Bren1977

1991 Ford Sierra Ghia 2.0i 125bhp

lately I’ve noticed it’s been harder to move into second gear as tends to need a second attempt; back to neutral, foot off clutch, then reengage the clutch and it slips into second.

So, in the past week (it has the MT75 5-speed gearbox I believe) I’ve started to notice a vibration or shudder through 2nd, 3rd, 4th under acceleration (it is a monetary occurrence for each gear change).

curious to see if anyone else has experienced something similar?

Perhaps it could be as a result of my last trip through the Austrian, Swiss and Italian Alps through the Umbrail, Gotthard, Stelvio and Reschen Passes last month so could be the clutch perhaps as I did experience some clutch burning all the spirited drives.


cheers

evolution2

its the donut bushing at the front of the propshaft common problem

Bren1977

cool thanks for the information on that 😊

Bren1977

So i replaced the center bearing and the donut bush and reinstalled the prop shaft 4 weeks back. First few days were fine but the vibration is back between 15km - 160km - seems to level off when near 180km/hr to 200km/hr on the autobahn. Following installation of these new parts, is it a necessity to have the prop shaft re-balanced prior to refitting? I'm just stumped as to what is going on now. Could the vibration be a worn flywheel (206,000 km on the original one at 29 years of age) or signs of a worn clutch kit?

evolution2

whats is the gearbox mount bushing like it might need changing also

Bren1977

Yep it was the gearbox mount and the engine mounts been rather worn. All three now replaced.

However, since I freed up the clutch cable (it was very difficult to move) using copious amounts of WD-40 and leaving the cable in a pot overnight to soak through (clutch cable moves nicely now), and having replaced the gearbox fluid with the correct spec (cross referenced both Ford and Haynes) a new blip is showing. Second gear is very difficult to both get into and stay there and reverse is a 50:50 will it pop out or stay when needed. Suspect the clutch release bearing/clutch pressure plate is at fault as when starting the car after leaving it overnight a clunk sound occurs when starting the car (in neutral) and is fine once that happens. So, that's the next thing to sort out next weekend (got the clutch kit and alignment tool here) on top of swapping back out the lowered 40mm suspension for standard height new coils for all 4 corners as though the car handles great on corners lowered, sacrificing comfort over function is not worth the experience to my back (had back surgery in 2020 so lowered certainly isn't good for it). I fitted new Bilstein B4 shock absorbers at Christmas while dropping it 40mm but comfort beckons.

Managed to finally locate the right sized exhaust manifold to exhaust downpipe gasket as last 2 were smaller OHC pinto ones despite sellers stating it would fit. Had to drill out a broken stud from the exhaust manifold which was easier than anticipated so car is nice and quiet and no more fumes.

Replaced the foam inserts for the heater motor / AC condenser matrix under the scuttle panel yesterday and replaced all the A/C pipe rubber o-rings as need to get the car recharged with A/C R-132 or whatever it is (can't remember off-hand what replaced the R-12) as system was discharged during the engine rebuild in 2015. Now, as the summer temp is rising in Bavaria, it would be a welcome bonus while driving.

So, hopefully the car should be finished in time (also having the recaro front seats reupholstered in the correct Apollo fabric that the car came in (Ghia 2.0i DOHC 125bhp N9B) so that the recaro seat match the interior seamlessly) for the trip to Croatia mid-sept for it's fully strip down and repaint (underneath/Engine bay and body) so it' is restored to showroom look (body work is not bad, but definitely needs new paint,

Also, I managed to find the correct cam (ignition distributor side) seal 35 - 50 - 7SE at last as the last 3 online purchases were incorrectly defined as suitable by the Ebay sellers who either sent larger or smaller types. The current seal is weeping as evident with the oily residue but will be sorted out once the new seal arrives in the next few days.

Cheers!


New rear back box (standard ford - not loud) and really clean underside for a 30 year car. I look after mine. Never been 'diffed' in all the time I've had this car as too much money gone into it to destroy it.

40 mm drop - way too low. On escort Winter tyres. Back to standard polished Ghia Alloys for Summer driving here.

Having a 40 mm drop while driving back 2200km in Feb to Bavaria by way of Irish Ferries involved a pretty packed car snagging the exhaust on the up-ramp of the Ferry resulting in a broken stud on the exhaust manifold and broken gasket. A 12 hour drive straight to Bavaria with a broken exhaust was not fun. Thankfully the noise cancelling SONY headphones were a lifesaver.

Replacement Donut bush, center prop bearing, and gearbox mount bush.

Exhaust wrapped, rear differential serviced, and lowered coil springs that will be swapped back out for standard.

219,764km or 137,352.5 miles from new (all service history from Spain from one family ownership til i bought it and i've serviced it religiously since starting the process of restoring to new.