Team MightyBoy

Well discovered the probable cause of the falling out of 4th it doesn't jump out just slides out and have difficulty engaging gear, so yesterday started stripping everything down to haul the eng/trans out. Today got under to do the mounts and shifter, discovered the bolt that holds the fixed lever gear arm thing on to the mount had fallen out and the whole thing was moving. Probably not a gear box problem then. but decided to continue hauling it all out anyway seeing as I had got this far, the 2nd gear jumping out is a nuisance and i want to check the clutch, also I noticed the CV boots are both split so have to pull them out anyway, just as easy at this point to pull the eng/box and knock the driveshafts through from the outside, no need to disturb brakes etc.
If I had started underneath yesterday I would have spotted the missing bolt earlier and would have replaced it to see if it cured the problem.
Oh well.

It sometimes goes like that doesn't it.

I found when i was pulling the f5a and the 4spd from my boy, that under the body the adjustment of the shifter wasn't so great, which could have been why the gearbox was jumping outta 3rd when you hit a bump in the road. I reckon the body was knocking the shift leaver & that was throwing it outta gear.

Anyway, i pulled it all out anyway, as the engine had to come out to check the bottom end. When i pulled the gearbox from the engine, i found the little, i guess you call them retaining clips for the clutch fork to throw out assembly, one of them was bent & it looked like the fork wasn't moving the throwout assembly properly. Which probably explains the lack of clutch travel in my boy & why it's harder to change gears at slow engine speeds. ROFL @ myself.

Atleast i can also fix that issue as well as the engine! But alas it's also happening at a time when i can least afford it to be off the road or the $$ spent, but i might as well get it over & done, and back on the road....

Cheers & good luck with the projects guys! Oh, Merry Xmas as well.

ToranaGuy

More of an update.....

Driveshafts - messy at the best of times. I made some hybrid driveshafts by putting the Matiz ends on the mightyboy shafts. This involved grinding a little more relief behind the splines (angle grinder & lathe) and the tripod ends fitted onto the splines.

Length seems to be pretty right - although I'm not sure how you properly determine this. There is a bit of slack for the shaft to move in and out.

This problem solved, its onto fitting the shifter control cables. The firewall needs to be chopped out a little. Then I have to fix up the water hoses etc. Due to the starter motor being on the engine side, things need to be changed around the manifold.

Wow, this is making me really glad I bought an Alto 5 speed.
A pat on the back for your patience mate!

That sounds like some hard work....
I think i will hold onto my alto 5 speed 4wd box for while....

I am amazed to read the progress with the project! Good stuff, it's an inspiration to me to keep working on my " toys ". My mb is almost ready to be engi certified. Just gotta sort the carby issue, tune it & weld up the zorst, i've only got it clamped atm.

As for the electric dizzy, well i have one or two spare dizzy's now, 1x f8b & 1x f5a ( i've been hoarding spares when & where i can ), not to mention i went thru the shed, i have 4 electric commy dizzy's in parts, so i can see if i can hack something together.

Cheers

ToranaGuy

Hi guys,

just wonderin after reading this thread, is the f8c motor a direct bolt upto the old f8b mounts? as i've got a suzuki carry & want to put some more power into it with out getting to carried away, obviously i would / should expect simmilar gearbox mounting prob's as like your having with the front wheel drive!??

any thoughts?

Cheers
Dan

There's substantial differences with the block - they look similar!

Then you've got all the injection wiring etc. Certainly do-able. Maybe this is what I should've done in the beginning. Had I been able to get a complete donor vehicle at the right price then I would've gone this route. You probably would've got air con with it also......

Kartman wrote:There's substantial differences with the block - they look similar!

Then you've got all the injection wiring etc. Certainly do-able. Maybe this is what I should've done in the beginning. Had I been able to get a complete donor vehicle at the right price then I would've gone this route. You probably would've got air con with it also......

Organ Donor vehicles are always the easiest way to go about swaps. You get all the bits you need, and possibly more to boot. You can see how it's originally hooked up, take photo's if needed, and remove what you want as you need it & at your own pace.

When your done, there is also the possibility of selling off other parts to make a few bucks back or even break even.

Cheers

ToranaGuy

We're slowly moving on.... I removed the auto shift - had to get under the car to undo the nuts. I cut out a template for the shifter cable rubber gland (I'm not sure of the exact name) so I could cut out the firewall. My cheapo rotary tool did the deed with the cutting disk and no fire! A cleanup with the rotary burr and we're in business. I'm not sure of the history of my MB, but it probably started out life as a manual and somebody put a F8 and an auto in it. It wasn't auto to begin with as someone crudely punched a hole in the firewall to pass the control cable through. My cut out is a little less crude. Tomorrow, I'll cut back the floor insulation and bolt up the rubber cable gland. I'll leave mounting the shifter mechanism until I've got the engine back in so I can check cable lengths. I also will have to make a cover for the hole left in the tunnel where the shifter was.

Next problem to solve is the heater plumbing - I'll have to put a right angle fitting on the manifold to I can connect the hose without bashing into the starter motor - as its on the motor side now - just like a Matiz. The trick will be finding a suitable fitting and how to put it into the manifold.

Once this is solved, its time to put the engine back in a test it all.

I'd try either a hose company like Pirtek, or possibly a plumbing joint to get the fittings you will require.

I've gotta get some fittings and hose for the oil lines for my turbo torana project soon. I'm looking at getting braided lines atleast for the turbo's oil lines, possibly the whole engine bay worth.

Cheers

ToranaGuy

The local auto shop has a selection of brass fittings. I got a 3/8 BSP nipple to 1/2" hose fitting and a 3/8 BSP nipple to 5/8" hose fitting. The problem is the Mightyboy uses a hose size in between. I measure it at about 14.3mm. 9/16" seems to be more the size, but that isn't standard - not here anyway.

I've drilled out the manifold where the heater hose fitting was (the straight down one) and tapped it for the brass fitting.

I'm tossing up to whether I turn down the 5/8" fitting to suit the hose or clamp it tightly using the 1/2" fitting. Anyone had any experience using the 1/2" with the MB heater hoses?

1/2 (12.7mm is the exact tube size, it rubber its probably over 13mm.
it should be sufficent for the heater water, as ive used in previous mightyboys

I got adventurous and turned down the 5/16 to suit. I had recently purchased new hoses (originals) so I figured I'd better do the right thing. I've got the thing all tapped up, starter motor fitted and ready to re-install in the vehicle. I'm dreading having shift cable routing problems - its all very tight around the manifold/gearbox area - water hose, shift hoses engine mounting bracket....... I need to be a gyno to work on it!!!

Nearly getting to the point of firing it up. The engine was re-installed in the vehicle. Just a tweak on the angle of the heater hose connection to clear the shift cables. The 'box is all oiled up, the radiator has the coolant, now I just have to fix up the electrics. My MB has some history methinks - the electrics are a total mess. Anyway, I have to fix up the starter wires since the starter is a long way from where it was.

It might actually work..............