Morris Minor Owners Club

We're looking at getting the GB off tomorrow, dismantling it and going at it and attempting to recondition it. For a little side note for myself, is there any other gearboxes from other cars that would work well with a 1098cc minor engine?

Just about anything can be MADE to fit if you are determined enough - and have deep enough pockets.... Some fit a Sierra 5 speed box, but a standard 1098 doesn't really have the power to take advantage of it. Overall conversion cost in the region of £800 - much easier and less expensive to stick with the 1098 box!!

martinminor89 wrote:We're looking at getting the GB off tomorrow, dismantling it and going at it and attempting to recondition it. For a little side note for myself, is there any other gearboxes from other cars that would work well with a 1098cc minor engine?

Good luck with it - gearbox reconditioning is not a trivial thing to do. Make sure you have access to the workshop manual. Haynes and others as well are useful for filling in the gaps.

Not meaning to sound patronising, if you don't have much in the way of experience working on these sorts of things, try to enlist the help of someone who has, as gearboxes are a fiddle.

liammonty wrote:

martinminor89 wrote:We're looking at getting the GB off tomorrow, dismantling it and going at it and attempting to recondition it. For a little side note for myself, is there any other gearboxes from other cars that would work well with a 1098cc minor engine?

Good luck with it - gearbox reconditioning is not a trivial thing to do. Make sure you have access to the workshop manual. Haynes and others as well are useful for filling in the gaps.

Not meaning to sound patronising, if you don't have much in the way of experience working on these sorts of things, try to enlist the help of someone who has, as gearboxes are a fiddle.

Cheers Liam. I'm making sure I've got a few people to check it out for me, they're a lot more equipped with car knowledge to deal with this. I'm going to have the final word, I know Bull & ESM sell bits and pieces regarding a gearbox, and I also know the club has a "believed good" second hand box, so I still have options either way.

I would go with the secondhand box for now - then take your time repairing (if it is economically viable) your old box. Some parts are hard to come by - except perhaps second hand on ebay. There is an excellent guide on 'how to rebuild the box' somewhere on this forum - someone will know where. Don't rely on the Workshop Manual too much, although certainly worth reading through to realise what you are up against.

bmcecosse wrote:I would go with the secondhand box for now - then take your time repairing (if it is economically viable) your old box. Some parts are hard to come by - except perhaps second hand on ebay. There is an excellent guide on 'how to rebuild the box' somewhere on this forum - someone will know where. Don't rely on the Workshop Manual too much, although certainly worth reading through to realise what you are up against.

While I wouldn't mind buying a secondhand box, as I say I have options open to me. I would rather work on this one to know what I'm up against, and if I find out a total of say, 2-3 parts are faulty, and those are picked up on eBay easily, then at least I know I still have parts that actually do work. I've seen a couple of people say about buying secondhand boxes and them be faulty. I know I can't judge every box with the same idea, but surely working on mine for now is a better option.

I've been told a number of things from people lately on the phone and in person, from selector fork to syncro on 2nd & 3rd, to even nuts and bolts. The gears themselves may end up need replacing due to the fact that the GB being as it is may have well and truly damaged them.

From your earlier description of the problem - there is a LOT wrong inside that box. Especially as it appears to have been running at least party 'out of mesh'. The main problem is likely to be the bronze washer on the main shaft - but it's the consequential damage that may require quite a few parts to be renewed. Depends if you don't mind the car off the road for a couple of weeks, and don't underestimate the cost of parts. beware 'judith andrew' on ebay - all can say is - make sure you are getting value for money if you buy any parts from them....

bmcecosse wrote:From your earlier description of the problem - there is a LOT wrong inside that box. Especially as it appears to have been running at least party 'out of mesh'. The main problem is likely to be the bronze washer on the main shaft - but it's the consequential damage that may require quite a few parts to be renewed. Depends if you don't mind the car off the road for a couple of weeks, and don't underestimate the cost of parts. beware 'judith andrew' on ebay - all can say is - make sure you are getting value for money if you buy any parts from them....

I've had a lot of prices thrown at me, from second hand gearboxes, to reconditioning my own, and so on. I've basically looked right across the internet lately for almost every part of a gearbox, the prices are acceptable for what they do, it's something I expected before I even bought the car anyway. I did get told about the bronze washer last week from a guy in Portsmouth who seemed quite sure it could be that, he reckons it's a common fault with minor boxes.

I wish you well with it! I have a 1098 gearbox in great condition , and completely stripped down waiting to be rebuilt. All that was wrong was that it had been standing on it's bellhousing for several years- and all the little bits in the remaining oil in the box had run down into the first motion shaft bearing making it 'rough'. I hope to get round to it 'someday'....

bmcecosse wrote:I wish you well with it! I have a 1098 gearbox in great condition , and completely stripped down waiting to be rebuilt. All that was wrong was that it had been standing on it's bellhousing for several years- and all the little bits in the remaining oil in the box had run down into the first motion shaft bearing making it 'rough'. I hope to get round to it 'someday'....

Cheers bmc, I wish you well with yours too, thanks for the advice on mine

I've had it begun to be looked at today. Upon draining the GB oil, I've found bits of bronze at the bottom, quite a few little pieces to be honest. I've also found HALF of a bronze interlocking ring for 2nd/3rd gear, which ultimately means there's the other half still rooted around in the box somewhere.

Anyone know what the likely out come of this is? aside from a new ring first off

Many new parts - since it has been running partially 'out of mesh'. At very least you will need new bearings /gaskets/probably laygear shaft and bearings/ and syncro rings for at least 2nd gear - but probably all 3, and of course the condition of the laygear 1st/reverse teeth and the condition of the 1st gear teeth, and the dog teeth on the gear hubs (esp 2nd and 3rd) will need close inspection. The bronze parts are from the washer mentioned earlier, but it's the subsequent damage that will decide if repair is an economic proposition. The only way forward is to strip it down and see what you find...

bmcecosse wrote:Many new parts - since it has been running partially 'out of mesh'. At very least you will need new bearings /gaskets/probably laygear shaft and bearings/ and syncro rings for at least 2nd gear - but probably all 3, and of course the condition of the laygear 1st/reverse teeth and the condition of the 1st gear teeth, and the dog teeth on the gear hubs (esp 2nd and 3rd) will need close inspection. The bronze parts are from the washer mentioned earlier, but it's the subsequent damage that will decide if repair is an economic proposition. The only way forward is to strip it down and see what you find...

Cheers bmc, I planned to have someone strip it entirely, even if the ring is the ONLY thing that's knackered, which may or may not be the case, I'm tempted to get new bearings, nuts and much of everything else. Plus it'll save me money instead of buying a secondhand box or having it reconditioned

The 'bits' will gone into the bearings - it would be foolhardy not to renew them at least.....