DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

Hi All

How disappointing!

Whilst basking in the glory of the transformed gear change (after shifter bushes replaced etc.) I absent mindedly stalled the car whilst in gear - i.e. whilst stopped with foot on brakes I let out clutch with car in gear, stalling the car . There is now a single mechanical clunk (and maybe coupled with some driveline lash) when changing gear, taking up drive or decelerating quickly - especially noticeable in first or second gear and in all but the gentlest releasing of the clutch. Appears to drive fine when underway otherwise with no noises etc. There may have been clutch smell or I might just have imagined it in my gutted nervousness.....

Car is too hot to get underneath but hoping it's simply gearbox mounts (which needed doing in any event) but could be actual gearbox, broken clutch center springs (or rubber I understand was original) or CV joints?

Any help in identifying which of these it is - I'm going to jack car up and turn wheels in and out of gear...

UPDATE: Jacked the car up and:

When out of gear - rear wheels spin fine with no clunks, noise etc.

When in gear - rear wheels still spin freely with the transmission turning (how do the rear wheels spin if in gear - thought the engine would have to turn) and there is noticeable lash but then no gearbox noise once the transmission is turning....Clutch?

Does the gearstick move up and down when you accelerate and decelerate?-If so maybe gearbox mounts are knackered?

No - it doesn't! I can say with confidence as I know the symptoms you are referring to and have dealt with similar through replacing all the mounts on my early car.

The car is at 80,000 miles so thinking the rubber clutch center (assuming its original factory) has let go which it apparently tends to do at this mileage. After much research I understand that the rubber centered clutches have a fail-safe or get home feature which results in clunking as you engage it? This may also may account for some smell if some rubber bits got stuck in-between clutch and flywheel?

Seriously can't understand why you can spin the rear wheels when jacked up in gear though....and still drive the car? Maybe the fail safe/get home feature only locks under drive?

Thanks for the feedback!

Hi Magnus you will be able to turn a rear wheel with the back jacked up unless you have a limited slip diff if in gear the other side will turn backwards.

Magnus.

When stalling the car in gear it may have ripped the rubber damper
which is in the centre of the friction lining. G50 and 930 gearboxes
don't have a sprung centred friction plate, they use a large rubber
damper instead. If this is quite old it won't be as strong as it was
and could quite easily fail under sever duress. When they fail there
is a lot of backlash in the transmission when, either releasing the
power or applying it. Unfortunately this will mean a new friction plate.

Regards.

Andy