Triumph Repair: 79 spit tranny, spline input shaft, pam pam

Question
Hi, love your expert advice!My question is:I have a 70 1500 spit.Will the gears from a 74 spit tranny work in the 79 tranny?I know that the shifters are different,one has a remote shifter and the other is normal.Thanks,pam

Answer
Pam,

Do you want to swap the actual guts of the transmissions, or swap transmissions as units?

What's neat about the Spitfire is that many of the parts from different model years can be fitted to other model years.   But not without a few "gotchas".  The '74 three rail transmission has a 10 spline input shaft vs the '79s 10 spline shaft.  So, to swap you'd need a new clutch plate.  While you're in there it's worth replacing pressure plate and throw-out.

The different transmissions also require different driveshafts as the later single rail trans is longer than the 3 rail transmission.

As to mixing/matching gearbox guts.. it can be done, but only by a professional as there are a few specialized tools required to do the job properly.  It's cheaper to source another trans than to buy the tools yourself.


Cheers,

Jim