Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

I recently sourced an original Elan 5 speed trans from a 130/5 that had been destroyed by fire. The trans is fine but the gearstick is toast. Can someone please tell me exactly what the gearstick is? It looks very much like a Ford part from the single rail 4 speed trans. Also can someone tell me how the reverse lockout works and how does the shift pattern look? I recently sold my Elan (but another S2 is tempting me..mmmmmm) so I intend to fit the trans to my twincam powered GT Cortina.

Stick is Ford type e. Hard to find in good condition, I got one from lotusbits.com but I think they are now 50 quid + vat + delivery.

Shift pattern is standard 5 speed with reverse where 6th would be.

There is a write up recommended mods for the box, Inc upgraded input bearing is you search on here.

Not familiar with Cortina but might be better to sell the lotus box and get one of the Ford 5 speed boxes. Or buy a eclat version of the box from lotusbits if you need shift lever further back.

^^^ Agreed. Also, there is no reverse lockout. It's just 'over there', where a sixth gear might reside. One
needs to be careful when downshifting from 5th to 4th.

Thanks for the info. I have researched the other 5 speed options available to fit the Mk1 Cortina. The Elan 5 speed appears the be the easiest option as it was designed to fit where the 4 speed did. The type 9 5 speed seems like a logical choice but you need a special bellhousing etc.... to make it all work.

You still need a special bellhousing for the Lotus 5 speed. You didn't mentioned if that was included
with your purchase. The Elite / Eclat Lotus 5 speed will have a different tailshaft than the Elan version.

The Lotus 5 speed 'box is small and a nice fit in the Lotus frame. You have more room in the
Cortina gearbox area so more options are available. It takes some fiddling to get the Lotus
gearbox to shift nicely.

gjz30075 wrote:You still need a special bellhousing for the Lotus 5 speed. You didn't mentioned if that was included
with your purchase.

Greg it is the complete gear box and bell housing that he has from a Plus 2 130/5. I have the rear bumper from the car The front 3/4's of the body was completely destroyed in the fire but most of the mechanical parts underneath and the core of the engine were OK . A friend of mine picked it up very cheap at an auction and has been dismantling it to recover whats reusable. The fire appeared to have started with an electrical fault behind the dash

cheers
Rohan

Correct. I have the entire assembly from the Elan. The only packaging constraint I can see is the height and width of the area that the gearstick attaches and the speedo drive location. Believe it or not the Cortina may have less space in this area as the tunnel slopes down and backwards whereas the Elan has a square box around that area. A type 9 trans needs the upper section of the tunnel removed and refabricated to create enough space. The complete Elan assembly should make for a relatively easy conversion.

I think the gearstick is something like this...



John

Johns photo is indeed a 5 speed gear lever, but it should be straight along the stem from the large diameter portion which contains the anti sizzle bush to the gear knob thread. The the rubber anti sizzle bush weakens with age, and these gear levers were frequently bent as a quick solution to prevent the gear knob from contacting the dash when selecting 5th gear. The real answer is to replace the anti sizzle bush.
Chris

Nothing wrong with the bush,just bent back to position the knob in a sweeter spot... , especially if you have the earlier flick switches.

John

Levers (+2 and Elite S1) taken apart for "fixing".

europatek wrote:Thanks for the info. I have researched the other 5 speed options available to fit the Mk1 Cortina. The Elan 5 speed appears the be the easiest option as it was designed to fit where the 4 speed did. The type 9 5 speed seems like a logical choice but you need a special bellhousing etc.... to make it all work.

Alan Voigts T9 conversion includes the bellhousing and specially manufactured tail housing with the gear lever located to suit the Elan/+2. Brochure attached. The gear lever shown on the brochure is not the correct version, see my pic.

I fitted mine 14 years ago.

He has also changed to position of the "top hat" detent spring holder (which jams on body when removing gearbox + engine as a unit) to the upper left side of the tail housing (which interferes with the Mk 1 Spyder chassis)

I recently fitted a replica electronic speedo, with the pick up on the rear u/j which eliminates all speedo drive/cable problems.

I can really recommend Alan Voigts T9

(Alan never did Internet or email, he relies on his phone !)

Thread drift alert

...and the sump?

John

Won?t the gearshift lever be in the wrong position for a Mk1 Cortina?

john.p.clegg wrote:Thread drift alert

...and the sump?

John

QED supplied Twincam sump fabricated from a Cortina sump. April 2003