sloppy early 240z gearbox

[Kent]

Hi guys,

 

I have just inherited an early 1970 240Z, The car isn't with me yet, but i do know it has a couple of issues that i need to get sorted out so that i can drive it properly.. One of the more annoying problems is a really sloppy gear shifter, so much so that it is pretty hard to drive (yeah, i am afraid i am use to newer ones ). the other one is a leaky fuel tank when filled over 1/4-1/2 way.. really got to fix that one quick

 

From what i can gather, it is a FS5C71A gearbox with the flange setup. I have am slightly more familiar with the newer style gearboxes from the 240k.. but from a photo i have seen of this type of gearbox, the arrangement that the shifter goes in is very different.

 

I had hoped just to be able to buy a set of bushes to install and fix it.. but i fear it is probably a little more complex than that.

 

Is anyone familiar with these boxes and how this issue can be fixed? or am i up for a rebuild? and if so, any recommended places in Sydney?

 

Thanks guys

Kent

[Gordon Dobie]

Hello Kent

 

If your box is a very early one the gear stick goes through two tapered rubber bushes and is held in place by a nut on the bottom of the stick. Various parts of the mechanism are exposed to oil and road grime which forms a sort of grinding past on the moving parts. This is a major cause of excess play in the gear shift.

There is a simple fix for this problem. Give me a ring on 0409 02 8181 and I will explain how it can be done.

 

Cheers

 

Gordon Dobie

[260Coupe]

Having assisted in rebuilding a number of flange  boxes (both for Roadsters and 240Z's) in most cases the side arms will need to be welded up and machined flat and the spring loaded posts replaced and new tension springs installed...........this removes the sideways slop.

Additional slop is removed by shimming and or sleeving the selector fork mechanism.

When refurbished completely (and properly) the flange box is a joy to use with pricise throws and a very slick action.

 

If you need a contact number for an expert flange box rebuilder PM me .

 

Alan

[Riceburner]

Hey Kent I may be able to shed some light on the fuel leak. There is a vent hose that runs of the back of the tank up behind tail lights into a 't' piece and to the filler neck. The plastic 't' pieces and notorious for getting brittle as are the braided breather hoses.

 

Mine did this also when filled above half, I replaced the hose straight away. There's something very disturbing about seeing your newly bought Z sitting in it's own fuel puddle after filling it for the first time  you'll be able to see it pop up through the floor behind the right tail light, and has cloth braiding. If its rock hard it needs changing.

[Kent]

Hi Guys,

 

thanks for the response, atleast it sounds like a whole rebuild is off the cards thankfully

 

Gareth, i will check this out first thing on the weekend. Was the hose one that can be replaced easily with generic hose? or is it one of the funny shaped ones i have heard about?

 

Thanks all once again

Kent

[Riceburner]

Yep it was one of those funny shaped ones with the cloth braiding, I got mine from nissan but can't remember how much.

 

I believe this is how it looks (it's on ebay) gas tank breather hose.

[1600dave]

With the gearbox linkage, a slightly more dodgy way to improve it is to strip it down, then file all the parts up so they are nice and square again (you'll probably find parts are worn slightly "oval" where they should have parallel sides). This will leave the linkage with gaps in a few spots, just fill these gaps with appropriate sized shims / washers.

 

Not as good as welding it up and re-machining to the original specs, but still makes a big improvement.

[Kent]

Hi Guys,

 

I have been driving the car for 2 weeks now to work and back.. getting used to the gearbox, but it definately needs some work sometime in the future.. I had filled the tank up twice and didn't see any fuel leaks until friday night.. i filled it right up to the filler neck.. went and paid for the petrol then came back to a massive puddle under the car.. the car was parked at a slight downward angle, but petrol was washing over the back left side of the tank and dripping onto the floor, right next to the exhaust..

 

i presume the connection to the fuel filler neck, or the fuel filelr hose itself is the problem.. does this sound right?