John Durden Posted January 7, 2019 Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 Have stripped out seats & carpets to replace speedo drive retaining bracket & bolt; now need new gearbox & propshaft tunnel covers. Is it better to use plastic or GRP versions? John Durden 4022 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RogerH Posted January 7, 2019 Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 Hi John, welcome to the forum. The plastic ones work well. easy to cut/shape. Various holes need to be cut in - GB oil filler, OD angle drive etc. Also consider cutting it at apprx 8" from the rear so that it can be removed without disturbing the handbrake. I understand that Racetorations make a decent tunnel. Roger Quote Link to post Share on other sites
pheaney Posted January 7, 2019 Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 The Racetorations split gearbox tunnel is very well made and is available already split. It as also listed in their Sale Items at half price at the moment! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Waldi Posted January 7, 2019 Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 Hi John, welcome to this great forum. I bought the Moss 2- piece tunnel, it looks nice, the 2 halves fit perfect on a flat floor but.... you need to cut a hole for the angle drive, and another hole for the bulge where the starter motor engages. Moss adviced to cut holes, that is what I did; now I have to make lids to cover the holes. Also, the holes to bolt the covers down to the floor are in the wrong place. My floors are the original ones. Why are they not made to fit without modification? Overall this involves a lot of extra work, so I do not recommend it. The Racetauratuons item is (from what I read on the forum ) a much better but more expensive tunnel. Apparently currently on sale. Best regards, Waldi Roger, would a PQI be of help? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RogerH Posted January 7, 2019 Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 Hi Waldi, if you put a form in it will be followed up. Roger Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kevo_6 Posted January 7, 2019 Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 +1 for the racetoration 2 piece one, very good fit. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Waldi Posted January 7, 2019 Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 1 hour ago, RogerH said: Hi Waldi, if you put a form in it will be followed up. Roger Will do Roger, thanks. Waldi Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stuart Posted January 8, 2019 Report Share Posted January 8, 2019 Link for Racetorations item http://www.racetorations.co.uk/triumph-c56/tr4a-c8/tr4a-interior-and-trim-c42/racetorations-tr4a-6-fibreglass-split-gearbox-tunnel-includes-extra-inspection-panels-p1023 Stuart. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mike C Posted January 8, 2019 Report Share Posted January 8, 2019 I've got a split tunnel full of access holes but you still have to remove the H frame and carpets to get at anything. In practice it does not improve maintainability as much as I originally thought. Maybe Velcro port covers fixed to the carpets would help, but they'd look terrible. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bill Bourne Posted January 8, 2019 Report Share Posted January 8, 2019 Hi John During a TR5 re-build I've bought the Moss 1 pce plastic. Doesn't fit very well, but you can make this fit. Then the SC parts / plastic split - cheap, but awful fit around the front arch. Then the racetorations/fibre glass split - a better fit, but not brilliant. These also come with a round hole above the propshaft, but you can't get a rubber grommet to fit properly as the curve is to sharp and the sides foul the overdrive solenoid. Gave up up with all 3 in the end and repaired / refurbed the original cardboard one with fiberglass patches, as this was luckily in fairly good condition.. Took a a while, but fits a treat. Any one want a gearbox tunnel cover ? Best Bill Quote Link to post Share on other sites
John Bracher Posted January 9, 2019 Report Share Posted January 9, 2019 I bought a F/glass one from CTM, then split it like the Racestorations version, fitting a flange in the joint. Fitted well, and allows access to the rear half area without having to kill yourself getting to the bolts around the bulkhead! If possible, also fit some heat reflective material to the inside. Massive improvement in 'comfort' for your left foot! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Rockie51 Posted January 9, 2019 Report Share Posted January 9, 2019 I have the Racetorations tunnel. It went together well. I used some rubber door draught seal which is adhesive on one side to seal all of the joins including the cover over the speedo drive. (Advantage of owning a hardware store). I did contact Racetorations, asking why they only supply one large bung with the tunnel when there are two large holes, one for the gearbox filler and the other for the UJ greasing hole. They said that they would look into it. It does allow you to remove the tunnel without disconnecting the handbrake, but you still have to remove carpets, seats, overdrive wiring and the H frame to get the gearbox out (again!). In my less rational moments, I have wondered whether a one piece tunnel running from the firewall to the rear bulkhead and incorporating both the gearbox and handbrake covers, made of say carbon fibre and bolted front and rear as well as to the floor would stiffen the body up a bit. When common sense returns, and I peer into the bank account, I forget the idea. Rockie Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mike C Posted January 9, 2019 Report Share Posted January 9, 2019 "but you still have to remove carpets, seats, overdrive wiring and the H frame to get the gearbox out (again!). " I wonder if it was worth it. I find it easier to still check the gearbox oil level on stands . Might help with working on the OD solenoid and settings - but that is a rare occurrence. I cut my own seals from fairly thick black foam rubber strips- my floor is not anywhere near flat- and glued them to the tunnel before assembly. Seems to keep a bit more of the noise, fumes and heat out of the cockpit. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ed_h Posted January 9, 2019 Report Share Posted January 9, 2019 I had access ports for the gearbox filler plug and for the starter bolt, but later I found I couldn't fit my hand in to connect wires to the reverse switch, so added a port for that. Ed Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bill944T Posted January 23, 2019 Report Share Posted January 23, 2019 It as also listed in their Sale Items at half price at the moment! Hmm. not sure of the ethics of debiting my card on the 15th and not having received goods nor any update. I chased on the 21st to get a reply on the 22nd to say that on back order with their supplier and they wont be receiving their order until beginning of February, but they will advise me of my delivery date when in stock..................... Regards Bill Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mick Forey Posted January 23, 2019 Report Share Posted January 23, 2019 (edited) I used the 2 piece SC Parts tunnel: https://www.scparts.co.uk/sc_en/gearbox-tunnel-1-122812.html plus their seal kit: https://www.scparts.co.uk/sc_en/british-cars/triumph/triumph-tr5-tr250-and-tr6-1968-1976/body-panels/inner-body-repair-panels-rear-section-tr5-and-tr250/seal-kit-122833.html Had no problem fitting it as all the lumps and bumps and holes were in the right place. This did take some effort getting the seal to compress near the bulkhead to get the holes to line up but a pair of large screwdrivers did the job. An extra arm or two would have helped enormously. Very pleased with the result as my original cardboard one had been repaired too many times and was falling apart. Mick Edited January 23, 2019 by Mick Forey Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.