The V8 Owners Forum -

I would be grateful for advice please.

I have a Scimitar SE 5A which has had a Rover V8 fitted and a 5 speed box. I assume the engine and box came from an SD1 and that the box is a LT77.

The box spoils driving the car. It is very heavy and notchy to shift and second is always an issue.

I would prefer an auto box, but a manual would be alright if it wanted to change gear.

I would be grateful for advice as to the best solution.

Thanks

John

The R380 is the successor to the LT77, so would be the most logical choice. There are quite a few variants though. If your pocket is deep enough, you could order a 'new' one built to your spec from Ashcroft Transmissions. That would save a lot of searching around to get the right input shaft / gearstick location / ratios etc. etc.

An alternative would be the 4 speed ZF4HP22 automatic transmission, but the V8 bellhousing is very long, so the overall assembly is very long too. But it's a great box.

The SD1 auto transmissions are 3 speed, with top gear being 1:1. They had very tall back axles to compensate (2.8:1 I think) ?

Chris.

Thank you. I have been in contact with Ashcroft but they say they do not sell an R380 for two wheel drive.

Another thing to try is replace the bushes that hold the gearstick extension on. My gear-change got noticeably better after I spent a bit of time changing them and cleaning that area up.

Regards,
David

jgbff7 wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 18, 2023 10:43 am

I would be grateful for advice please.

I have a Scimitar SE 5A which has had a Rover V8 fitted and a 5 speed box. I assume the engine and box came from an SD1 and that the box is a LT77.

The box spoils driving the car. It is very heavy and notchy to shift and second is always an issue.

I would prefer an auto box, but a manual would be alright if it wanted to change gear.

I would be grateful for advice as to the best solution.

Thanks

John

Sounds like you have the wrong oil in it. Drain it out and refill with a mixture of white spirit and Redline MTL, then run the engine for a minute or so (don't drive it, just run the engine). Drain again and let it drain overnight, then refill with neat Redline MTL. Mine was terrible when I first got it, (4L P6 with an LT77), and actually felt like I was stirring a pan of potatoes, but now it's a right slick shifter.

scudderfish wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 20, 2023 6:02 am

Another thing to try is replace the bushes that hold the gearstick extension on. My gear-change got noticeably better after I spent a bit of time changing them and cleaning that area up.

Regards,
David

I made up some Aluminium bushings for mine which did improve it, possibly increases NVH a bit but on my car that's hardly an issue!
Also used an oil combination recommended on Piston Heads I think which was a combination of engine oil and moly-slip IIRC, certainly improved it but I eventually changed for an R380, much better and hopefully more future-proof but still a bit slow on gearchanges compared to some modern 'boxes. The fact I'm using a short stick probably amplifies this