Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Roadster 3.0 litre transmission noise

Help please!
I am currently touring in Portugal in my 2007 Roadster 3.0 litre. As we came off the ferry in Santander (Spain) in torrential rain last Saturday I was travelling very cautiously down the ramps but despite my care a nasty metal up stand (hinge or something) hit the underside of the car. I am not sure where it hit, there was traffic behind and in front of me and virtually no visibility what with rain and fogged up windows. The underside bump was quite significant but I was travelling very slowly.
On the first left hand bend that I came to after getting off the wharf there was a loud and peculiar vibration/rubbing noise that seemed to be coming from the the left side of the transmission tunnel. The same noise has occurred on just about every left hand bend that I accelerate into for the last 1000 miles. The noise sounds like the tail shaft rubbing on the tunnel, sort of like the outermost edges of a universal joint touching on the sides of the tunnel. I am not sure what is going on or even if there is a universal joint under there. I am not very mechanical, I am just trying to explain the noise in the hope that someone can suggest what it might be.
The obvious thing to do would be to put the car up on a hoist and have a look to see if there is any visible rubbing spot. I just have not seen a single hoist as we have travelled the quiet country roads of Spain and Portugal and having none of the language have not felt inspired to go in search of a ramp and the problems of trying to make myself understood.
Apart from the noise the car is going and behaving really well. The noise may or may not be related to the underside bump the timing certainly suggests some connection.
I have had a look at the sump which is one of the likely points to be bumped. There is no obvious sign of the sump having been bumped.
Has any one got any thoughts as to what is going on. By the way I am an Australian, I have owned the car for about 14 months and i keep it in Wales, we have done about 6,000 miles in it, it has only done 12,500 all together.
I love it, and am planning to ship it to Australia next year.

The sump is the most vulnerable point on a Roadster and it is made of aluminium which can crack easily. There may be a small crack that was not visible to you when you looked. You need to check your engine oil level to make sure you have not lost some or all of it. It sounds as though you need to get your car on a ramp for a thorough underside inspection as soon as possible.

Plus one for the ramp, sounds like you could have damaged the gearbox mount, and you have moment when you corner. But this is all supposition, you need to check it out asap.

I suugest that you get the car inspected on a ramp asap. The damage may be minor and you have simply dislodged someting or it could be much more serious.

In the absence of a ramp, I suggest that you find a steep curb or similar to raise the car sufficiently to crawl underneath making sure that the car is in a safe position away from traffic and with the handbrake on and in first or reverse gear and with the ignition keys removed.

Risking a little dirt on your clothes is a better option that finding that you've dome more damage by igniring the problem.

It should be fairly obvious if you have cracked the sump as you'll have oil on it....and if the noise is down to loss of oil I'd have thought the engine would have protested a while ago! As Cain suggests, the gearbox crossmember may well have been hit...it is pretty robust though. Another part that can get hit is the bell housing just behind the sump. There is a universal joint at the tail end of the propshaft but that is fairly tucked up in the transmission tunnel and I wouldn't have thought it would have been hit.
Good luck in sorting the problem

Since I had the MulFab sump fitted the only time the car grounds is if the gearbox cross member hits: it now has a slightly abraded lower edge...

As Jay says, there isn't much else exposed and it is hard to think what might be causing the symptoms described. My only thought, and it is a wild card play, is that the gear box cross member has cracked on the side where it joins the chassis rail, allowing the gear box to move when turning and so setting up vibration in the prop shaft. But I cannot believe that one bang would do that, there must have been pre-existing damage.

Thanks a lot fellers for all your suggestions and good advice. I got the front end of the car up on a steep driveway which gave me crawl space under the area that I need to have a look at. There was nothing untoward to be seen. So I am none the wiser however I am happier now that I can see that there is no major damage. I will contact the Morgan dealer in Lisbon and see if they can have a look at it.
Thanks Again
Tim

In reply to your specific question, there are two Universal joints, one at the rear of the gearbox and the other at the front of the rear axle differential. Since you refer to the sound of joints rubbing, it is possible that the transmission tunnel has been displaced enough to rub when a sideways load shifts the rear axle slightly under cornering loads. On my 4/4 the tunnel is made from quite thin steel and it should be possible to bend it out of the way for full repair when you return to the UK. You may be able to detect this by feeling along the tunnel from the inside of the car, but certainly the first thing to look for is any fluids beneath the car after standing, in case there is more major damage as mentioned above.
Best of luck with this, and really sorry to hear that your adventure is being marred. Keep us informed of progress

This email crossed with your reply above - good to hear it's not too serious

You may be able to detect this by feeling along the tunnel from the inside. Lift the transmission leather and run your fingers along it whilst checking that there is no obvious misalignment of the screws or the lip where it meets the floor boards. cubierto del barco will suffice for garage ramp in Spanish.

Hi,
Reading down the thread it appears that all the mechanical side of things is fine , therefore I would look elsewhere.

If the bump did not hit the sump or the gearbox cross member I wonder if it has hit a seat mounting bolt, or two. This may may giving enough play in the seat to touch the transmission tunnel, and therefore give momentary contact with the prop shaft. I doubt that anything serious is going to happen by continuing to drive it , but do get it checked soonest.

I would keep a very close eye on the oil level though. As others have said the sump is the most vulnerable point of a Roadster and even a small knock can initiate trouble.

Good luck , having a niggling problem can be distracting at the best of times , doubly so when on holiday , so try to enjoy the holiday. Mogs are quite tough and it will come through it.