Hi Ken:
Thanks very much for your prompt and informative response to my queries. I
trust that you won't object if I forward your reply to the chapman-era list
as the Plus 2 5 speed has come up for discussion there too.
>From: Ray Jang
>To: Ken.JACKSON@sema.co.uk
>Subject: Plus 2 5 speed
>Date: 21 August 1998 20:19
>
>Hi Ken:
>
>I noticed your posting to the Lotus List and wondered if you would tell me
>how you like the 5 speed on your Plus 2?...Looking forward to your
response. Thanks, Ray in Cincinnati
>
>Ray,
>
>There are pros and cons to the five speed. Pro and cons in fact.
>
>The pro is that the overdrive top is great for motorway cruising. The speed
>in top = revs*2 and knock the 0s off, so 4000rpm = 80mph for example. Around
>town, third is automatic gearbox gear and the ratios are ideal for getting
>it down the country lanes.
>
>The cons are that the unit is not nearly as good as the four speed. The five
>speed box consists of inards from the Austin/ British Leyland box inside a
>Lotus casting. It is fragile compared to the Ford 4 speed. Also, it is not
>nearly so nice to use. That wonderful notch at the end of the stroke is
>absent on the 5 speed and it feels a bit spongy. Engaging first at rest is a
>bit of a game. Shifting is rapid enough, but not as good as a modern box and
>you can beat the synchromesh if you want to. Mine is sometimes reluctant to
>come out of fifth gear but I suspect that's peculiar to my car.
>
>So the ratios are ideal but the box is somewhat feeble. Paul Matty
>Sportscars, close to where I live in central England, used to make a plate
>to facilitate the mating of a modern Ford Sierra 5 speed to the twin cam. I
>think they fitted about thirty boxes but had to pack it in when Ford became
>unwilling to supply the boxes to them. I bet they were great to drive, if
>utterly inauthentic.
>
>I don't think I've ever seen a five speed box for sale and so can't guess at
>the price. This doesn't mean they are unavailabe, merely that I haven't been
>looking. In spite of their reputation for fragility, reliability is not
>really a problem.
>
>I think your prefered box really depends on the sort of driving you do. For
>high speed cruising, the overdrive is a great bonus, otherwise the four
>speed is the better box.
>
>Ken.
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