14 replies to this topic

[stonecow]

Hi guys, refer to the pic, i found these stuck to the plug, amongst the metal afro hairdo. they are around 2-3cm long. what could these be? is my gearbox/engine screwed???

 

it's a rover mini, 1275 bored to 1293 with new pistons and rings two years ago. standard head, cam and gearbox assumed to be standard. been using 20w50 changed about every 3-4 months.

Attached Files

•  image (1).jpeg   109.04K   140 downloads

Edited by stonecow, 20 May 2013 - 01:53 PM.

[stonecow]

some more info, if it helps.

the gears engage smoothly as i pick up speed from 1st through 4th. however there are crunching noises and much resistance when i attempt to shift down from 4>3.  i work around this by clutch-in, shift stick to 2nd and then back into 3rd, then release clutch.

Edited by stonecow, 20 May 2013 - 01:59 PM.

[Ethel]

The top bit looks like lock tab, you could see how well it mates with a hexagonal nut. 3rd & 4th suggests an input bearing issue. The bottom bit might be circlip 

[coopdog]

Sorry but the box needs to come apart

[HarrysMini]

They could have just been small shavings of metal left in the bottom of the gearbox from manufacturing.

[The Principal]

that bottom bit looks like the retaining circlip on the first motion face in the transfer case - http://www.minispare...sic/2A3643.aspx

[mini danny]

best bet is to pull the box out and message quessworks im sure he will know what it is

 

dan

[JustSteve]

As has been said, looks like that circlip, and one of the locktab washers- There's only two and one happens to be next to the circlip!

 

 

My guess is that the 1st motion nut ( on the lowest transfer gear) has come loose, and broken the locktab, and the nut has been driven into the cir-clip  the input gear  will now be loose on the 1st motion shaft so they will both be scrap.   

 

 

 

 

I strongly suggest not driving the car! 

[stonecow]

T.hanks for the insights guys, though it sounds bad
to be honest I have no idea what the circlip even though I've read some descriptions. does this warrant a box rebuid? I'm pretty sure it's 20yrs old and stock because when I dropped the engine for a rebuild 2yrs ago it looked like crap.

If it does need a rebuild, any upgrades I worth doing? as mentioned its a 1275 bored +0.002,stage 1 kit. standard cams and head.

tks again guys.

[Gulfclubby]

They could have just been small shavings of metal left in the bottom of the gearbox from manufacturing.

 

Sorry, but no. Even English manufacturing standards wouldn't allow for pieces that size to float around after assembly (or during for that matter), plus if it was anything off the gearbox case, it would be cast aluminium and therefore not magnetic. This is clearly a gearbox out job.

[tiger99]

I agree with the above, it is clearly remnants of a circlip, so it has to come apart. Everything will need to be examined closely for signs of damage, and replaced as necessary, however it hopefully will not turn out to be too bad.

You could make life easier for yourself by obtaining a good second hand box, to get the car running again quickly, and overhaul the old box at your leisure, but do check that the ratios, especially the final drive, are what you require. If the engine is good, the job can be done in a fairly long day. or a bit less if all goes really well.

If you do have it apart, to swap the box, it would be worth fitting a new clutch, and obviously every gasket and oil seal that has been disturbed. The engine itself is not likely to have been damaged by the debris, as it was retained by the magnet.

[stonecow]

seems pretty certain an overhaul is on the cards. how difficult would the job be? it seems outta my league to be honest. I don't have the necessary tools nor the skills, so I highly doubt it'll be done in a day. Maybe a week or even a month if I ever get the job done? :'(

also considering the cost of shipping parts to singapore and labour/effort involved, I'm more inclined to just order a new/recon box. renew the whole damn thing once and for all to match the 2yo rebuilt engine...

[Ethel]

If you're lucky a repair won't be much more complex than fitting a replacement box.

 

http://www.guess-wor...m/Tech/Rebuild/ will give you an idea of what's wrong, basically the missing circlip will allow the input gear to move away from the main shaft - locking the 2 together is what gives you 4th gear. It is supported by 2  needle roller bearings as well so hopefully there won't be any other damage, but something has chewed on that debris and the movement could have let the input gear rub on the transfer case.

 

 

Guessworks is also a TMF member if you want to discuss your options with him. I'd be inclined to strip it down and see what's what first if you're going to need to ship replacement parts.

 

As for upgrades you might want a centre oil pickup pipe if you like chucking it into the corners, the diff is usually the weak link in Mini transmissions, so you it could be worthwhile looking at that too while the opportunity exists.

[tiger99]

Actually, if you are sure that it is the first motion bearing circlip and locktab, which does seem most likely, it may not be necessary to do much dismantling. Many years ago, in dire emergency, I changed the first motion needle roller bearing without lifting the engine, because I found needle rollers in the oil. A very close scrutiny of a cutaway picture of the engine convinced me that they were from the first motion shaft.

 

I just jacked up, undid the mount, removed the clutch in the usual way (the flywheel fortunately came off easily!) and then the transfer case. I released the circlip and persuaded the gear to come out, extracted the failed bearing, pressed in the new one, and reassembled with a new transfer case gasket and for good measure a red clutch oil seal.

 

In this case there may be damage to the idler gears, depending where the debris went, but the primary gear, idler and input gear, and their bearings, can all be readily accessed. The snag is if the idler gear needs replacing, because then it is engine out, or at least engine lifted off the gearbox, to be able to measure the clearance for the new thrust washers. But, splitting the engine and gearbox in the car avoids the need to mess about with the driveshafts. I must have liked doing it the awkward way.....

 

I would suggest removing the transfer case for a look before deciding what is best.

[peterh2]

That's similar to what I found before my re-build (see A or A+ thread) - turned out to be the cage from the first bearing.