Getting a replacement 156 GTA gearbox?

Suspect my gearbox has gone kaput after 43000 miles
30 track days and 50% extra torque probably didn't help.

I now have zero drive in 5th or 6th gear, the revs just go up as if the car wasn't in gear and absolutely zero impact on drive.
4th gear down are functioning, but some funny sounds when changing into gear so pretty sure something is broken. I haven't driven the car since it limped today.

I don't think it is the clutch, at least a pretty mechanical minded friend who was in the car with me when it first happened didn't think so, mind you would be handy if thats all it was.I was driving nornally at the time and accelerating at low revs in 5th

Anyway, any suggestions as to the cheapest way of getting a replacement engine?
i.e. how easy is it to get what is presumably a pretty rare gearbox from a breakers yard ? Any links / advice etc. appreciated?

In general does anybody know who feasible it is to rebuild a gearbox and what sort of money effort would be involved?

Wonder how much a new gearbox is , supect its not cheap!
Unfotunately I will need to get the existing LSD added to the replacement gearbox which will add to the required labour (some machining required I believe).
If the gearbox is rebuilt would the LSD related labour be less than installing it in a new gearbox?

Seeing as I am on sabbatical at the moment this was the type of unanticipated expense that I could have done without.
No-brand cornflakes for me for the next 8 months

Cheers,
TB

You need http://www.gearboxman.co.uk/ heard a lot of very good reports about their work...Sending my gear and transfer box off to him for a lot of work in the next couple of weeks...

Phil

Bad luck TB, i hope you get her sorted mate

Stu

bummer! you missed a brand new gearbox on ebay last week that went for just over £100..
Ive also heard very good reports about gearboxman

When I had gearbox issues with my GT Alfa had told me that the cost to rebuild the box versus popping on a new one meant that a new box was the most economical option, apparently they needed special tools to do anything in the box, it could just be that they don't have the knowledge, seem to recall being told that a new box was about £6-650. i am sure someone with a parts CD could tell you, with the LSD as far as I was aware it just fits in the existing box with no mods (when speaking to Quaife, which is not exactly what you have) the final drive gear has to be take from the old diff and attached to the new one and popped in the box, fairly simple looking job, I found a pictorial howto on a 205GTi on the web, I probably still have it in my bookmarks as I was going to do it to my GTA and have consider modding my GT with one.

Might be worth doing some extended research on it, with the torque and rev range your motor has perhaps a slight change of ratios or different final ratio could be an interesting option, might be worth speaking to some of the guys on the Fiat coupe forum basically quite a few on there running a gearbox of the same family putting through 470+bhp and 400+ lbs of torque, perhaps talk to these guys www.torqueitalia.com

Thanks guys

@Sandy : I hadn't considered the ratios, worth thinking about.
A longer second gear would be nice, the rest of the spacing seems okay to me at the moment.
Is the Fiat coupe forum you refer to fcuk ? Good idea, they must have some useful info

I suppose the plus point about a sabbatical is that I have some time to investigate some options like you suggest.

Ta, will start scanning the bay daily now.

Originally Posted by ukoldschool

bummer! you missed a brand new gearbox on ebay last week that went for just over £100..
Ive also heard very good reports about gearboxman

yup thats the forum, a good starting point is to probably drop an email/pm to John Sidhu John S he's a good bloke, I know he's done a lot of research on parts within the Fiat family he can use whilst doing his car, say hi from me there are a few others on there that might be able to help you out though.

cheers sandy, appreciate it.

might be worth contacting the ebay seller just in case the buyer fell out for any reason:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=170054268398

Good idea

Just noticed that the add said the gearbox was for jtd/gta/v6, but wouldn't all these gearboxes be different - surely the ratios are way different for the diesels?

"this is a genuine alfa romeo gear box it is for an alfa romeo jtd/gta/v6, it is a 6 speed gearbox the numbers on the gearbox are c.530.6, 037.6.1 ,31.14"

Originally Posted by ukoldschool

might be worth contacting the ebay seller just in case the buyer fell out for any reason:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=170054268398

Yes the gearing would be different, often the ratios won't change a great deal 1-6 (perhaps not the case with a JTD) just the final drive ratio differs I don't have the numebrs for the ratios to hand, can often be found on Italia speed, the JTD setup on a nutter V6 like yours could be amusing, how fast would you have to shift through the box 70mph needs a snatch for 4th much harder work to get anywhere than you petrol boys, you'd need a lightening arm with that on your car (or maybe not as you have more revs available), Thing is the gearbox would most likely just bolt on.

think the correct GTA gearbox number is 73501567
same box is also fitted to 156 gta, GTV & spider 3.2 & 3.2GT

NOT the diesels though... thats the reason I stayed away from bying it as the guy wouldnt confirm the part number - only the numbers stampedinto the casing (which could mean anything as the same casting is used across the fiat/alfa/lancia family) having said that though its probably exactly the same apart from som minor internals and the bllhousing to fit the V6. I cant see alfa going to the expense of developing a specific gearbox for those poxy oil burners.....