The Triumph Dolomite Club - Discussion Forum

Hi all

Did the 10CR in “The Deuce” (it’s brown) a 1500 fwd now sporting a Sprint drive line. Imported it to the states. Drove another 750 miles to get it home. Somewhere toward the end of the trip home, I noted a severe cabin vibration from start. Once underway it’s gone. During an alignment I visually checked the center carrier. It appears fine. What other things should I be looking at? Can worn/broken engine mounts cause this condition?

I did end up adding nearly 2 quarts of gearbox oil which tells me much was lost…probably all over the 3rd mount.

Thoughts?

Cheers

Todd

Yes, engine and gearbox mounts are prime suspects.
Have a search on here for the Volvo gearbox mount, seems to be better (I have fitted one and it seemed made to measure)

Bent or buckled wheel. that can cause some odd vibrations, or a damaged tire for that matter

If it's only there whilst pulling away, there are a number of suspects of which one is the gearbox mount.

Also check the prop UJs carefully and make sure the prop centre bearing is fitted correctly for a Sprint (1 bolt above the tag and 1 below)

Only once you have thoroughly checked everything in the driveline and made good where need be, is it time to adress the final suspect and this is the clutch itself. You may have oil on the drive plate (seeing as how you lost so much) and that could well be the cause of your judder.

Or it could be "clutch thrash vibration", a hangover from the 50s which seems to be re-emerging since the introduction of asbestos free clutch linings. Also a "Borg and Beck" box is no longer the guarantee of quality it once was, the name is now owned by someone in China!

Not much in the way of cures for this, the best bet is to fit a really good make of clutch, i've had good results from the "Larkspeed" clutch made and sold in the UK, it comes in 3 variants, fast road, sport and race, i've only ever needed the fast road version so far. Or you can just live with it, many do!

HTH, Steve

Hey Todd, as it's problem that's developed during usage rather than a problem that's been there all along I'd rule out things being incorrectly fitted (eg. centre bearing). Based on previous comments I'd suspect clutch contamination OR engine mountings.
Cheers, Sam

if you're losing gearbox fluid then its possible that you have oil on the clutch plate

I would visually check the clutch for contamination first or have a look in the bellhousing with some sort of endoscope. The clutch is a new one, a sachs with a genuine Volvo plate. Both quality products. The engine rearseal and gearbox front seal were replaced at the recent clutch change but can cause a leak ofcourse. The engine mounts are polyones and the gearbox mount still the one what was fitted but not faulty at that time.

Are there external signs of oil loss around the gearbox? The propshaft had no work done. It isn't it something engine wise? Are both carbs opening similar? Engine off tune can make the engine shake a bit and vibrates into the car? Isn't something touching the car's body? Exhaust maybe?

Good luck with the search.

Jeroen