AB cable fitting

[ppete100]

Having fitted my new ABs (1 two hour and 1 3hour sessions!!) I now have a problem with the fore / aft cable. I can't push the bush onto the shaft (gearbox end) I'm reluctant to force it or even worse hit it with something.. not at over £250 a pair!! The angle doesn't look right somehow.Anyone had anything similar? any suggestions would be appreciated.

[steve matthews]

loosen the bolts fixing the bracket to the trans.
Make sure the shifter is in neutral as per instructions.
Purchase a small rat tail file to enlarge the grommet (slightly).
Grease the grommet and it will go on.
If you force the fittings they will bind and will not center or
allow smooth shifting.
The grommets were meant to be tight.
This is exactly what happened to me on both Fed. cars.
Steve -w- new lady

[ashm]

I haven't tried to install the AB cables myself, but various people have apparently improved the fit by using a small file or drill bit to slightly increase the clearance on the bore of the (bronze?) bush.

Personally I wouldn't use a file or drill bit, but a correctly sized hand reamer. Poor surface finish in the bore will mean that the pin is riding on ridges, and the bearing will get sloppy far too quickly as it wears. This may not matter much, but if the bush is designed to be this tight then it might be because play at this joint is a bad thing. A half decent reamer in a size this small only costs a few pounds.

Adam

[HJ2]

Or: remove the pin from the shifter and turn it to diameter on a lathe

[muley]

Mine is a tight fit simply because it doesn't line up too well. When I get a moment I am going to invert the pin in the lever , like LGM did

Rgds

Jim

[rip]

Mine went on eventually with a bit of grease & effort.
Once fitted, I found that the gearstick would not centre to 3rd/4th because this joint was too tight. This made it a bit awkward to change from 2nd to 3rd or 5th to 4th.
I opened out the bush very slightly with a needle file then tidied up with some fine wet & dry before greasing & re-fitting.

[steve matthews]

Exactly my point. Get er done.
Steve

[ppete100]

Cheers guys, went with the file option, only slighly, snug fit but working well. I'm sure it'll loosen slightly with a bit of use. What to do with old cables.. keep for spares? sell on?

[dapinky]

What to do with old cables.. keep for spares? sell on?

I'd suggest that you are unlikely to ever need to replace the AB cables, so either keep in case you get a second elan, and might break one, or move 'em on to someone with original cables to keep in stock as emergency spares for if/when they break one!

(I'm still on originals in both elans, but have a spare set in stock for the inevitable day when one breaks, and i can't get AB's quickly!)