Volvo Gearbox Mount v Triumph Gearbox Mount (It works)

[busheytrader]

Well I found my FEBI 22394 Volvo gearbox mount. The Volvo item is on the top, the granite aftermarket Tr7 mount is beside it.


And from the other side.


The Volvo item is substantially thinner but I have a pack of 40mm washers to take up the difference as per the example from the Dolomite forum.

[littlepippin]

Is that gonna work ? Looks quite different to me, so be interested to know how easy you find it to fit !

[Spike]

Link to the post on the Dolly forum,

http://forum.triumphdolomite.co.uk/view ... =4&t=29990

[Howard722]

@busheytrader--does the FEBI unit seem more flexible in the hand if you flex it with a bolt up the centre fix, c/w rock hardo version!!-?

[busheytrader]

Hi Howard,

It definitely has some flexibility compared to the 2 X granite like examples I've bought in the last 4 to 5 years.

It looks like I've made some progress with the Volvo mount. The gearbox doesn't sound like it wants to exit the car. I've been up to 70mph in 3rd, 4th and 5th. However I haven't road tested it yet. The front of the car is up on ramps whilst the rear is on axle stands so I've taken the car through the gears in the garage.

Briefly, the Volvo rubber mount has replaced the standard mount TKC1044. Ive slotted the holes in the gearbox crossmember, drilled out the centre hole to 12mm, replaced the bottom mounting plate with a thick washer. The long centre bolt may need replacing with a slightly longer one enabling spacer washers to be fitted as the gearbox tail sits about 9mm lower than before. I'm not sure if that needs sorting or can be left as is.


Gearbox crossmember off the car with lump of granite attached




Volvo mount placed on the crossmember.


The holes in the crossmember line up with those in the Volvo mount but require slotting towards the centre to enable it to fit. As per the Dolly thread I slotted them about 4mm towards the centre using a die grinder in a drill. I could have filed these by hand if I had the patience. I also opened up the central bolt hole in the mount to 12mm and with an angle grinder shaved about 1mm off front and back as its a touch too wide to fit.

This is the mount bolted to the crossmember with the old parts beside it.


The Volvo mount is the wrong shape to accommadate the standard lower mounting plate UKC2209 so I replaced it with a thick washer also bored out to 12mm.
http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-GRID006415


The Volvo mount is thinner than the granite mount TKC1044. The Dolly thread packs this space out with 40mm washers. However the large centre bolt only has about 18mm of spare thread to screw into the underside of the gearbox once the spacer and top plate are in place.


This is about the same amount of thread if using the standard items.


I've not fitted any spacer washers since I'm not keen on torquing the centre bolt up in the aluminium housing with less than 18mm of thread engaging, so the gearbox tail is about 9mm lower than standard. The engine, gearbox and exhaust don't appear to be fouling or touching anything but it's not been driven on the road yet. If the Volvo mounting silences the gearbox successfully then I may source a longer bolt to utilise some spacers.

Underside of gearbox


The torque of a RV8 is greater than a Dolly Sprint but I would expect this is taken by the engine mounts and subframe, not the gearbox mount. We'll see how it stands up on the road. Hopefully I'll be able to road test it tomorrow and not have to change the gearbox after all.

Adam

[Howard722]

Keep up the good work!-could be we do have a worthwhile solution to get over the rock hardo mountings, just takes a bit of fettling to get there.

[busheytrader]

After 50 miles of mixed driving around South West Herts this afternoon, all I can say is that the Volvo gearbox mount appears to work. The V8 was previously drowned out by transmission noise so much, I thought the gearbox was about to blow up. Now it's at acceptable levels with 2nd and 5th being a touch more noticeable than the others. Maybe that's down to the natural resonance having changed with the new mount, or maybe it's just my hearing, or maybe some Dynamat is overdue. Previously 3rd and 5th sounded like the car was about to detonate on its recently bought granite TKC1044 mount. Hopefully the gearbox at 76,000 miles still has a few miles to go before a rebuild or replacement is due.

I'm not an engineer so if you follow this mod the risk is yours. It's simple to go back to the original set up if you want to afterwards. I'll try to get the earlier pics blown up so they're clearer.

I had to get the wedge off SORN to test it out on the road today (Sunday) Thankfully the on line road tax process does just that.

Hopefully this goes some way to resolve the problem that some of us are suffering with these sub standard gearbox mounts. Much kudos to the Galileo on the Dolly forum who took up the original challenge. http://forum.triumphdolomite.co.uk/view ... =4&t=29990

Adam