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MG MGB Technical - Clutch replacement

Just curious if anyone on that side of the pond has experience with removing the transmission only from underneath to change a clutch. On another MGB board a member said that:

"ack in the early 70s I helped my dad replace the clutch in his gt.We were able to pull the trans back.turn it and drop it out.Anything changed in my car?"

He states that his dad was from the UK and that he had always done it that way and that it just required unbolting and then turning the transmission to remove it. I have never heard anyone say this is possible but he insists it is quite simple and fairly common. He also said this did not require butchering any of the body crossmembers underneath.

Any opinions on this board?
John Lifsey

I believe that it is possible to remove the gearbox without removing the engine but if it is an overdrive gearbox it's a no no. The engine must then be removed. However I must say that it is probably a lot easier to pull the engine forward for this as it eliminates the need for wriggling all over the floor
Iain MacKintosh

Yes, it can be done, but it requires the disasembly of the transmission control tower. A real PITA! It's not worth the bother and no, it can't be performed on an OD transmission. RAY
rjm RAY

I agree with Ray. Pulling the engine and transmission out as a single unit is easier. It also presents you with a golden opportunity to clean things up, examine things, and tend to any leaks or seepage.
Stephen Strange

You can get the overdive version out (seen it done) ... you just can't get it back again (that's when they ask for help).
Pulling engine only is only about 2/3 the time of the whole unit with gbox attached.
Paul Walbran

Agree completely with Paul. Don't even think about pulling the engine and transmission and get into all that bother with the rear crossmember, propshaft, speedo cable gear lever and wiring. Pulling the engine on its own is very much more straightforward and provided that you keep the engine backplate and face of the bell housing parallel it is quite easy to fit the engine back on to the transmission. Grinding a 1/32 at 45degree chamfer on the front of the first motion shaft makes it even easier.
Iain MacKintosh

Ditto Paul and Iain. It's a plain splitting and even worse reassembling gearbox and engine when they are both wriggling about. Much easier when the gearbox is firmly held in the car and the weight of the engine is on the hoist. With the gap between back-plate and bellhousing equal all the way round, and clutch-kit grease on the first-motion shaft and inside the friction plate splines, the engine pushed straight on without any bother at all. That was a rubber bumper, a pal with a CB had a lot more trouble but that was with the crank pulley fouling the rack, even with the gearbox jacked right up. In the end he had to move the gearbox crossmember back to the rear holes.
Paul Hunt

Paul, that is rather odd for the CB rack to foul like that when the gearbox is jacked right up, it is usually clear. The only one I've found that didn't clear comforatbly had a bit of "history" in the chassis.

Iain, I have ground a lead-in on my own first motionshaft too. And also a small lead-in to each of the cltuch splines. Couple with taper dowels to locate backplate to the bellhousing, the two slot together really easily. (This is my rally car. With a bit of attention to all other aspects of the operation, we have a clutch change down to 45 minutes, just in case it becomes a problem in the 8 day marathon rally that's run here so we can change it between stages on a luch break etc).
Paul Walbran

My pal is blind, living about 150 miles away and determined to reassemble the car by himself, so the help I gave was based on descriptions, photos and some video from him.
Paul Hunt

This thread was discussed between 20/03/2014 and 24/03/2014

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