting with the chassis about 3-4" off the ground and has no chance of negotiating the route to the road like that.  Also, I should add that the tunnel is still off, so I can see the slave cylinder operating.

Glang and Clifty, thanks so much for your swift and encouraging responses.  I may even head over to my workshop now to try this out.  Just how secure does the car need to be?  I can put the rear up on a pair of good quality axle stands, and stand something solid just below the diff If need be, I can squeeze myself back into the footwell of despair and measure the distance the slave cylinder pushrod travels, in case anyone knows how much this should be.  Hydraulics still seem to be good, certainly up to level, since fitted and bled 18 mos. ago; though I do shudder seeing the slave cylinder being knocked like a game of Swingball each time the engine goes in or out of the car.  

I just tried to drive the car - the first time it would have moved under its own power since 1979.  I can't put it in any gear as the 'box seems to be still spinning fast after fully depressing the clutch.  I can see the push rod in the slave cylinder operate on the correct position on the release arm, and both move.  Maybe not as much travel as I would have expected.  Any ideas?  I put a new clutch in before installing engine first time 18mos. ago and thought I was pretty careful about assembly.  Would be great if there was some simple test/fix...I'd love not to have to take the gearbox out now after just installing engine and 'box for the third time! Baxter