Gearbox Refurb

[R1 Indy]

Looks like the gearbox on my S2000 is fked

It sounds like a supercharger on acceleration, and a bag of spanners on deceleration. Its also getting rather stiff to get into gear, especially from cold.


Im thinking i would be better off getting it refurbished rather than a used box off eBay which could go the same way?

Can anyone tell me rough cost of getting a box refurbished?

And any recommended refurbisher's? i am in Bristol, but guess i could have it couriered, but would prefer local.


I can probably manage to remove the box myself (just completed a head gasket change which was successful). As i guess a lot of the cost must be labour removing the box?

Cheers

[357RS]

I can't help with a refurbisher but note that it's always useful for whoever is doing the overhaul to be able to drive the car before the box is removed. Helps enormously with assessing what is wrong/worn.

[George111]

Don't know of a good one in Bristol but can recommend these people: http://www.gearboxman.co.uk/contact.html

[PhillipM]

It really depends just how much has gone, it could turn out that it's not worth repairing, it could just be a failed bearing and £75 of parts and oil.

[R1 Indy]

Thanks, have just called these guys: http://www.reconditionedgearboxes.com/Manufacturer...


If i get it down to kent they will fit a fully refurbished box with 12 month guarantee for £995 inc Vat which is a lot less than i was expecting.

I was expecting around £2K + fitting. Its not worth getting my spanners out and loosing my knuckles and 7 pints of blood for that price!


Has anyone used them?

Cheers

[Blanchimont]

I've used the "Transmission Workshop" in Bristol. (had a cracked end casing) They used to be next to the climbing centre, and opposite the "Harvest" fuel station on Winterstoke road. They've moved now, but they're still going and have done a great job on cars I've had in the past.

I have a sneaking suspicion they're on Coronation Road now, but I'm not sure.

[Krikkit]

If you can do a head gasket you can do a gearbox refurb. DIY imo.

[Six Fiend]

This place is just round the corner from me in Fishponds and popular

http://www.bristoltransmissions.co.uk/home/

[R1 Indy]

Six Fiend said:

This place is just round the corner from me in Fishponds and popular

http://www.bristoltransmissions.co.uk/home/

Thanks, just spoke to them, looking at £600+vat for replacement of just the bearings. I would have to remove and re-fit the box.

[R1 Indy]

Krikkit said:

If you can do a head gasket you can do a gearbox refurb. DIY imo.

Yep I think it's going to be this.

Something just doesn't ring true about : http://www.reconditionedgearboxes.com

The fact they claim to have a rebuild S2K box on the shelf I find hard to imagine, it's not exactly a high demand!

The Ltd company has only been going 6 months, yet they have 2 depot's and clearly loads of ready to go box's......

And £995 fitted for a fully refurb end box just seems too cheap...


I think I will remove the box myself, have a look at the bearings, if I need a pro to remove/fit the bearings then I will seek a pro. But at least I will know it's been done right. Plus can check the clutch etc myself.

All 3 bearings on the output shaft (which research shows are likely the culprit) are actually only £150 from Honda.

[George111]

R1 Indy said:

All 3 bearings on the output shaft (which research shows are likely the culprit) are actually only £150 from Honda.

Or probably £35 from a local bearing supplier once you get them out and can identify them

[ivorbigun]

I took the gearbox out of my Megane 175DCi (workshop manual made it sound simple: step 1, remove engine and gearbox. step 2, seperate gearbox from engine).

I then took the gearbox apart - it kind of fell apart as I pulled apart the casing - got frightened I had no idea where any of the bits went and I was out of my depth. Got a gearbox place to collect the box in bits and refurb it with new bearings - at least I could see it generally looked fine before getting it refurbed. I still wonder if I could have finished it myself. Couldn't find any instruction manuals is my excuse

I've rebuilt an rx8 motor, so not too phased by such missions, but this is one of the few where I had to get someone in.

But at least you now know the gearbox place would take a box of bits if you do give it a go and then bottle it.

I'm up in Yorkshire, so no advice for places.

[ToothbrushMan]

yeah gearboxes are a dark art IMHO. you really are in the lap of the gods taking one for a "refurb". you just wont know if the works been done until youve got the box home and refitted it then taken the car for its first run.....

i swear there are more than a few "specialists" out there that just repaint your old box and charge you for a rebuild.

i once stripped a box down and took the internals to a specialist with instructions to check them and renew all worn parts. i never heard from them since and so I left the box of bits for them to dispose of out of shear disgust at not being contacted. they were just ignorant tts who preferred to have customers that dropped their cars off so they could charge for removal and refitting of the box not some car geek like me interested in doing most of the work myself. i just bought another 2nd hand box albeit unknown but it was fine. thats the gamble with a used box.

I did see the 4 speed box from a Mk1 Fiesta XR2 get sent off on Wheeler Dealers to Newbury Transmissions who seemed to know their stuff including a full oil gallery clean out of the shafts. think they charged Mike £400 inclduing the kit of seals and bearings etc.

I dont imagine its everyday you will find an S2000 box for sale but if you try a rebuild yourself i think youll find you need a fair few special tools pullers and adaptors to remove gears etc. and a press to fit new hubs and gears. it can get expensive on top of the actual repair kit.

[V8RX7]

ToothbrushMan said:

I swear there are more than a few "specialists" out there that just repaint your old box and charge you for a rebuild.

Almost true -

A "reconditioned box" is one usually pulled from a breaker and steam cleaned.

A "gold seal" box is one pulled from a breaker, steam cleaned and painted.

I would only go to someone recommended by the Trade, I know of one locally (Near Birmingham) - Martin at Olton Transmissions he has done lots of work for friends over the years, always with a good result.

[ToothbrushMan]

V8RX7 said:

ToothbrushMan said:

I swear there are more than a few "specialists" out there that just repaint your old box and charge you for a rebuild.

Almost true -

A "reconditioned box" is one usually pulled from a breaker and steam cleaned.

A "gold seal" box is one pulled from a breaker, steam cleaned and painted.

I would only go to someone recommended by the Trade, I know of one locally (Near Birmingham) - Martin at Olton Transmissions he has done lots of work for friends over the years, always with a good result.

well im in Birmingham so thats handy to know. i was mulling the idea over of taking a box to Newbury but its miles away. i prefer local.

[mighty kitten]

It's a rwd box so pretty straightforward compared to fwd trans axles .plenty of pictures and a few bearings you can do it yourself

[cheshire_cat]

I had the same dilemma with my mx-5 and decided to take a gamble on a used box. Turned out fine, and really glad I did it. It's worth noting though than an mx-5 box is only £40, but it still took about 6 hours to complete the job.

The fallback position was refurb the box myself though, if the new box wasn't right. See if you can find some exploded diagrams online and do lots of Google of th symptoms to narrow down the problem (on my mx-5 it was a counter shaft bearing, diagnosable because all gears except 4th made a horrendous noise, and 4th gear is a direct drive gear without using the counter shaft).

[R1 Indy]

mighty kitten said:

It's a rwd box so pretty straightforward compared to fwd trans axles .plenty of pictures and a few bearings you can do it yourself

Yes its not looking too impossible to remove the box so far.

I had a good crack at it this afternoon, just need to remove the prop, clutch cylinder, raise the engine a few inches (to get to top bolts), remove the gearbox mounts, then the bolts to the engine, and then the bit I'm dreading of bringing it down without crushing myself.

Then i can open it up.

I also assume it would be best to drain the oil whilst its still in the air?


Should i be able to tell which bearings gone by looking at it?

Also how will the bearings be fitted? do they need pressing out?


If it turns out its knackered there are a few on eBay but they are £400-£500 then there is the logistics of collecting it, and it may not be in much better condition either!

This is the parts diagram, looks like 3 main bearings.

Edited by R1 Indy on Thursday 4th February 20:00

Edited by R1 Indy on Thursday 4th February 20:05

[mighty kitten]

if I doubt if there is more than £100 worth of bearings on there plus a couple of seals

[Krikkit]

Is it the final drive bearings that usually go on these boxes? Doesn't look too bad, if you can find an exploded diagram there'll be a torque list as well.

Take it slow, take pictures. Chances are you'll need a press and a bearing puller, but you can always get a specialist to do that bit.

If you want to replace the bearings without Honda you'll have to press them off and get the brand/part# etc from them.