Hi Guys
Short story, how do I get the front of my gearbox in my 75 ts to drop down so I can replace the gearbox mounts. Are there a couple of bolts I can take out in the suspension, or do I just jack it up higher and lever it down with heaps of pressure. Any suggestions appreciaited :-)
Long Story.
Well seeing as the Wife is the new Social Secretary she started bugging me about finishing the 75 in the backyard. Something about wanting to attend Alfa meetings in an Alfa if I happen to be away (she is not allowed to drive the GTV6).
So gearbox mounts are the next job. I previously had a look, decided it was PITA job and thought some deep reflection was required. So today, I'm in, lets see if it can be done.
I have already removed all botls for the back end of the tail shaft, and thought it was stopping the gearbox from dropping down - wrong. It's just the rest of the suspension holding the gear box up.
I removed the plate covering part of the tail shaft and - bloody hell, there was half of Western Victoria living ontop of it. The car was originally from Warnambool, a one owner, and 99% country miles. I suspect that the owners misread the brochure and though it was designed for off road use.
Anyway, after I put my shoulder back in ( I wasn't expecting the plate to weigh 10 kilos) , i cleaned the plate so that is ready to go back in and the car should have an extra 5 kph on top speed. I have pickies which I will post.
Levered the cross member down some and started on the mount bolts, only to discover that the two holding the mount to the cross member are 6 mm hex bolts, probably the same ones used on 33 CV joints. Clearly alfa bought heaps of them cheap and decided to put them where ever they would be hard to remove.
The good thing about hex bolts, difficult to strip and precision. Bad thing, the hex key must be 100% straight or it wont go in the hole :-(
Eventually managed to get one out. Removed (eventually) the three bolts which I suspect also have something to do with the gear shifter - that will be fun to reconnect. Access on the drivers side looks even worse and the clutch slave looks like it is in the way as well :-(
So here is my question. How do I get the front of the gearbox to drop down and give me access so I can change the mounts?
Any help appreciated.
CAtch ya
Shane
Shane,
I think this works the same way as on an Alfetta.
The front of the gearbox is mounted on each side of the car at the front, onto a cross-member.
The cross-member is bolted to the floor with three bolts at each end.
With these 6 bolts removed if you jack up the De-Dion tube the front of the gearbox will come down.
You should get plenty of clearance for the gearbox mounts, you can even get the clutch out like this.
AS ALWAYS USE CAUTION AND BE AWARE THAT COMPONENTS MAY DROP MORE THAN YOU ARE EXPECTING.
ALSO REMEMBER THAT TO GET THIS CLEARANCE THE REAR SUSPENSION IS BEING PUT UNDER LOAD AND IF THE JACK SLIPS THE GEARBOX WILL SPRING BACK UP.
For safety you need to chock the cross-member in the lowered position on both sides of the car to ensure that the gearbox cannot lift back to its normal location.
Alan.
I've been missing for a little while but some late advice if not done yet.
Guessing that this will be done on the ground and adding to Alan's comment's, i usually chock front wheels, jack rear of car and put jack stands at rear points of sills(just infront of rear wheels), as high as jack stands will let you and let wheels go to full droop. Undo gear linkage from isostatick? linkage(drive the pin out without loosing in the dirt!), mark and undo rear donut bolts (3 of), undo the 6 large bolts holding the cross member in(have a jack under front of g/box just in case), but when the front dosn't drop, jack rear of didion near wattlink which will lower the front of the gear box enough to replace the front mounts. (caution not to lower front to far as the clutch hose has not been diconnected). This way lets you use everyday tools and you can get your hands in, but is some times temper testing when putting the mount bolts in(leave bolts loose till all are started) isn't to bad...there are worse jobs...
Thanks Guys for the advice. This weekend looks like the go. I will let you know how it goes.
Catch ya
Shane