Hi all
Having just fitted my engine and box in my sprint, I now find that I need to change the ring gear so I need to remove the engine (grr).
I have a Spyder space frame chassis with removable top and bottom braces but looking at it, the engine will need to be tipped to clear the sump over the front cross member.
Has anyone managed to remove the engine only with an MT75 combination and if so, would you do it again?
I dont really want to pull the box unless I have to but I will if its the only way.
Thanks
Gavin
Gav,
My S4 has a standard chassis with an MT75 gearbox and the front of the sump clashes with the vacuum tank crossmember when trying to remove the engine. I had forgotten how I had done this previously and after much cursing I removed the rear gearbox support crossmember bolts that attach to the chassis and replaced with longer, about 2” long I think, this slight change in angle allowed the sump to clear.
Hope this helps,
Richard Hawkins
Thanks Richard
Just so I fully understand, are you talking about the gearbox brace bar on the top of the chassis by the bellhousing or the bracket on the bottom of the chassis that supports the gearbox.
And did this allow you to remove the engine alone - and more importantly, if you did, was it possible to join the engine and box at that angle.
The more I think about this, the more I suspect that this is going to be as bad as taking out the engine and box together…
Gav,
I was referring to the support bracket at the rear of and underneath the gearbox.
Hope you manage to extract the engine,
Richard Hawkins
Thanks Richard - got you now.
Ill let you know how I get on
All the best
Gavin
Well - I did it - but it was so difficult that I decided to remove the box as well because I don’t think I could align the two well enough in the car without damaging something…
I think its easier to pull them both out in one go than it is to do so separately - so never again!
Another learning day…
Same as my experience, although different model. Mine is a Federal Plus 2 with Spyder chassis, tall block twin cam, and MT75.
My local shop removed just the engine once, I am really not sure how. I also ended up attaching the engine & transmission together to re-install.
Do you have an easy way to unscrew the shift lever? I find firewall clearance at shift lever stub the tricky part.
Stu
‘69 Federal Plus 2
Calgary Canada
Hi Stu
I’m using Spyder’s original MT75 gear lever and in conjunction with their space frame chassis and with the removable top and bottom braces out of the way, I don’t have clearance issues with the gear lever (I do have to remove the gear knob and put the car in 3rd gear) but mine’s a sprint and having never worked on a plus 2, I honestly don’t know what tricks would work.
If you have the Spyder lever, is there enough room in the tunnel to remove the gear change before pulling the box out? From memory. mine has two long bolts running front to back and I wonder if slackening or removing them might provide more clearance.
One detail - I am very lucky to have a 4 post ramp with a jacking beam and this combination allows me to have good control of the gearbox end whilst the engine is raised on an A frame. My experience is that if you can get underneath safely, life is a lot easier.
Hope this helps to some degree.
All the best
Gavin
Very similar approach here too Gavin.
I either lift the car using a floor lift system, or before I had that a couple of floor jacks. Similar to you, I lower the car’s tires onto four sturdy cleated blocks that keep it about a foot off the driveway. With the car level and solid, just a mater of dropping the exhaust and transmission mount with the engine hoist and tilting mechanism taking the weight.
Gearshift sounds similar. The Spyder supplied shift lever was one solid rod. I had a threaded connection and grub screw machined up locally so I only leave a very short stub sticking up from the linkage. Fiddling with the linkage with the box in the car is definitely a challenge!
Ah, the beauty of a custom modification! 
Took a few attempts to get it sorted but works OK now.
I find one of the more annoying MT75 attachments is the speedometer cable. I would love to get an easily disconnected speedo cable extension as it is awkward reaching up at the angle drive.
Heading down to the garage to try and awaken her from winter slumber.
Stu
Heres one for you - I got Caerbont (they took over from Smiths gauges and sell the Smiths brand) to make me an Elan speedo but with modern internals (and a digital mileometer - unfortunately) It is completely programmable and I hooked it up to the MT75 electronic speedo read out and it is really accurate.
I had to set it up by recording exactly 1 mile which I did on a quiet road and it worked out the true scale from that. It was a recommendation from a fellow elan net member which I have been very happy to take on (Thanks)
Gavin
That is a cool solution. Like that choice a bunch better than a GPS based speedometer.
I replaced all four minor gauges with the new units from them. Very happy.
The oil pressure gauge range is too high for the stock engine, but works okay with my high pressure oil pump.
Temperature centres on 90 degrees C with an 82 degree thermostat, but I think the gauge reads slightly high when compared to a heat gun or icing thermometer. Not sure if I should install a slightly lower thermostat.
Engine runs fine and temperature cycles perfectly at idle, fans on for about three minutes out of about ten minutes in summer weather so basically thinking OK.
Still trimming the gas gauge a bit with an electronic device. Spiyda makes the Gauge Wizard to better match the sender & gauge. but it definitely works OK below half full which is the important part.
Voltmeter works great, way better than an older one I had.
And they all match!
My speedometer was modified by Nissonger in the US to adjust the Turns per Mile numbers by changing a couple of internal gears. Unfortunately I can’t recall the TPM value I went with, but the odometer and speedometer are now really accurate with the stock wheel size and tires.
Nissonger also refurbished the tachometer and works well with an electronic signal from the ignition. That said, it took about 20 seconds yesterday to wake up from winter slumber.
So great to take the first short spring scoot yesterday. Will have to take a spring photo today. I hadn’t thought of it, but for the first time in forever I didn’t really take anything apart over the winter.
I am going to surprise Lynn by driving the Lotus to our local club pub night this week; wondering how many other vintage sports cars will be in the lot?
Gav, are you going with the new Spyder MT75 linkage? Spyderfan gives it good reviews, but it is quite spendy. I have decided I can live with my present setup, which was slightly upgraded with a different running change from Spyder a few years ago. Would definitely count on having to remove the transmission (again!) to do the upgrade.
Really looking forward to this driving season. The Lotus Car Club of BC has had fantastic response to a multi-day fall exploration of the headwaters of the mighty Columbia River. Winding two lanes punctuated with free ferries across beautiful mountain lakes in the Canadian Rockies and Selkirks. Really cool array of Lotus cars attending. 
Cheers and enjoy
Stu
Stu
Je viens tout juste de mettre en place l’assistant de jauge de carburant Spyda. Je l’ai fait à l’ancienne en remplissant le réservoir jusqu’au maximum, puis en pompant le carburant et en remplissant le réservoir selon les différents réglages, en enregistrant les niveaux et en ajustant le capteur de niveau et la jauge pour les faire correspondre afin que la jauge corresponde désormais au volume dans le réservoir.
Quel appareil ingénieux — merci pour la suggestion.
Bien à toi
Gavin
J’ai jeté un coup d’œil rapide sur le gauge wizard. Pour info, à 50 £, je pense que c’est un bon rapport qualité-prix pour ce que c’est. Probablement pour environ 10 £ d’électronique, plus la carte PCB, l’assemblage, la galère d’écrire le logiciel et obtenir un minimum de profit. Si tu en sortais des milliers par mois, tu pourrais faire baisser le prix de manière bien plus marquée, mais pour un produit à faible volume, ça semble plutôt pas mal.
Si tu te sens motivé, tu pourrais essayer de le reproduire avec un Arduino et une poignée de composants, mais pourquoi s’embêter si Spidya l’a déjà fait pour toi.