MG-Cars.net

Welcome to our resource for MG Car Information.

Recommendations

Parts

MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Type 9 anti rattle

Does anyone know to an anti-rattle device/mod that can be done to the type 9 quick shift gear leaver, I have done a quick search and come up with nothing.
Its driving me crazy! if I hold the gear leaver it stops..I have tried packing with grease etc.
Rob Newt

Rob is it a quickshift?

Is it an original Ford?

Is it an original Ford cut short?

I'll say nothing about packing it with grease or it'll get me going about a certain 'specialist'

Don't bother with a stiffer rubber gaiter as that will pull it out of gear (another 'specialist' solution, whoops I'm off)
Nigel Atkins

Rob,

Do you know what's actually rattling. I'm wondering if the small plastic clip maybe missing. There is normally a sort of U shaped plastic clip that fits over the pin on the end of the selector rod and the gear lever yoke fits fits over that, if it was missing I could imagine that causing a rattle due to the slop.
David Billington

David would you have a photo or drawing or link to either please

Mine has a bit of a rattle after two changes of (very expensive) lever
Nigel Atkins

Nigel,

See photo.


David Billington

Undo the three screws that hold the gearlever plate and lift out the gearlever. The bottom end of the lever locates into the yoke or bracket that is fastened to the end of the selector shaft. The clip that David refers to is a sort of saddle shaped piece of nylon that fits onto the yoke and acts as a buffer between the yoke and the slightly bulbous end of the gear lever. Without the clip the lever is sloppy and rattles. The nylon clip is (or was, 7 years ago) available from Ford dealers.

The "quick shift" can be achieved by moving the golf-ball sized pivot sphere up the lever, thus changing the ratio between distance that the top (gearknob) needs to move in order for the bottom end to slot the gears into mesh. The method is recorded as a "how to" by someone. I may have a copy somewhere.

I didn't do mine that way as I just have a very short gear lever which has much the same effect. Although it looks a bit odd to some, it gives a very short throw - almost like operating a paddle-shift lever.

Guy

PS, Sorry David, -cross posting and anyway a picture is so much better! The "saddle" thing in your photo doesn't look like nylon - it almost looks like a base metal casting.


Guy

Guy,

The "saddle" is definitely plastic and black. I would assume it's nylon but I'm not going to test it to verify that assumption.
David Billington

David,

Yes, as you say definately plastic, thermo plastic of some sort such as Nylon for all the type 9's I have seen

Spencer
S Deakin

Hey Guy,

What sort of gaiter is fitted in your car?
And how's the fit with your modified shifter position? (just wondering since I ended up having to do the same in my car, as expected.)
Alexander Sorby Wigstrom

Sorry, I was saying that they are Nylon (or plastic of some sort). I was merely commenting that David's photo made it look like a metal one! Maybe you have it sprayed in white /silver grease. Or is it just a trick of the light!

Alexander - its a leather gaiter, over a thick rubber one underneath. I think it is the one I had before when I had the ribcase gearbox fitted. I thought it was standard Spridget 1275, but with the ultra-short gearstick the gearknob sort of nestles down into it.

With that very short gearstick I also shortened the detent spring (top front right of box) to give it a lighter shift.
Guy

David, thanks for the photo

Guy I'd see a doctor about that if I was you

and the nylon/plastic bit looks a bit metal in that photos to me too

thanks for info, as I've had three different gever levers and a grease filling I'm used to removing it now

I paid for the g/box to be shortened and for an expensive quickshift lever from the 'expert specialist' - the quickshift is a waste of time on my g/box and 5th can only be engaged by not thinking about it

My mate who done his own installation used a shortened Ford lever and it's fine as is engaging 5th gear

he shortened a couple of the levers I had too - they rattle, one a lot more than the other

Nigel Atkins

and on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FORD-SIERRA-TYPE-9-GEARBOX-GEARSTICK-SADDLE-BUSH-/390297376312?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item5adf895638
Mick struggling with the wiring

Mick thanks for that

I was also going to say the Sierra lever also appears to have some sort of anti-rattle looking thing (?) on the lever arm itself

altho' the arm cants backwards if shortened this wouldn't matter

see - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FORD-SIERRA-CAPRI-TYPE-9-GEARBOX-GEARSTICK-SELECTOR-/390285681499?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item5aded6e35b
Nigel Atkins

Just to clarify I do have a quick shift and it does have the u shaped saddle fitted, I think the the next step is to get hold of a standard gear leaver to see if it is just the quick shift thats causing the rattle.
Rob Newt

Rob as I had so much trouble with my very expensive original quickshift lever from the 'specialist expert' and the two replacements from the same source I looked at replacements

The quickshift is the one used on Escorts various suppliers at varios prices (all much less expensive than my source)

They all look the same in the photos (green base) but I don't know if any are manufactured at different places

I did consider fitting a Sierra replacement but the third one I got doesn't rattle too much and has dropped down the priority list

Why not try replacing that saddle bush first

All the levers need cutting down for a Spridget
Nigel Atkins

Do the commercially sold quick shift levers have additional linkages and pivots of any sort that could be causing the rattle? How do they work?

The standard lever, and even standard levers modified to give a quick shift action have no moving parts and I don't see why they should rattle, unless the pivot ball is worn.
Guy

I must have put too many links on my posts they've dissappeared twice

for now - http://www.gearboxman.co.uk/psquaife.html

Nigel Atkins

I don't know if this kit is any good as a possible - http://www.rallydesign.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=1360_339&products_id=2008
Nigel Atkins

Mine quickshift(Moorlane garage 1999) ratlled for many years until it was hooked up to another type 9(2004) and later to the K series and it didnt anymore.
The conversion-company filled it up with grease and so have I since then and had no more noice.
What didnt work for you Nigel did however strangly enough work on mine.

I still do not rule-out that the gearbox itself also inlfuences the ratteling, the better reconditioned the lesser vibrations the lesser rattling.
A unproved theory but still a suspect to me especialy after the second type9 didnt gave any ratteling beside it being filled with grease.
Type9 nr3 (2009)doesnt make a sound either.


Arie de Best

this is what mine looks like - same looking ones available from £38 -£54 or £94.21+VAT from'expert specialist'

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mk1-MK2-Escort-Rally-car-5-speed-Quickshift-Gearlever-/140532838220?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item20b868ef4c

or standard type new sierra - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FORD-SIERRA-CAPRI-TYPE-9-GEARBOX-GEARSTICK-SELECTOR-/390285681499?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item5aded6e35b

ALSO JUST NOTICED NOW!

in David's photo there's a piece of platic fitted to the lever ball socket - something like that fell out of one of the levers I got, it was on this desk for ages until I throw it out recently, never realised it might actually be a part of it?

mine was like a vey thin beveled ring, pehaps it was an off-cut

Nigel Atkins

Nigel,
Mine uses the standard Sierra gearlever, but shortened by burning off the dense rubber connector that is part way up the stem. It is just an anti-vibration isolating device on standard Sierras, joining the upper and lower sections of the lever. I then heated and straitened the lower portion and tapped a thread on the end to take a normal leather gear knob. As the lever is now so short it has a very quick action but does look a bit odd!

I do have a spare which I intend one day to convert to quick shift without having it quite so short. I plan to do this in much the same way as those expensive "expert specialist" ones, but at zero cost. The principle they use is to raise the pivot point (the plastic sphere) up the gearlever by about 3/8", thus changing the ratio of movement between the top and bottom ends of the lever.

The DIY method is to drive out the locating pin from the sphere. Tap the sphere up the shaft by the required amount and re-drill and re-insert the locating pin. Re-assemble the altered unit to the gearbox extension with some form of packing piece to raise the 3-cornered plate by the same amount. Job done! Makes even the cheapest of those e-bay aftermarket ones look like a rip-off!
Guy

Arh, now , Guy I learnt a bit of what you've put but only after laying myself bare to the 'expert specialist' (you'd think I'd know better at my age but I'm too stupid and trusting)

What I didn't know was that the cannister around the Seirra lever was rubber, it makes sense, to stop rattles

The first lever I had my mate cut down was a bit too long, the second (at my instruction) was a bit too short so next time it'll be spot on, for me

As I said personally, with the 'expert specialist' shortened gearbox the quickshift is a waste as I beat the gear change and 5th is a technique, the original Spridget box is much nicer for changes than the one I have
Nigel Atkins

Just found photo below whilst looking for something else

The (current) gearlever position


Nigel Atkins

This thread was discussed between 09/04/2011 and 12/04/2011

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG Midget and Sprite Technical BBS is active now.