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5 Speed Gear Boxes


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#1 Greg Davies

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Posted 21 April 2006 - 07:17 PM

Just woundering if any one could help me find the best path to getting a 5 speed in the mini... ive got a 1964 mini which is going to be changed to remote gearbox shortly.. does any one know a cost effective way to having a 5 speed remote gear box in the mini? any help apreshiated, Thanks
Greg Davies

#2 miniboo

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Posted 21 April 2006 - 07:23 PM

not sure about cost effective but minispares do a 5 speed box for about 2 grand. i think Bungle has one.

#3 Greg Davies

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Posted 21 April 2006 - 07:27 PM

i sent an email to vmaxscars and got a reply saying that for the moment they arent producing any 5 speed boxes and 2,000 is alot of money has any one any idea of any second hand gear boxes etc? saw a 5 speed on KADS website but no cost? thanks for ur pateience :ermm:

#4 Dan

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Posted 21 April 2006 - 07:27 PM

Firstly, I don't think anyone's ever made a remote type 5 speed as the fifth speed gear uses the part of the box used by the shift mechanism in the magic wand/remote setup. The KAD gearset might fit as it all fits in the normal end of the gearcase but it's kind of designed for late gearcases and is very much a racing box. You'd have to check with them whether it's possible.

As for rod change versions, Mini Spares used to offer theirs as a kit to fit to your own gearbox in the past but I don't think they do any longer.

There is no quick fix for this really. All the 5 speed gearboxes produced are bespoke items and cost a lot of cash due to the high development costs and limited market. If you want a helical cut, synchromesh road type gearbox the only option new at the moment is the Mini Spares one as KAD & Jack Knight only make straight cut currently. I think Mini Sport have stopped theirs and V-max Scart definitely have. The Mini Spares road 5 speed will only take something like 85 lbft of torque.

The only other option is to find a second hand one and have it re-built. They are rare though.

#5 Jammy

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Posted 21 April 2006 - 07:45 PM

The only other option is to use a K series Metro engine as they have 5 speed. But judging by your question I don't think this is going to be a very viable option.

To be honest I don't think 5 speed boxes are worth the outlay. IIRC, Guessworks stated that the 5th speed only lowers the revs by about 500rpm. The only reason I can think of for fitting a 5 speed box to a road car is for motorway miles, in which case you'd be better off fitting a taller FD.

#6 Dan

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Posted 21 April 2006 - 08:04 PM

The only other option is to use a K series Metro engine as they have 5 speed.

Well if you're doing that you could fit any other modern engine but that's a bit extreme just to get an extra gear.

The problem with most of the 5 speeds is that they aren't built the way most modern gearboxes are. Rather than having a direct top and adding an extra speed in lower down the box they keep 4th as direct and add an overdrive on the end, and a pretty pathetic one at that. The KAD box is different, it has a true direct top speed and an additional speed added between 1 and 2, but all the low gears are much lower than standard. This means you can have a good FD for high top end speeds and still get good acceleration due to having a lower 1st gear. As I've said though the KAD box, although brilliant and well made is not great on the road. It's straight cut dog engagement only.

#7 Bungle

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Posted 21 April 2006 - 09:03 PM

not sure about cost effective but minispares do a 5 speed box for about 2 grand. i think Bungle has one.


mines a jack knight box :ermm:

and you cant have it >:w00t:

#8 icklemini

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Posted 21 April 2006 - 09:53 PM

I've seen a fair few 5 speed boxes gone pop - the overdrive 5th gear puts a lot of stress on small bearings..

the direct 1:1 5th gear is a better design - but at a price...

none of the 'regular' 5 speeds would fit into a remote gear case, as, (as dan has already mentioned) the overdrive gear sits in the side populated by selector shafts and stuff!

TTFN,
Dave




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