Differential

With the handbrake pivot in and connected, we were able to finish off the drivetrain. This meant fitting the diff which had been sitting on the bench finished for some time now. The diff is a 4.1 Subaru LSD. We lifted it into position (easier with 2 people), and secured the two rear bolts. There was an issue with the front mount fouling on the chassis, but this was easily remedied by removing a washer from each side on the two rear bolts, which took the diff back slightly. We then had to lift the front of the diff and insert the 4 alloy spacers and bolts to secure the front of the diff to the chassis. 

All in all, not to hard a job, and only a few cuts on the hands and limited swearing. This then allowed the prop shaft to be pulled back against the diff flange to be bolted up. The prop shaft is secured to the diff by 4 high tensile bolts. This meant the engine, clutch and gearbox are now connected to the diff for the first time. So far so good! Next job was to fit the half shafts. This meant disconnecting the rear uprights, and then tapping the half shafts in to the diff until they clip in. It was then just a matter of feeding the drive splines into the hubs, remounting the uprights, and securing the half shafts to the hub with the hub nut. This requires huge torque to secure the hub nut. We were also able to finish off securing all of the upright rose joints including fitting the R clips. Once we had the wheels back on, the drivetrain is complete from engine to rear wheels. The moment of truth! Does the clutch work properly??

We popped the gear lever in to second and made sure we had everything binding, then Steve pushed the clutch in. If the clutch is actuating properly, I should now be able to spin the prop shaft and diff independently from the engine. But it didn't spin!!!!. With a sinking feeling of having to remove the engine and gearbox again to correct the clutch we stood silently. It then hit me that maybe the clutch plate had frozen between the pressure plate and flywheel, as it had been sitting in that state for some while. So again Steve depressed the clutch and I rocked the prop shaft back and forward. After a bit of grab, it spun freely!!! The clutch appears to work and is correctly adjusted. This means we have everything now connected and working from the motor back to the rear wheels. A huge step forward and a very satisfying job in only 3 hours.

Once again, this job could not have been achieved without the assistance of Steve (see foot to the left) who added the extra muscle and brain power to get this task finished relatively painlessly (he got cut hands today). I will ask him nicely tomorrow if I can post a photo of his Birkin up here so people can see what a real one looks like (finished!). 

Slowly but surely, the collection of parts on the floor in boxes, on the shelves and in the cupboards and drawers around the garage is finding its way on to the car, as we edge closer to engineering and rego.