5 speed trans is leaking

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eric4321
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5 speed trans is leaking

Post by eric4321 »

Well I was under the Cabby the other day replacing all the rubber fuel line to fix a fuel leak and my gear box gave me an early Christmas presant. 1 drive axel seal is leaking and so is the selector shaft seal. I decided I am going to drop the trans do a full reseal and change the clutch and rear main seal while I am at it. I know some will call me crazy but I am going to drop the engine and trans together(just got a engine hoist). I am doing this because the elcheapo mounts I put in 2 years ago are already bad and the passenger one is a pain to do with the engine in the car. Now I have heard of people lifting the car over the engine/trans. An old repair manuel says you can use the engine mount boltst as lift points. Is this true or do I need stronger bolts and or a different lift point? Any advice is much welcomed.
My Rabbit Rescue and Recovery Ranch
93 Cabriolet red. 5 speed
81 Rabbit 4 door auto bronze (project)
77 Rabbit 4 dr 4spd diesel
(Project next in line)
1987 Cabriolet parts car(may one day bring her back)
1993 Suburban green(used for Rabbit rescue)
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Briano1234
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Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by Briano1234 »

I would imagine they are strong, but I can't remember when I was in Omaha, the Garage had a steel I beam. I used two 6 inch c clamps clamped to the beam and a 2 ton come-along to raise the car, but I can't for the life of me remember where I attached it to. I think I attached it to the bumper brackets (81 rabbit diesel).

All I know is that I used the come-along to jack the body to get a bunch of blocks under the chassis to get it about 3 foot off the ground. I had the car so jacked that I remember the tail pipe hitting the floor of the garage.
Briano

Yes as matter of fact, I have the Luck o'the Irish...everything I touch turns to fertilizer of the bovine variety.
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eric4321
Posts: 143
Joined: Wed Mar 31, 2010 11:14 pm
What year is your cabby?: 1993
Do you own a Cabriolet?: Yes
Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by eric4321 »

Well I will use this post to update my progress and get advice as I move along on this project. Between the prep work yesterday and today I got the engine and trans droped out of the car. I did this in the drive way so I wouldn't have the low garage limiting how high I could lift the car. I placed the rear wheels on wood blocks and then used the the hoist to drop the engine on to my old creaper. I lifted the car using the engine and trans mount bolts with good results. Next I am going to seperate the engine and trans and check the flywheel and prep the trans for the full reseal.
My Rabbit Rescue and Recovery Ranch
93 Cabriolet red. 5 speed
81 Rabbit 4 door auto bronze (project)
77 Rabbit 4 dr 4spd diesel
(Project next in line)
1987 Cabriolet parts car(may one day bring her back)
1993 Suburban green(used for Rabbit rescue)
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Calimus
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Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by Calimus »

I've always dropped the motor & trans out the bottom. Disconnect everything whit her sitting on the ground, just leave the mounts & axles connected. Then, jack the car up as far as you can and slap the jack stands under the car & drop the axles & shift linkage. I've also found pulling the radiator out makes life a lot easier. Then, hook the engine hoist up and disconnect the engine mounts. Use the hoist to lower the engine & trans down to the floor gently. Then use the hoist to lift the front of the car to the highest point the jack stands can handle. From there, I just pull the engine & trans out from under the front. Sometimes you have to tilt the engine over a bit, but if you take your time, you can get it out without any issue.
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CalAltaDubber
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Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by CalAltaDubber »

Well I did it the other way (seems I always am the odd one out) from the top.

After disconnecting everything, I removed the fuel dizzy. I also had to remove the hood.

I lifted the engine/trans as a single unit and it was the opposite when I re-installed the the engine/trans.

It was a tight fit but it worked.
Phil

'87 Cabriolet, "Topless Bunny"
'88 Cabriolet, "Posh Bunny"
'04 Golf
'12 Golf Wagon TDI
'69 Manx type Dune Buggy (New Toy)

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eric4321
Posts: 143
Joined: Wed Mar 31, 2010 11:14 pm
What year is your cabby?: 1993
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Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by eric4321 »

I thought about lifting it out from the top but I didn't want to remove the hood. How hard is it to get the hood mounted properly? I got the clutch apart and it turns out the pressure plate and the fly wheel are original to the car. The idiot I bought the car from just swaped the disk and that was all. The p plate and fly wheel are all wavey and have pretty blue spots on them. That is what I expected to find when I found all the ways the same jerk sillyconed the intake and exhuast gaskets and reused head bolts when changing the head gasket. Anyway does anyone know if these flywheels can be "machined" or am I better off buying a new one?
My Rabbit Rescue and Recovery Ranch
93 Cabriolet red. 5 speed
81 Rabbit 4 door auto bronze (project)
77 Rabbit 4 dr 4spd diesel
(Project next in line)
1987 Cabriolet parts car(may one day bring her back)
1993 Suburban green(used for Rabbit rescue)
CalAltaDubber
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Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by CalAltaDubber »

It wasn't hard to align the hood. The trick was to make allign marks for the hood and the hinge, before removing the hood.

Since you got it all torn apart anyway, you may as well replace the clutch assy.

I'm not sure if fly wheels can be machined. It might be cheaper to replace.
Phil

'87 Cabriolet, "Topless Bunny"
'88 Cabriolet, "Posh Bunny"
'04 Golf
'12 Golf Wagon TDI
'69 Manx type Dune Buggy (New Toy)

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Calimus
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Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by Calimus »

The flywheel can be machined if it's not warped to hell. Any local machine shop should be able to resurface and re-balance it. I've found no issues re-using the PP if the car had low miles but in your case, I'd just replace it.

As for the rest of the things you've discovered, well, he should have been tared, feathered, dipped in super glue and slapped in an industrial oven. (was that too much?)
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Briano1234
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Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by Briano1234 »

Calimus wrote:The flywheel can be machined if it's not warped to hell. Any local machine shop should be able to resurface and re-balance it. I've found no issues re-using the PP if the car had low miles but in your case, I'd just replace it.

As for the rest of the things you've discovered, well, he should have been tared, feathered, dipped in super glue and slapped in an industrial oven. (was that too much?)
No, you forgot the part about fed exlax, and hung upside down with wire bythe testicals, and given a dull serrated knife.
Briano

Yes as matter of fact, I have the Luck o'the Irish...everything I touch turns to fertilizer of the bovine variety.
You can lead a user to a link, but you can't make him Click.... :screwy:
eric4321
Posts: 143
Joined: Wed Mar 31, 2010 11:14 pm
What year is your cabby?: 1993
Do you own a Cabriolet?: Yes
Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by eric4321 »

As for the rest of the things you've discovered, well, he should have been tared, feathered, dipped in super glue and slapped in an industrial oven. (was that too much?) No, you forgot the part about fed exlax, and hung upside down with wire bythe testicals, and given a dull serrated knife.

LOL!! I am sure we have all had issues with a car at some point that have made us this mad. Anyway not much in the way of work got done on the car with it being Christmas and all but I did order a huge stack of parts from German auto. I opted for the 16 valve pressure plate and the litend flywheel. Maybe a little overkill for my stock engine but I researched the flywheel and it could help with fuel mileage and make the car more fun to drive. I know it makes it harder to get the car moving from a stop but most of my driving is interstate. I hope to start changing seals and throw out bearing and all next Friday.
My Rabbit Rescue and Recovery Ranch
93 Cabriolet red. 5 speed
81 Rabbit 4 door auto bronze (project)
77 Rabbit 4 dr 4spd diesel
(Project next in line)
1987 Cabriolet parts car(may one day bring her back)
1993 Suburban green(used for Rabbit rescue)
User avatar
Briano1234
Whats that smell?
Posts: 4105
Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2005 5:45 am
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Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by Briano1234 »

make a short shifter, or order it from missing linkz, and add a home made weighted billet and you won't believe how much more funner it is to shift.
Briano

Yes as matter of fact, I have the Luck o'the Irish...everything I touch turns to fertilizer of the bovine variety.
You can lead a user to a link, but you can't make him Click.... :screwy:
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Calimus
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Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by Calimus »

Yea, I have a lightened flywheel in the A6 which is awesome on the highway, problem is, my daily commute is an 8 mile round trip and it's all stop & turn, lol. Combine that flywheel with a stage 2 clutch and you get the grabbies when it's cold. Once it all warms up (about the time I get to work and park) it's pretty smooth, lol.
16' Challenger ScatPack
05' Yamaha FJR1300
02' Honda VTX 1800C
eric4321
Posts: 143
Joined: Wed Mar 31, 2010 11:14 pm
What year is your cabby?: 1993
Do you own a Cabriolet?: Yes
Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by eric4321 »

Brian I have ben considering my options for the shifter it is long overdue for a rebuild anyway. I am debating a short throw or the weighted one. I have ben drooling over the URST kit at Germanauto but not sure if it is worth the $$ or not. I am also going to change the engine and trans mounts and I am probably going to get the stage 1 mounts from Black forest industries. I like the fact they are solid and don't need to be pressed in. I bought some cheap mounts 2 years ago and they are already trashed.
My Rabbit Rescue and Recovery Ranch
93 Cabriolet red. 5 speed
81 Rabbit 4 door auto bronze (project)
77 Rabbit 4 dr 4spd diesel
(Project next in line)
1987 Cabriolet parts car(may one day bring her back)
1993 Suburban green(used for Rabbit rescue)
User avatar
Briano1234
Whats that smell?
Posts: 4105
Joined: Mon Mar 21, 2005 5:45 am
What year is your cabby?: 1992
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Location: Duluth, Ga
Contact:

Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by Briano1234 »

Short shifter and a weighted billet go hand in hand.

Now you can spend $$ on the kit.
Or
spend $ at missinglinkz.
http://www.4crawler.com/Diesel/ForSale/ ... kage.shtml

Image


Now here is where you can make your own weighted billet a tad bit cheaper.
viewtopic.php?f=27&t=2056
Briano

Yes as matter of fact, I have the Luck o'the Irish...everything I touch turns to fertilizer of the bovine variety.
You can lead a user to a link, but you can't make him Click.... :screwy:
eric4321
Posts: 143
Joined: Wed Mar 31, 2010 11:14 pm
What year is your cabby?: 1993
Do you own a Cabriolet?: Yes
Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: 5 speed trans is leaking

Post by eric4321 »

Well I am still working on this project. Progress has ben slower than I would like but life happens that way. I have changed all the seals on the trans but 1. The one that is giving me greif is the push rod seal. I have mangled 3 of them trying to get them in properly. The problem is I can not get them to go in evenly. I am thinking about using a large clamp to try to press it in gently. I feal like an idiot because I can't get a tiny seal in properly. Anyone have a way they have used to instal this seal?
My Rabbit Rescue and Recovery Ranch
93 Cabriolet red. 5 speed
81 Rabbit 4 door auto bronze (project)
77 Rabbit 4 dr 4spd diesel
(Project next in line)
1987 Cabriolet parts car(may one day bring her back)
1993 Suburban green(used for Rabbit rescue)
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