Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Morgan Three Wheeler & Super 3 Stick on soft leather pad for transmission tunnel

My M3W is a left hand drive model. Where the outside of my right knee rattles against the stitched in roll on the leather cover of the transmission tunnel, due to loss of my padding over the last three years of illness, my right knee is getting quite sore. This is also, as my right knee is metal and the lateral ligament bears directly onto the metal prosthesis and it is the ligament that is getting inflamed. I have padded my left knee with a wrap of thermal pipe insulation where I cut a quarter out of the circumference and that slid perfectly over the top main chassis tube, but of course, that is pretty much out of sight. A pad for the tunnel would be very much in view. I was thinking of something like the small leather covered pad on a Jaguar XK150, which sits behind the gear lever stitched to the carpet and padded one's elbow from striking the tunnel, when turning a sharp corner but maybe a bit thinner, so that it could attach to the side of the tunnel. It would preferably be self adhesive although I do have at least two rolls of different double sided sticky tape.

Any suggestions folk.

Wilson

Discomfort with the factory transmission tunnel, which is uselessly oversized, IMHO, led me to fabricate a closer fitting tunnel that adds loads of room to the interior. I posted on this some years ago, but can't find that post, as it appears it was part of a thread someone else had created. In any case, see the attached photos which show the GRP cover I fabbed, before it received its final finish coat of medium gray hammerite. Note I also relocated the shifter forward (as all later cars) by removing the somewhat bizarre shifter relocation mechanism that Morgan appended to Mazda gearbox.

Nice job Bits O'.
I'm reminded of the Morgan Park narrow transmission tunnel:

Yes, a narrow and lower (at the rear at least) gearbox cover makes so much more sense in such a small vehicle.

I am pretty skinny particularly after three years of fighting cancer (successful crossed fingers), chemotherapy etc, weighing just 63kg for a height of 1. 73M. I really don't know how larger people fit in an M3W, as I find attaching the seatbelt quite difficult. I am not going as far as remaking the transmission tunnel, as I shall probably be selling my French house in the next year or so and the M3W may go as well, although I might get it trucked back to the UK (it remains UK registered). For the time being, I will just tape some pipe insulation over the tunnel stitched roll in the leather. Not pretty but practical.

Thanks for the suggestion of the slim tunnel guys.

Wilson

Wilson, an easy mod to help with the belts is swap out the current super short receptacle for a longer one. They are available from seat belt suppliers in various lengths. The ones I fitted are about 18cm long, and make it so much easier to 'buckle up'. I think I've posted photos somewhere here on the forum. I bought mine in the U.S. but there are British suppliers, at least, that sell similar.

https://www.seatbeltplanet.com/images/F198645978

Whether changing the bolted in receptacle or using clip in extenders check they are for a Type A tongue (21mm) and NOT a Type B which is 25mm

Thanks guys for the seat belt extension idea. Most of my problem is that I have very limited rotation of my back, after 30 years of psoriatic arthritis, so I have to plug in the seat belt blind. Not sure a longer receptacle would help a lot. I have just replaced the seat belt as I think dust had filled up the track that the locking ball runs in and it was difficult to get it to unlock.

Wilson

i use a 25cm rigid extender which makes clipping the seatbelt in much easier. The buckle is how in front of my hip rather than having to twist and scrabble around by the seat base.