Help Fitting a Gearbox.

wul3er · Post by **wul3er** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 8:54 pm

The car is a 1.4 8v Mk5.

I have the old gearbox out and it has just been fully rebuilt.

But my mate who is a mechanic cant put it back in for a while yet, and we desperatley need the car back on the road.

I was going to attemp this myself the morra along with another mate who is quite good with cars but has never done a gearbox b4. I am hopeless with any mechanical work with cars.

So could people give me some tips on what should and shouldnt be done.
And what makes things easier ect.

Cheers

andyg · Post by **andyg** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 9:05 pm

Go buy a haynes manual from halfords or similar, i think they show you to remove the gearbox (and replace)

Tahrey1043 · Post by **Tahrey1043** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 9:09 pm

yeah - its a definate must. but dont rely on it fully, double check the procedure with the diy gurus on here and porka before each major step

not for nothing is it sometimes subtitled the book of fiction. more of a general feeler guide in some cases rather than a comprehensive beginner's guide. i think it assumes you some general knowledge in various random areas. some other things are completely missing. their editing process is a bit suspect!

but it does make some good points, like keeping the box supported in a rock solid fashion completely in line with the engine until you have it bolted up - including when offering it up and bringing the two together - otherwise you could knacker the clutch (etc)

wul3er · Post by **wul3er** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 9:13 pm

ah, I've never seen a Haynes manual for the mk5 but i do have a VW book that is similar to the haynes.

What sort of thing would i use to support the gearbox, When taking it out we used a big rope and i stode up on the top of the engine bay and lifted it from there with the rop.

wul3er · Post by **wul3er** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 10:35 pm

Does anyone know what type of oil i need and how much.

I have lost my car manual.

PhilGTi · Post by **PhilGTi** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 10:46 pm

This is something I would not recommend you do, judging by your knowlege of this matter, I would definatly either wait or pay to have it done!

Not being offensive or cheeky, just sounds a little out of your skill league (and mine)...

Phill.

wul3er · Post by **wul3er** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 10:59 pm

Its ok I Know that im not capable of doing this but my mate who is helping me has good knowledge of cars and is good at fixing them. Although he has never done a gearbox before.

When he comes tommorow we might end up not doing it.

I have offered several people money to do this for me but no one seems to have the time.

polo2k · Post by **polo2k** » Sun Jul 03, 2005 5:45 pm

me and a mate have done several.

its heavy work which bacically involves lifting the box with the diff at the top to clear the steering rack, then twisting it to its true leval, once lined up you nedd to slide it all back together without lettignthe weight drop on the clutch etc.
it is a big job for someone on their first time
it may be worth chucking in a clutch in while the box is out.
if in doubt ask for advise and dont be scared to stop and let someone else finish the job however a garage will usually invalidate the warrenty as you started the job

wul3er · Post by **wul3er** » Sun Jul 03, 2005 5:55 pm

Update:

We never had any ropes to lift the gearbox with and there was a few things we werent sure of, so we decided just to leave it.

Looks like i'll have to wait untill my mate who took it out can do it, But that might mean more time without the car

amstrange1 · Post by **amstrange1** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 4:56 pm

It's a bit of a struggle to do, but actually not that hard. Totally removing both the driveshafts makes things a lot lot easier - as does tying the coolant hoses out of the way. I lift the 'box by the clutch arm, making sure not to swing it and pop the clutch release bearing off though! If there's two of you, get one person to lift it up while the other gets underneath and helps to take the weight and guide it in.

With the driveshafts still in it's taken me nearly an hour to locate the 'box properly on a Mk3 Polo before, but with them out the way it shouldn't take more than 15 minutes or so.