another gear change problem

[tricky12 0]

just fitted a pnm gear change mod to my 88 model and also fitted a new nylon bush to the inhibitor block.

can now select all forward gears fab however when i select reverse the stick wont stay over and jumps back down to the lower plane.

is this down to the translator rod adjustment or something else.

any ideas anyone

[Bibs 11,383]

Is it ok with 2nd and 4th? If not, perhaps the rod ends need shortening to get it into you into reverse more 'solidly'? Make sure you're in the 3rd/4th plane and the stick about 10 degrees rearwards from neutral when you set the translator up.

[Artie 6]

Check the rod ends as Bibs points out, at the translator. Sometimes these are overlooked and if the fabric bushing inside the rod ends is gone then there is enough play to prevent selection of Reverse.

Artie

[OwenGT3 184]

Hi,

Last Saturday I had gear change problems, I was then on my way to see Andy C when the car did the dreaded cable pop off and I lost gear selection! What was made worse was this was on a slight hill coming up to traffic lights, the only gear I could select was 3rd, so I tried to keep the cars momentum going, nearly jumping the read lights keeping the car coasting (why do things always seem to take longer when you are in a hurry?).

Anyway, got home again and then had the trouble of getting the car in the drive, which I finally did with the help of some neighbours pushing as well. Afterwards I had a look and indeed the 1st and 2nd gear cable had popped off from the translator, I could have perhaps popped it back on looking back, but it got home, so not to worry, perhaps shortened the clutches life a little, but apart from that no other problems.

I got some new ends and some new bearings from a local stockist, but this time I got stainless, so fitted all new parts on Tuesday evening, not a bad job, did it all from underneath and gear selection has improved ten times. I got the hole type as this was all they sold, but in a way found these to be better as the thread actually has some to stick through the translator as I could fit what size bolt I wanted, also I added a nut to make the sholder for the step off away from the translator, and the spring washers were added so the bolt heads didn't hit the rose joint body. I have steel plated bolts for now, but will fit some stainless bolts later in the year.

Now I've fixed the back it's made me aware of a fault at the front with the gear lever, only a minor one, but one that still needed fixing. I found that the inhibitor was over too far, so instead of the gear lever using the inhibitor as a guide to select first and second, it was going too far and hitting sold metal in the box as it wasn't lined up correctly. I put this move down to the age of the car, 12 years of a gear lever slamming into the inhibitor is going to move it over time, but the slackness of the rear didn't really show the fault up. Everything has now been fixed and the inhibitor is in the correct place, I just wish Lotus made more room in the gear lever hole to get a spanner in, in the end I had to bend a swan neck spanner to get it to fit on the nuts and tighten up.

test drives tomorrow. The cost was

Edited January 30, 2009 by OwenGT3

[Bibs 11,383]

My entire gearchange has recently been replaced, from the stick to the box and it makes a big difference! My translator was shot, the front mech was in pieces and the cables were melted! It's as good as a new car now