Morris Minor Owners Club

Be sure the gearbox input shaft doesn't damage the delicate clutch release pad/springs as you wrestle the box into place........

ok, Hopefully I didn't do any damage when I took it out!

Whilst under the car today I noticed the flywheel has some badly worn teeth but only on one side of the flywheel. The other part that comes through from the engine side and is driven by the flywheel (?) has teeth in good condition. What would have worn only a few of the teeth?

Also, how do you fill the gearbox with oil?

The starter bendix enters 'from behind' - and the engine if not well balanced will tend to stop in one position. So - the starter dog is almost always hitting the flywheel teeth at the same spot every time. You could turn the flywheel 180 degrees if you want - or ideally - fit a new ring gear! The gearbox has a filler plug on the top surface - accessible through a hole in the floor covering. You can't fill it till it's in place and the prop refitted anyway.

Thanks again for the info.

Ok, i'm back home so on with the gearbox re-fitting. The new clutch is bolted on. There didn't appear to be any way of lining up the clutch plate when it went on, I assume that as the part of the box that slides through the middle of the clutch goes through it'll line it all up. The clutch came with a small tube of "clutch spline lubricant". What is the clutch spline. Is this the 1st motion shaft?

Just out of interest, how long does a clutch friction plate tipically last?

You need a clutch alignment tool. You can buy proper adjustable ones from a motor factors, or use the input shaft from a scrap gearbox, or even bodge one together from a suitable diameter rod/stick with tape wrapped around it to build up the part that goes through the friction plate.

Ok, luckily I appear to be collecting gearboxes so I could take the shaft out of an old one. I assume this is not as straight forward as pulling it out!

davidpidge wrote:Ok, luckily I appear to be collecting gearboxes so I could take the shaft out of an old one. I assume this is not as straight forward as pulling it out!

Unfortunately not. You pretty much have to dismantle the whole thing so you can pull the shaft into the box.

alex_holden wrote:....so you can pull the shaft into the box.

Into the box? I see. Probably wont take long, it's not like i'm worried about the parts going back together!

A photo of todays chaos.

If someone walked past though, it would probably look like I know what i'm doing![frame][/frame]

I'm trying to get the 1st motion shaft out of a spare box to use when I put the clutch on. Problem is, I can't get it out. There's a large nut holding the bearings on which is stopping it slide out. Any idea how to undo it. I've already tried a spanner and mole grip combo but it seems to be welded on. Surely it can't be that tight? The other one on the other end of the box was on quite lose.
I'm going to cut the whole box in half if a minute![frame][/frame]

I can't remember if it is or not, but check if it is a left hand thread.

I ended up taking off the large clip/washer bit thats located just below the nut. It's one of those 'split' washers that can be opened with a pair of pliers and taken off and then I just hammered the whole shaft back through into the box! Brute force and ignorance wins again. I've never claimed to be an engineer! I don't know what I would have done if I was doing this on a box that I planned to use again!

As I explain elsewhere - you have ruined a 1098 box for nothing - and put yourself through a whole lot of stress and effort you didn't need to do! Dowel rod + tape - works just fine. Simples !

I've just finished putting everything back together. The box is in, everything seemed ok. The clutch linkage appeared to be doing its job better than before but there was no resistance when I pushed the clutch peddle. It's as though it's not attatched but it is still moving the fork back and forth.

I started the car, (1st time for 5 weeks......fired up 1st time. I had no doubt. ) but I can't put it in gear, clearly it's not disingaging the clutch.

I'll leave this in the capable hands of the pros.


*Added note* I've adjusted the linkage to its maximum allowence on the 'clutch adjustment rod' and it is starting to work. I now know why there was a huge nut on there to give more pull on the fork! I was hoping that the new clutch plate would mean this wasnt needed.

Could it be that the linkage is wrong in some way? It looks like the linkage on the spares sites. Maybe its the pedal?

This is my linkage.[frame][/frame]

*update*

On the chassis side of the relay shaft theres a hole with a cover that the linkage slots into. Because of the previous adjustment there was so much pressure on this part that the linkage had burst through the side! I have turned this round for now but the same hting will happen. Basically the linkage clearly isnt working as it should. I'm not sure that replacing it will solve the problem as the parts look like the right parts. I must be missing something. The only part I can see thats clearly different is the pedal itself.

I've just read that back, good luck to anyone who reads it!

i had problems with the linkage, and i replaced the rod with the later 2 plates and clevis pins linkage. there should be, in order from the chassis tothe open end, components as follows:
packing piece (a peice of shaped metal basically)
rubber bush
brass bush (fits into the rubber bush)
a retainer (holds the lot together for the relay shaft to go in)
all of this is held onto the chassis rail with 2 bolts.

the brass bush does eventually wear, and may have been on the car since the factory, so could be worn through- then the rubber that surrounds it doesn't last long, and its would eventually wear through the steel retaining rim.

all the replacement parts are available from minor suppliers (got mine from east sussex) and aren't dear.

this may help, or i might have misread your problem? either way, have fun!

cheers, I will replace those parts, I was going to anyway. I can't see though how changing them will make the difference I need for the clutch to engage/dis-engage properly. I suppose they're cheap parts, may as well change the whole linkage!

marcusthemoose wrote:i had problems with the linkage, and i replaced the rod with the later 2 plates and clevis pins linkage. there should be, in order from the chassis tothe open end, components as follows:
packing piece (a peice of shaped metal basically)
rubber bush
brass bush (fits into the rubber bush)
a retainer (holds the lot together for the relay shaft to go in)
all of this is held onto the chassis rail with 2 bolts.

I replaced these parts and everything works perfectly now. The clutch has more resistance than before due to the new return spring and changing gear is perfectly smooth. There's no noise even if I run the stick through all the gears from 1st to reverse which i've never experienced before!

Now, we can delete this thread and never speak of changing gearboxes and clutches again.