Classic
Classic gearbox rebuilds and reconditioning
Ribcase A-series, Ford Type E, Viva, Triumph, MG, Jaguar, Land Rover. Rebuilt properly. Cases crack tested, laygear endfloat set with new thrust washers, new bearings and seals throughout, and shimmed the way the factory manual says rather than the way that’s quickest.
12 month warranty
Classic gearboxes fail in predictable ways. Second-gear synchro goes first on almost everything. Layshaft thrust washers wear and let the laygear walk about. Bearings rumble in neutral. It jumps out of second on the overrun. None of it is mysterious, and almost none of it needs a replacement gearbox.
The problem is finding someone who still does it. Most of these boxes have no service information in circulation, no parts on a supplier catalogue, and nobody under fifty who has stripped one. We hold pattern and new old stock parts for the common families, and where a gear or a shaft isn’t available we’ll source it, repair it, or have it made.
We work on original-spec restorations and on competition builds. Straight-cut close-ratio gear sets, dog engagement, uprated bearings, limited slip differentials. Tell us what the car is for and we’ll build the box to suit it.
What a classic rebuild includes
Complete strip and clean. Case crack tested. All bearings, bushes, oil seals and gaskets replaced. Baulk rings and synchro hubs assessed and renewed as needed. Laygear thrust washers renewed and endfloat set to specification. Selector forks and detent mechanism checked. Reassembled, shifted through every gear on the bench, and warranted for 12 months.
Ford
Type E “Rocket”, Type 9 five-speed, Type 1, Type 2, Type 3, the 2000E “Bullet” box and the MT75. Fitted to Anglia, Cortina, Capri, Escort, Sierra and Granada, and used as the donor for a large share of the UK’s kit cars and five-speed conversions.
BMC A-series
In-line boxes for the Morris Minor, Austin A35, A40 Farina, Austin-Healey Sprite and MG Midget, plus the transverse in-sump gearbox used across the Mini range. Three-synchro and all-synchro, smoothcase and ribcase.
Vauxhall Viva
| Vehicle | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Viva HA | 1963–1966 | Four-speed, no synchro on first |
| Viva HB | 1966–1970 | All-synchro |
| Viva HC | 1970–1979 | All-synchro |
| Firenza / Magnum | 1971–1975 | |
| Chevette | 1975–1984 | |
| Bedford HA van | 1964–1983 |
Scroll the table sideways to see every column.
Small, light and strong enough for a 1,600cc special, which made the Viva box the default choice for a generation of kit car builders. If you’ve got a Dutton, a Marlin, a Ginetta or a locost, there’s a fair chance there’s a Viva box in it, and a fair chance nobody has been inside it since 1978.
Common faults: worn synchro rings and hubs, jumping out of gear on worn forks and weak detents, layshaft bearing and thrust washer wear, worn remote linkage, worn reverse idler and shaft, tailhousing oil seal.
Triumph
Herald, Vitesse, Spitfire, GT6, TR4 to TR6 and Dolomite, with and without overdrive. Note that the MG Midget 1500 uses the Spitfire gearbox rather than the A-series box, a common mix-up when buying secondhand.
MG
MGA, MGB three-synchro and all-synchro, and Midget. Overdrive units rebuilt alongside.
Jaguar
Moss box, the all-synchro four-speed, and Borg Warner automatics across the XK, E-Type, Mk2, XJ6 and XJS.
Rover and Land Rover
LT77, LT77S and R380 as fitted to the SD1, Land Rover, TVR and Morgan. Series four-speed boxes, LT95, and the LT230 transfer box.
Laycock overdrive
A-type, D-type, J-type and LH-type units rebuilt. Solenoid, pump, clutch, seals and hydraulics. Very few people still do these.
Classic automatics
Borg Warner 35, 65 and 66, and the GM 180. Almost nobody rebuilds these. We do.
Competition and uprated builds
Straight-cut close-ratio gear sets, dog engagement, needle-roller conversions, uprated bearings, alloy casings and alternative input shaft lengths for engine conversions. We build for road, sprint, hillclimb, circuit and historic racing where the box has to stay period-correct.
Not sure what you’ve got?
Photograph the casting numbers and the identification plate and send them over. Between the markings, the plate and the car, we can nearly always identify it.
What will it cost?
We price a classic gearbox rebuild once we know which unit you have and what it is doing. Send us the gearbox number and the symptoms and you will have an answer the same working day, with an indicative price wherever we can give one.
Related
How it works
Sending us a unit
You don’t need to bring the car. Most of what we do arrives on a pallet.
- Drain it. Couriers won’t take a unit full of oil, and it’ll leak.
- Crate or pallet it. A gearbox needs to be strapped to a pallet or in a stout crate. A cardboard box won’t survive.
- Label it. Put your name, telephone number and the vehicle inside the packaging as well as on it. Labels come off in transit.
- Tell us it’s coming. Send the enquiry form first so we know what to expect and can book it in.
We can arrange collection anywhere in mainland UK. Ask when you enquire.
What happens next
- 01You send the enquiry.
- 02We come back the same working day with an initial view and, where we can, an indicative price.
- 03If it needs looking at, we book it in or arrange collection.
- 04We strip and assess, then ring you with a firm price before any work goes ahead.
- 05Rebuilt, tested, returned, warranted for 12 months.
No work happens without your say-so, and there are no surprises on the invoice.
Same working day
Send us the number and what it’s doing
The gearbox number, the vehicle and the symptoms. That is usually enough for a straight answer, and photographs are welcome.