'72 Shift linkage lube

[Chippy]

My big question is whether to grease the ball end on #21, which sits inside #2.

 

Being that it's not enclosed in anything, grease seems like a great way to trap dirt and wear parts out, but what do I know...

 

 

 

 

[paulyg]

The big-deal wear is the dowel/shear pin and the corresponding hole in the shift rod. Not much you can do about that. 

 

This entire shift platform design (both 4 speed and 5 speed) is total crap. Re-habbing them takes them from "sloppy" to "vague," which is unfortunately a lateral move. 

 

I ran into a retired guy in the grocery store parking lot who sold 2002s new to people who cared. There apparently were folks who would swap Alfa transmissions into the '02s for sport. The Alfa 105 series has a more traditional integrated shift platform at the rear of the trans case. Apparently folks were racing '02s and losing to Alfas because even with the advantage of independent rear suspension, right out of the factory the stock shifter was awkward and slow. 

 

If I become jaded enough and stick with the 2002, I may think about engineering a Miata 6 speed trans swap. 

[TobyB]

Quote

. Apparently folks were racing '02s and losing to Alfas because

Alfa actively supported racing, had aftermarket racing parts available via Europe,

and Horst Kwech, was actually competing*

with Datsun's "we swear it's not factory" Pete Brock

team for the under 2 liter Trans Am in the first couple of '70s.

 

BMW would let you buy a 2002 from Max, but then you were pretty much on your own for... well, everything.

 

The shifter was down about the bottom of your concerns.

 

Yep, it's a 'production car' shifter, since the 2002 was BMW's attempt to mass produce a better VW Beetle and

save themselves from receivership.  So all SORTS of corners were cut all the way around, from 

the front suspension through the transmission to the rear fenders. 

But it worked; BMW is still actively competing in the 'upscale bland'

consumer market today.

 

As to getting the stock bits to work well, reaming the hole in the trans out to a slightly larger size and fitting

a bigger pin goes a LONG way towards fixing the lateral slop.  I DO grease that pin-

but I agree, a boot over it would really help to keep grit out.

If you went full bollocks, it would be almost trivial to fit a tight- tolerance u- joint there in place of the pin.

www,pegasusautoracing.com

 

But the internals of the transmission are still what they are.

 

FWIW, a proper racing transmission isn't all gunbolt smooth and shit- what it DOES is got the right ratios in it,

and is semi- disposable in the dogs, so it shifts very fast at the cost of longevity. 

But TransAm required a stockish transmission, so Alfa and Datsun

just made lots of alternative gearsets available in the aftermarket.

 

This car's really another German attempt at a VW Beetle- or maybe, if we're fair, a Type 3:

they wanted to make money on each one, and make lots of them.  

As opposed to losing a bit on each handmade chassis...

 

t

*if Alfa as a factory had really supported Horst, U2 would have been a one- season

romp, and then died out.  Horst was pretty much sponsoring the whole Alfa campaign,

whereas Brock had lots and lots of 'factory interest'.  The Stainless Steel Carrot's been reissued maybe?

[gwb72tii]

ream what hole in the tranny Toby? for the selector rod?

[TobyB]

Oh, I'm not touching THAT question with a 50 foot pole! 

 

Yeah, ream the hole in the selector rod and the cup, too, to whatever 

'next size up' is a really tight fit.  

 

t