Hitting a bit of a make-or-break impasse on the gearbox
and i need experienced advice --- ive set my deadline for this time next week, if its not done, the car goes for spares/repair in whatever state its in.bit long but the details are neccessary
So far i have
* got all five bolts off
* removed starter motor
* removed clutch, speedo, and reversing light cables
* removed linkage
* removed clutch cover panel
* removed top mount
* got engine and box both supported from underneath
not necessarily in that order....
wasnt able to properly undo the through-bolt for the rear mount (or was i?) so i've simply taken the whole thing off the chassis ... BUT its still connected to the gearbox ... can't see how to remove it whilst its still in the car as there are simply too many obstacles to getting a spanner or socket in to undo the 2 or 3 bolt-AND-nut pairs attaching them on
don't think that's my problem though
the whole thing has shifted right about an inch so far, and it's just exposing the toothed rim of the flywheel and maybe a little bit of the clutch assembly - it's not fully exposing it however, i can't yet drop it down.
the box feels very loose in all directions up/down (on the jack) & forwards/backwards (by hand) as far as i dare to move it (not much), but i cannot for the life of me get it to pull "off" the engine fully so it can be dropped down.
i thought previously that the rear mount was catching, but that's fairly free to move now (but for the rear brake pipes, which arent too much of a bother). seems it might be catching on one of the coolant pipes, the whole arrangement being such that either the mount is free, or the bolt point thats catching is, but not both together?
get the notion that its something else entirely, like the clutch isnt dismounting from the input spline properly or something... or perhaps the small amount of shift its already encountered (esp. when undoing the mounts) has mashed it up and locked it all together?
even so im not sure if theres enough free space chassis-wise to move it sideways across the engine bay to have it clear of the engine so it can go down. the 4-speed plastic splashguard is still clipped in place but its almost certainly not that, as its flexible.
again, help!
