Hi Snoopy, Fran and Andy

I am well impressed how well this board works.

I can so some photos when the weather dries up. 

What happened to summarise again, the gearbox was repaired by the local Milton Keynes experts who are pretty good, but they could not work out how to fit the engine back in, early twenties, no idea, never seen a car like this before, makes me laugh, really.  So the clutch must have been put back in wrong or some sort of clip might have been broken as you said Andy.  Now my situation is I am having a tow bar fitted Wednesday and probably will shoot over to mainland Europe to buy up a trailor.  Then, at long last, I should be in a position to deliver my buggy to anyone who can help me with this.

Basically the job is to take out the engine, see what damage they did in fitting it back in after they did the gearbox, source any spare parts of anything they damaged and that should get it on the road again. 

The engine was running a year ago when I tuned it successfully and the buggy was on the road minus reverse gear, which was repaired.   

Regards Matthew

You seem well sorted on the plans and guessing that your gearbox is pre 1972 it may be worth sourcing a clutch operating fork assembly if it is as they can break. I have some clutch bearing retaining clips you can have any how. CAn do the job with you if you want a day out then trailer it home after unless you have a local helper I do not have a clutch fork assembly  if that has failed. Can mail you 2 clips if you want them.

Snoopy the engine is a superbeetle from around 72, so I shall climb under the buggy when the rain stops and do a couple of pics.  Thanks for the offer. 

The gearbox front mtg is a good guide oval rubber with 2 vertical chassis studs and 3 bolts through box is 72 on flat square mtgs are pre 72 but nose cones will interchange as will clutch forks.

Glad you know your stuff, that is brilliant. Can you tell from these photos, 1972 onwards? 

The symptons are as follows.  Clutch depressed the engine runs, but raising the clutch into whatever gear gives tremendous resistance.  So the buggy would nudge forwards slowly, but the resistance is not at all comensurate with the forward movement.  So my guess is that there is something internal to the clutch or the way it was (incorrectly) put back together that causes the resistance.  This problem was not there before the gearbox was fixed. The buggy is completely undrivable due to this.  For me to open it up would not  be enough, as I have never done this before and have no experience as such.  This is where I hope your extra pair of eyes would probably pick up on what is going. They must have damaged something as the guys spent half a day trying to fit the engine back in.  It is only a few bolts, I know that should be simple but only for those who know how.

I am very suspicous of the yellow plate.  That was not there before they fixed the gearbox.

Pics attached.

Clutch

To be fair, it is not just 4 bolts to remove the gearbox, I realise now looking at it again. I think the whole thing has to come out and looked at to see what might be going on there.

Those yellow spacers in the second picture might not belong there either. I believe this part of the engine is supposed to hand loose to absorb vibrations not be stuck in place like that?  I hope that didn't cause new damage.

At least the cat enjoys pride of place on the bonnet.

hang loose

The yellow mounts are heavy duty item. So the engine runs with the thing in neutral and in gear with the clutch down but boggs down when you raise the clutch pedal but it does not move frowards or backwards. Is there a brake stuck on meaning it will not drive would be worth making sure it pushes easily.

If the drive takes up and stops on the clutch pedal the linkage and bearing is working. Makes you wonder if they did the box correctly.


You could try putting it in top gear and pushing the buggy forwards to see if the drive turns then engine over.

I am finding that I need quite a bit of strength to push it in neutral so in gear at the minute I can't shift it. Perhaps there is a small glimmer of hope that it is just a seized rear brake. I shall jack it up and see if the rear wheels turn. Thanks for the tip. That would be quite something if that was all it was.

afraid wheels do turn

That does not look good for the gearbox if it will not push in top gear, it will not be fast but it should push one handed.

I can see good advice going on here and I can say for absolute certainity...................................that cat is definitely a post '73 model

Have sent you a PM Matthew happy to pop over sometime and take a nosey. Will probably need to be one eve during the week.

Cheers

Fran