Ask the expert
“Just be very careful on sizing and the distance you leave between accelerator and brake pedals”
DROPPED GEAR
Q My 1995 Cooper has started making some horrendous noises. It started while I was standing in traffic. The car was in neutral and it just started making a terrible grinding noise. I stopped the engine immediately.
When the traffic started moving, I tried starting the car and it sounded OK when I put it into first gear, the noise returned. It got progressively quitter through the gears – fourth was OK.
I decided that it was clearly a problem with the gearbox, so I had a local garage fit a guaranteed reconditioned one. The car was delivered back to me, and on the first run out, the grinding noise has returned. I’m losing hope.
Is the ‘new’ gearbox at fault, or is there something else which could be causing the problem?
Andrew
A Did the garage who replaced the gearbox diagnose the problem, or did they just take you at your word, and fit the new one without further investigation? It’s strange that a second gearbox should fail in exactly the same way after so few miles, but at least if this is the case, it should be covered by the reconditioner’s warranty.
Although it’s a possibility that the problem lies with the replacement gearbox, we would think it’s highly
