I have a problem with my Series V Syncro gearbox.
I had the gearbox rebuilt several years ago. The guy who rebuilt it told me that it had the wrong first gear shifter fork (he said it was from the gearbox of some other sportscar and he handed it to me). I figured, OK, good to know, the guy knew what he was doing replacing it. I drove it for a while (just a Sunday driver) and a problem occurred. When in first gear, starting from a stop, the rotational force from the engine did something in the gearbox that caused it to pop out of gear. The "pop out" was quite forceful. Anticipating that it would pop out of gear I tried to hold it in first gear, but I could not hold it in first gear. So I drove having to start from a stop using second gear. And, of course, downshifting from second to first obtained the same result, it popped forcefully out of first gear. Since this occurred quite a while after the "rebuild", I figured taking it back to the guy who rebuilt it was a nonstarter considering what he told me about the first gear shifter fork and what was happening with first gear, I did not trust him.
So eventually I parked the car and it has just sat for years (yea, it is basically a barn find, but it is found in my garage).
I want to restore my Series V (I brought it new in 1967 and it is a hero). I prefer to keep it "original". I do not want to do a transmission conversion. I have looked into the Conversion Components company in New Zealand, but it doesn't seem to be particularly easy to do, particularly with help would require communicating with New Zealand.
Does anyone have an idea why the gearbox pops out of first gear and what needs to be done to fix it?
Although I do not know what exactly is causing the problem, it is obvious that the gearbox needs some sort of rebuild.
Unfortunately, I have not been able to find a gearbox repair shop in the San Francisco Bay area that has Alpine gearbox experience. This "experience" involves the ability to determine what is wrong, determine what is worn and needs to be replaced, be able to obtain the necessary replacement parts, and do a quality rebuild.
Can anyone recommend a reputable gearbox repair shop? Anywhere. I would be willing to pack it up and ship it to where it could be fixed.
I had the gearbox rebuilt several years ago. The guy who rebuilt it told me that it had the wrong first gear shifter fork (he said it was from the gearbox of some other sportscar and he handed it to me). I figured, OK, good to know, the guy knew what he was doing replacing it. I drove it for a while (just a Sunday driver) and a problem occurred. When in first gear, starting from a stop, the rotational force from the engine did something in the gearbox that caused it to pop out of gear. The "pop out" was quite forceful. Anticipating that it would pop out of gear I tried to hold it in first gear, but I could not hold it in first gear. So I drove having to start from a stop using second gear. And, of course, downshifting from second to first obtained the same result, it popped forcefully out of first gear. Since this occurred quite a while after the "rebuild", I figured taking it back to the guy who rebuilt it was a nonstarter considering what he told me about the first gear shifter fork and what was happening with first gear, I did not trust him.
So eventually I parked the car and it has just sat for years (yea, it is basically a barn find, but it is found in my garage).
I want to restore my Series V (I brought it new in 1967 and it is a hero). I prefer to keep it "original". I do not want to do a transmission conversion. I have looked into the Conversion Components company in New Zealand, but it doesn't seem to be particularly easy to do, particularly with help would require communicating with New Zealand.
Does anyone have an idea why the gearbox pops out of first gear and what needs to be done to fix it?
Although I do not know what exactly is causing the problem, it is obvious that the gearbox needs some sort of rebuild.
Unfortunately, I have not been able to find a gearbox repair shop in the San Francisco Bay area that has Alpine gearbox experience. This "experience" involves the ability to determine what is wrong, determine what is worn and needs to be replaced, be able to obtain the necessary replacement parts, and do a quality rebuild.
Can anyone recommend a reputable gearbox repair shop? Anywhere. I would be willing to pack it up and ship it to where it could be fixed.
