Gearbox swap: 1.7td gearbox onto 1.9d engine

[ladonamobile]

Hi all,
I am a new member and am pleased to read so many informed posts solving problems I have previously struggled with on my cars. (Hindsight is a wonderful thing and better late than never)

My current problem is causing me wobbly arms and back ache. I have my 1.9d estate on front axle stands with the engine partially dropped, the old gearbox off (some gears having shot holes in casing) and a 1.7td gearbox refusing to mate with the engine.

Q. Will this gearbox fit? Or am I simply bench-pressing the gearbox for the sake of developing my pectoral muscles?

[DavidRutherford]

Q. Will this gearbox fit?

Yes. The diff ratio is a bit higher, so the car will feel a bit slower, but may be more economic thereafter.

Have you changed the clutch? It would be a bummer if it started slipping a week after you've already had the gearbox off. If you have, is the friction plate centralised? You can use the old input shaft from your scrap gearbox to do this if needs be.

[ladonamobile]

Thanks for the info David, the clutch is not too old so it shouldn't need changing. It is just nice to know it is still worth struggling until I eventually get it fitted and have my estate back on the road.

[mountainmanUK]

Hi, and welcome to the Club,

As David said, it's quite important to have the friction plate correctly centred before trying to stick the box back on.
IIRC, from doing my own TXD TD gearbox swap last summer, the main problem that I had was in "twisting" the box to get the shaft to fully engage. I found I had to some fiddling with the engine hoist I was using, to get the angle just right, before it would slide on OK. If you've got the angle wrong, the front crossmember (at the back of the engine bay) can get in the way of twisting the box to align the dowels correctly.

As usual with these things....you'll get it right on the absolutely last time that you give it a go, before admitting defeat and going down the pub!!

Good luck!

Dave H

[ken newbold]

Don't know if you've already done this but, I usually remove the o/s driveshaft, it makes getting the gearbox to line up much easier, although not essential.

If it still still doesn't line up, it might be worth taking the clutch out and trying it on the gearbox shaft itself. However I'm not aware of any differences.

[Kitch]

I had this on the valver. As far as I'm concerned, putting a BE box back on an XU engine in situ in a BX is an arsehole of a job. The diff keeps catchin the subframe, the sump/end case keeps hitting the chassis rail and the release arm keeps getting knocked as you fiddle and try to put the box back on causing the bearing to detatch inside.


It will fit, but just check the following:

Driveshafts removed...I still don't get how people change a box with the driveshafts still in and manage to NOT fubar the output seals! Much easier out.

Remove the stud for the gearbox engine mount. Gives you more room to manouvre around the chassis rail.

Use an engine crane or engine beam/brace and some rope to support the box while you move around looking for objects (like the speedo cable) that are getting trapped between box and engine. If you feed the rope around the box in a certain way, it pulls the release arm tught too so the release bearing doesn't detatch inside the bell housing!

You've probably tried twisting the box as you try to fit it. Just make sure the splines are clean, otherwise they will resist slotting into the clutch.

Other than that it's just patience mate. I sympathise with you, I hate doing gearbox swaps especially on BX's!

[ken newbold]

One further thing, if you have the box almost in, but can't quite get it to locate on the dowels correctly, try getting a mate or somebody to turn the flywheel a couple of turns slowly. You might just find it drops straight in then.

[tom]

I was lucky as the first and only one I ever did went straight on but a well known dodge is to have a couple of longer than standard bolts to hang the box on while you line it up. Once the box has slotted onto the dowels, you fit one of the other bolts and then replace the long ones. Good Luck.