Ford Escort MK1 Restoration. Gearbox Adaptor Plate Part 2. MX5 NA to Zetec ST170 

Wow, thank you!

Or put ever so slightly differently - No such thing as problems only solution opportunities 👍

"Above all.... it's a challenge" 😊😊😊🤣

Thank you 😊

Thanks Mick 😊

Hi Alan, thanks pal 😊😊

Brilliant, I'll have a look for them 👍👍

I make many mistakes 🤣

Awesome, thank you!

I appreciate that!

Thanks Robert 😊

Glad you like them Neil, thank you 😊

Thanks Sid, there's no problems, just challenges 😊😊

I could feel the weight of all my lovely subscribers watching me do it wrong 🤣🤣

Oooff, thanks for the heads up, I'll stop doing that.

Thank you mate. I presume the van is a Mk3/4 55? Couldn't you use an auto box from the car? Or was there no such diesel auto version?

@@DavesGarageuk that’s a good point I shall do some more homework as i haven’t got a clue mate im a complete novice at this im finding my feet lol 👍

Thanks for this, it's something I need to revisit

Thanks Marty, that's a very good shout 👏

Still in the thinking about it stage, but it seems to me, the gear stick assembly is removable, and I can't see why it can't be chopped and relocated... watch this space while I turn a perfectly good gearbox into scrap 🤣

Thanks Steve, I'll remember that for next time 👍

Nope, because it's still a four pot in line, if I changed to v8 or v6 then no

That's really interesting to know. Thanks and keep up the good work.

Good news, thank you 😊

I used the full internals out of a Mazda 626 rear wheel drive gear box in a series 2 RX7 housing when a roll pin wouldn't stay in the selector fork the main difference was the input shaft shank and the Speedo drive gear.

Starett hole saw bi-metalic, with oil, very good, expensive, but they actually work. I've been cutting through nails in floor boards for years with them 🤣

Hi Tom, input shaft does line up, the input shaft center was my starting point. Once I've worked out the spigot bearing arrangement, that will center the box, hopefully...😊

I'll have a look into thar, thank you

@@DavesGarageuk Dave, it would be possible to make a small hole in the side of the bellhousing to insert an extended dti spindle on to the flywheel end of the first motion shaft with the gearbox and engine coupled and spiggot bush made and installed without clutch. By turning the crank you could see how far the 1st motion shaft was being pulled off centre by the crank, a bit like setting up a spindle in a 4 jaw chuck. Either by slotting holes in adaptor or if close just by using slack in the boltholes, you could partially loosen and tap in eiter plane untill the clock (dti) reads less than 5 thou deflection and then drill and use mills pins to dowel the addaptor and bellhousing together so that they will always re align in the same place. Thinking about it you would need to dowel the adaptor plate to the block before you started the alignment so that (that) was a fixed datum i.e. not variable. There is no way of knowing at the moment how misaligned the crank and gear box will be, but if unlucky you could destroy the gearbox 1st motion shaft bearing in short order as is far less well supported than the crank and you woud have to tear out the engine and box from the finished car to do an alignment anyway. Please understand I am trying to be constructive and in no way am I picking holes in what you are doing. What you are doing is awesome!!

@Neil Jarvis that's a brilliant idea, thank you, please keep it up, I'm willing and open to constructive help. Thank you 😊

@@DavesGarageuk Hope it made sense? One point I missed is that you will have to do measurements in two planes i.e. horizontal and vertical. That will mean putting in a second hole for the dti spindle, so one at 12 o'clock and one at 3 or 9 o'clock. Having adjusted the run out in the vertical plane you could put in a mills pin at or near 12 o'clock and then pivot about that to achieve horizontal alignment left or right, nip up the bolts, re check vertical run out and if still good, put a mills pin on either left or right side.That way it will be correctly aligned every time its bolted up. So you have somewhere to attach a dti mag base, you could drill into the bellhousing and put in a nut and bolt with a liitle 2" square of that 6mm plate offcuts welded to it, ideally 2 off - for mounting at the 12 and 3 o'clock positions. You could make little round 1/8" thick ally plates with a M5 screw tapped into the bellhousing to cover the 4 holes afterwards (unless you have access to an AC Tig set to fill them in). Tell me when youve had enough of my wittering🤣......

@Neil Jarvis this is all good stuff, thank you so much for sharing this 👍👍

Good to know someone else has done this. I'd it works, I'll keep you in mind. Ta.

@@DavesGarageuk can send you a pic of shortened shifter if you like 👍

@@Hollytrees yep, that would be great, I'm on Instagram as daves_garage_youtube

Next time I'm in the garage I'll measure that up for you, it's surprising how much they can move isn't it!!

@@DavesGarageuk thanks Dave, yes it is, I've probably got an inch of movement

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