Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Roadster S1 Sump....SiFab replacement

Initially I was going to bump my original Sump investigations thread, but it became untidy after the Photobucket debacle. Anyway it's here and I reposted the photos.

http://www.talkmorgan.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/43365/7

Today I found some garage time and decided to replace my original sump (with only one grounding over 14 years) with a modified sump from Sifab.

Here it is looking very shiny. I did an oil test just to be certain there were no porous sections and it was fine.





While I was underneath I examined the gearbox mounting (more about this soon) and checked the gearstick linkage. Note the white nylon ball, which was quite dry, so I applied some squirty grease. Note also the slight spatter of grease from the front U/J. This arrangement is the Getrag gearbox, Series 1 Roadster only.



Removing the sump is straightforward. I had previously removed the bolts and lubricated the threads, so they all came out easily. Care is needed on the back pair, which are recessed and close to the hole in the bellhousing at 6 o'clock. You don't want a bolt getting inside the bellhousing! There was some evidence of dark fragments contaminating the oil, but not so bad.



On the front corners only, silicon sealer had been used, and had squeezed out of the seam, hanging over into the sump, which isn't great. this was presumably applied because the front timing cover meets the engine block at this point. I decided not to apply sealant here, but a smear of grease all the way round on the replacement sump.If it leaks I'll drop it and try something else. There were traces of sealant on the engine block mating face which came off easily with a Stanley knife. I decided to re-use the rubber seal. I expected it to be a simple round neoprene section but it's a lot more sophisticated than that!



Here is the business end. Note the hole in the bellhousing plate. This is very exposed to the elements and I fitted a cover plate early on in my Roadster ownership. If you go through a ford in a 3.0 Roadster you will get water coming into the bellhousing, which is not good.





What's this bit of wire sticking down? I wondered...................



My bellhousing cover plate. I kept all the bolts in order, cleaned and applied Coppaslip before refitting, and tightened slowly and evenly. The bolt holes in the sump have a nylon type insert, which allows slight movement. Before final tightening, I nipped up the one bolt which pulls the sump towards the bellhousing plate. This is at the bottom, offside.



This is how it looks now behind my deflector plate, which caused such consternation when I first fitted it!



This is not the end of this project. I have already spaced the engine mountings a few mm, and my plan is to increase this, and to also add a spacer to the gearbox mounting, which I now have a plan for.

At the end I'll note the before and after clearance. So far it's been an easy job, but you never know!