HI all the previous owner of my van told me to be assured the gearbox was fine! but I'm not sure if I should open it and check or not as I've heard these could be quite tricky to rebuild! also do you paint the gearbox silver or leave it bare aluminium? Thanks
If it's working OK then I'd leave it alone. There's no point painting it because it won't rust and you can't see it unless you crawl underneath (they weren't painted at the factory).
Alex Holden - http://www.alexholden.net/
If it doesn't work, you're not hitting it with a big enough hammer.
Easy enough to pop the side plate off (beware two small springs) and have a look round the insides - condition of 1st gear and laygear teeth etc. And also it's a chance to clean out any crud lying in the base.
