Odds and ends, including an overdrive gearbox

After finishing up the paint- I redid the seat covers and seat frames.  I bought a nice set of original style seat covers off of Craigslist.  No real tricks to replacement- just take off the old covers, clean/repaint the seat frames, get the recline ratchet to work, and recover.  Came out pretty good.



Frame after paint with new reinforcement backing material



I also installed a battery cut-off switch behind the passenger seat.  This comes in handy all the time.  I kill the battery every time the car is parked.

Next up was a new overdrive transmission.  I have always wanted one and found one an hour away for under $500, so I bought.  My plan was to do the basic maintenance on the overdrive and test it.  I bought all of the o-rings, seals, gaskets, etc. for the job and got started.  You need to remove the bottom sump cover from the overdrive and replace O-rings at the oil pump, pressure valve, and solenoid.  Everything was going well until I hooked it up to a powerful drill so I could test the overdrive.  The overdrive activated correctly, but would not disssconnect when I took the power off of the solenoid.  So- it needed to come apart.



Overdrive components- solenoid on bottom, then oil pump, then pressure relief.



I opened up the gearbox as well to measure/inspect.  It seemed to measure out fine.



The overdrive gears and cone clutch. 



The sump of the overdrive.  The two bars are going across little pistons the move under oil pressure created by the overdrive pump.  This motion pushes the cone clutch into the outer portion of the overdrive and activated it.



Damage to the original cone clutch.  I had to sent it off (and the OD itself) to get replaced.

So after installing the new cone clutch and a new bearing, I just put it all back together and started on removing the engine/gearbox out of my car. 

To install the new overdrive/gearbox, I first needed to remove the current standard gearbox from the car.  It is removed with the engine and then separated from the engine while on the engine hoist or bench.  While the engine is out, I was going to paint the engine bay, paint the engine, replace the clutch, new motor mounts, etc.  Here are a few photos of the process.



Ready to pull the engine and gearbox



Almost there....



After the first washing/degreasing



Gearbox removed showing old clutch and flywheel



On the stand



cleaned and masked ready for black paint



dirty engine bay after removing most components



after cleaning/sanding and ready for primer



after primer, ready for color.  I used foil to wrap parts I didn't want to remove (wire harness, hydraulic lines, etc)



After paint.

Next up was to inspect the engine while it was out.  I'd replace all seals, external gaskets, etc.  I wanted to remove the camshaft to inspect since I was planning on replacing the timing chain anyway.  Once the chain is out, the cam just pulls out of the block.  The original cam measured out o.k., but one of the lobes was damaged so it needed replacement.  I bough a little more aggressive cam just for fun.  So I put the new cam in, and painted the engine.  After that, I installed a new water pump, thermostat, rocker shaft, etc.  Once the engine was painted, it was time to attach the new-to-me overdrive gearbox and put the lump back in the car.  No problems at all- just the usual British quirkiness (like the transmission crossmember that bolts under the car has 16 different ways it can be installed).  So, that is where I am now- starting to put stuff back on the engine (alternator, starter, etc)
I'll soon fill it with oil and spin it up with the starter until I see some oil pressure, then hook up the ignition and fire it up.  The new cam needs a 20 minute at 2500+/- rpm break-in period on initial start-up. 



New clutch and resurfaced flywheel



The Drivetrain



Careful there Robert....wouldn't want to hit the fender or anything!



Almost....



On the engine mounts- just need to be lined up.



Putting the engine bay back together



Looking pretty good considering....



....what it looked like when I bought it.

So- next up I hope she is one the road with a functioning overdrive!!


Paint complete!

So, assembly continued on the painted body.  All of the removed panels needed fitting.  The front fenders were the most difficult.  Considering that the front drivers fender was new to the car, many of the installation holes needed to be messaged with a small grinder so the bolts would fit.  It was back and fourth with moving the fender, adjusting the front of the drivers door, aligning the hood, etc.  After a few hours of delicately moving the freshly painted fender around with shims, it was done well enough for me. 

passenger side fender, wet sanded and ready for buffing

I went through miles of tape and clear plastic.

after the initial high-speed buffing

Once the painted panels were installed, the entire car was buffed.  It was a messy job as the buffer flung compound paste all over the garage.  No real problems, just time consuming (what isn't with a paint job I guess??).  I burned through the paint in a couple sharp edges.  I'll touch them up someday when I mix up paint again.

after 1st round of buffing.

after second round of finer buffing.  Only polish remains.

Next step was to glue on the vinyl fabric between the dash and the windshield.  I reused the original piece after looking for a replacement piece of vinyl and not being able to find a piece that looked correct or was the correct thickness for molding to the scuttle it would be glued to.  I just taped off the area, sanded the new paint to give the glue some tooth, and attached the vinyl.

sanded and ready for glue

installed and ready for the windshield.

Next up was the fun part- installing ALL of the rest of the bits- chrome trim, bumpers, mirrors, top fasteners, door components, etc.  Enjoyable tasks, but slow because of working around new paint.  Sure, I may have scratched it a couple times, but who cares?  As each piece is attached, it starts to look more and more like a car.

installing original VIN tag with rivets prior to windshield install

windshield installed

door latch pieces

Coming along.  I covered over the windshield because I still had some buffing to do.

tail lights, gas filler, etc

new stainless trim clips.  I had to make sure these would align correctly as I installed the fender.  This trim goes down the entire length of the car, on three different body panels. 

here are the trim pieces installed- look pretty straight I guess?

front end almost finished

grill added- sorry it's a bit blurry.  So was I by this time, so it's only fair.

Ready for the road!!

The final step for now was to install a dash cap my brother gave me for Christmas 7 months earlier! It covers over the cracked and split original vinyl dash top.  Looks really great.  A before and after:

 

old cracked dash- with some gorilla tape I put on cover the BIG cracks

new cap- sorry I don't have a photo without the towel.  The towel is there to hold it in place while the glue dries.



 

 And finally- on the road!!

It was a ton of work, but certainly worth it, and I had a blast doing it... now that it over.

 Next post in the New Year will be new seat covers.  Happy Holidays everyone!