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Gearbox
[ 120Y gearbox |
Sunny 5 speed gearbox |
Toyota 5 speed gearbox |
gearstick bushes ]
Installing a 120Y gearbox
A 120Y gearbox can easily be installed into a Datsun 1200. Second hand
120Y gearboxes are easier to obtain than 1200 gearboxes.
There are several minor differences between a 120Y gearbox and a 1200 gearbox.
- The gearbox cross-member is different, so you will need to use your
1200 cross-member.
- The bolts used to attach the dustshield to the lower half of the bell housing
are a different size, so get the 120Y dustshield and bolts if you can.
- The hole in the bell housing where the clutch cable goes through is larger
on the 120Y gearbox. This can be rectified by using a 120Y clutch cable.
An easier alternative is to make up a washer with an internal diameter equal
to that of the hole in the 1200 gearbox, and use this when fitting the 1200
clutch cable onto the 120Y gearbox.
According to Mikko, if you have a LHD Datsun 1200 with
hydraulic clutch, you will have no problems with the clutch, although
the slave cylinder will have to be adjusted. The method for adjusting the
slave cylinder is as follows:
1. release the locknut on slave cylinder rod
2. Turn the adjusting nut so that it becomes further from the slave cylinder.
Continue rotating the nut until the release lever is pressed against the
release bearing and any free movement has been eliminated.
3. Now turn the adjusting nut back 1 1/4 turns and secure it in position
with locknut.
- The 120Y gearbox may have another switch (in addition to the reverse switch,
and closer to the bell housing). This switch can be ignored, as it is used
on the 120Y for pollution control.
Installing a Sunny 5-speed gearbox
A 5-speed gearbox from a Datsun Sunny wagon will fit into a 1200. However,
these 5-speed gearboxes are rather rare, and hard to come by. As a result,
they are also quite expensive. A 4-speed 120Y gearbox can be had for about
$150-$200, while a 5-speed would cost you about $500 or more (if you can
find one).
The Sunny 5-speed will bolt straight onto a Datsun A-series block (A12 or A14),
but the reversing switch will have to be removed, as it gets in the way of the
gearbox mounts. A crossmember will also have to be fabricated, as the
mounts on the 5-speed gearbox are in a different position.
Installing a Toyota 5 speed gearbox
Andrew has let me know that Dellow make a kit to fit
a Toyota speed gearbox into a Datsun 1200. You can use a 2t or 3t split
case Toyota 5 speed gearbox, out of a RWD Sprinter and some other Toyota
small cars.
The top of the transmission tunnel needs massaging with a large hammer, and
the hole is about 40mm back from the standard gearstick. The old side
mounts for the Datsun gearbox have to be cut out, and a new crossmember
made. Andrew made his out of 40x6 mild steel, with
a few holes to bolt to the mounts and the floor. You need sandwich plates
for the top of te floor so that the bolts don't pull through.
5-speed Toyota gearbox
Glenn has got a steel case Celica 5 speed gearbox in
his Datsun 1200. He made a custom bellhousing out of the original bellhousing,
and welded an adapter plate to it. The gearstick still comes out of the
original hole. He had to modify the flywheel so the input shaft would fit into
it, and he replaced the clutch with an 8 inch slimline clutch instead of the
standard 7 inch clutch. He used a custom crossmember, and welded a new
tailshaft yoke to the original tailshaft.
Ben has supplied details of a Celica 5 speed gearbox
conversion. Dellow Engineering in Sydney supply a Celica 5 speed conversion
for the Datsun A series. The kit contains a reconditioned gearbox, new
bellhousing, clutch setup which uses your old cable and peddle box, and they
even supply the front uni joint for the tailshaft so you can have your
tailshaft modified to suit.
It will still require some work to massage the tunnel and the gearbox mounts,
but it is a great way to improve the strength and shift action of the gearbox
with an A series engine.
Justin recently did a Toyota 5 speed conversion in
his Datsun 1200 coupe, using a Dellow kit, from Dellow in Sydney.
Dellow supplied a Toyota Celica LT-3 5 speed gearbox, and a custom bellhousing.
The kit also came with a sintered bronze bush, which had to be hammered into
the back of the flywheel, to fit the new gearbox. They also supplied a
tailshaft uni-joint (which wasn't replaceable, so Justin had to send it back
for another one). After measuring the required tailshaft length, Justin had
the uni-joint welded onto his original tailshaft, and had the tailshaft
balanced.
In addition, he had to get the original thrust race bored out, and the nose
cone on the new gearbox ground down to fit it. Dellow supplied a grooved ring,
which was fitted with some difficulty. The ring holds the original clutch fork.
Dellow also supplied an adjustable clutch pin, with no specifications as to how
far it must be screwed in, so it was a matter of looking at the setup, and
fitting and removing the gearbox several times to get it right!
The gearstick is supplied, but comes out of the floor about 40 mm further back
than the original. Justin managed to find a cross member which fitted
perfectly, but had to get his exhaust slightly modified to fit around it.
The original dust cover bolts didn't fit the bellhousing (they were too small),
and Justin had to bore out a large washer to fit into the bellhousing hole
where the clutch cable runs through, because the hole was too large.
As I had exactly the same problems when I first fitted a 4 speed 120Y gearbox to
my 1200, it sounds like Dellow have based their bellhousing on a 120Y gearbox,
rather than a 1200 gearbox.
The cost was: $400 for the gearbox, $425 for the conversion kit, $50
postage, $30 for nose cone & thrust race machining, $80 for a tailshaft balance,
and $45 to get the uni-joint welded to the tailshaft.
Installing new bushes on your gearstick
Is the gearstick on your Datsun very sloppy, and does it rattle when you are
driving around? If so, then you probably need a new set of bushes for your
gearstick. If the bushes are stuffed (they usually crack, and then
disintergrate), then replacing the bushes will remove lots of slop and make
changing gears a lot more enjoyable.
It is not at all hard to replace the gearstick bushes on a Datsun.
You can get genuine replacement bushes from Nissan, but they will cost about
$15-$20 dollars for a pair.
To replace the bushes, you will need to remove your gearstick knob (usually it
will just twist off), and then remove the gearstick boot (the rubber thing
covering up the hole in the floor of the car where the gearstick comes through).
If your car has a center console between the front seats, you may have to
remove this too.
Once the gearstick boot is off, you should be able to see the top of the gearbox
through the hole in the floor. There should be another smaller rubber boot
at the base of the gear stick, which needs to be removed.
Remove the E clip (circlip) and the pin retaining the gear stick to the control
assembly, and remove the gearstick.
You can then insert your new bushes into the hole in the
base of the gearstick (one in each side). The gearstick can then be replaced,
along with the boot, knob, etc.
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