5 Speed Clutch

[arthur67]

Hi the time has come to replace my clutch (5 speed).My question is will the clutch be off any other car or is it unique to Lotus.The cost is well over ?200 so I thought it is a question worth asking.
Thanks for any ideas. regards Arthur

[john.p.clegg]

Arthur
It is a little late tonight and a few glasses of red don't help but the clutch friction plate is the same as...
Hillman Hunter gls 72-79
Commer PA/P van 67-71
Hillman Hunter 66-79
Sunbeam Alpine 69-75
HB 2615

John

P.S. clutch friction plate...looks like Viglink is back....

[Chris]

Arthur. Before you spend a fortune on you clutch kit. Try your local motor factors for a Quinton hazel or Borg & Beck kit. Cover number is HE 2848 and the plate is HB 2615, if my memory serves me the plate is 216mm dia, with 20 splines.
There is nothing special about them, they are just standard parts so don't be taken in by claims like super sport or rally special. Should you need a thrust bearing its number is HD 2482 or SKF 413708 or Fafnir CT5540.
Hope this helps
Chris

[john.p.clegg]

Arthur

PM'd

John

[rgh0]

Don't forget you need to machine a little off the clutch disk hub to stop it fouling and dragging the clutch making selection of first when stationary difficult.
There is a Lotus service bulletin on it that has been posted before and you should be able to find in the archives

cheers
Rohan

[john.p.clegg]

Something like this...

John

[mark030358]

Thread bump…
So my second 5 speed box is in after the massive disappointment of the first one. This box too has been rebuilt by a “specialist” but at the moment is also not right, in as much as selecting first gear is difficult, all other gears seem fine, even reverse and 5th.

I have 12mm of slave cylinder pushrod movement, with around 1mm of free play in the slave cylinder to clutch arm, so all seems good. Also the pushrod moves as soon as the clutch pedal in the car is touched (yes I know this still does not mean all the air is out, but hopefully it is.

So before I go off on another rant I was hoping someone might explain to me why taking 5mm off a clutch hub would stop clutch drag. I need to mention that the helix clutch I fitted had a very low amount of protrusion compared to an old 5 speed plate I have and was really low down.

So as I see it the gearbox input shaft is always located in the driven plate, and the action of the thrust bearing pressing on the pressure plate fingers “releases” the friction plate from the flywheel, while the splines of the inputbshaft and hub do nothing to affect this.

What am I missing here in not understanding this.?

And also what else can I look at with the box? As if this box doesn't work I’m putting a hammer through the lots of them.

Cheers

[john.p.clegg]

I can't help you re. the protrusion....but it does seem like a slight lack of disengagement ... what I found that helped was a washer or two fitted under the pivot post.

Maybe a scale drawing of the clutch arm See-Saw will help ?

John

Edit
Dug this up from the archives..

[HCA]

I assume/hope this modification, or similar, does not apply to the Alan Voigt 5 speed box..?

[mark030358]

Hi John,
I had a bearing carrier made so no need for shims under the pivot. I found out the hard way that the Helix clutch is ‘thinner’ than the original one.

Cheers

Ps this is a lotus box not a Voight’s type.

[john.p.clegg]

I assume/hope this modification, or similar, does not apply to the Alan Voigt 5 speed box..?

This can apply to any box if the lift is insufficient..

John

[nmauduit]

I suppose the 1st is difficult to engage when standing still : what I do on mine is engaging the 2nd then the first, this does the trick (moving the synchro a bit I suppose). Having a well operating 5th sounds like an accomplishement (please let me know which specialist did yours this time, pm if you prefer). I don't think that the clutch being out of whack would have anything to do with this if it the problem occurs only with 1 gear.

[mbell]

My 5 speed has at times been awkward to getting in to 1st when stationary. Selecting first and then back to second normally addresses it.

Can you be a bit more specific on your selection issues? Do you have problem selecting gear with engine off? Is it only with engine running? Does it change once engine/gearbox has warmed up? etc.

[mark030358]

Thanks for the replies chaps.

Not had a chance to do much over the past couple of days as my mums been quite ill.

What I will do is perform some tests that I have been recommended and report back

thanks
Mark

[HCA]

I assume/hope this modification, or similar, does not apply to the Alan Voigt 5 speed box..?

This can apply to any box if the lift is insufficient..

John

I fully appreciate this - I was hoping that a Voigt box user might come in and say yes/no. I am though a long way off mating box and engine, so will come back at the time to ascertain. Thanks though.