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MG MGB Technical - Shifter rattle noise

Hello,

When driving I noticed a shifter rattle noise. It stops when I place my hand on it. Which part need to be replace to have it quiet?


Thanks,

Jean
Jean Guy Catford

Jean,
very thin on details there and no public 'Vehicle profile' to view so no idea of model year, manual or auto, etc., etc.

so as as starter guess I'm putting - gear lever bush, or spring or cap - I don't think you have anti-rattle kits like the Spridgets do

do the r/b have an integral bush on the lever too, I can't remember
Nigel Atkins

Jean There is a nylon bush goes on the end of the gear lever and engages the selector rod in the remote gear change. Pull the three small bolts out the hold the lever in and it will lift out. Mine had a rattle and the bush was missing altogether. It really improved the feel of the G/change and I thought it was OK before. It pays to grind a small lead on the bottom of the new bush as its tricky to get into the selector rod. Dont loose the special spring washers on the bolts and on some cars there is one different bolt so check as you remove.
Denis
Denis4

Thanks for your input,
It is a 1973 4 sp. gearbox.

I will check according to your infos to find the problem.


Cheers,

Jean G.

Jean Guy Catford

The rattle is most likely due to wear on the lever seating cover. It is held in place by three shouldered bolts. If the cover is worn, deform it so it presses down on the lever ball, grease it, and reinstall with the shouldered bolts.

Pictures are on my website, www.dbraun99.com, in the restoration section of the 1970 MGB wire wheel conversion that turned into a restoration.
Dave Braun

Before dismantling anything do a quick test first. With the car in a gear see how much free play there is in the lever. My V8 lever buzzed and rattled when I got it, and I knew from my roadster that wasn't right. The roadster had no free play, the V8 did. *Then* I took the lever out, and found the nylon cup was missing. Replaced it and it was fine after that. Be aware that there is an identical cup at the other end of the remote shift lever, but that is inside the gearbox.
Paul Hunt

Are you running the original shift knob? If not, there are a lot of reports of rattles that have been tracked down to the knob itself causing the noise. If it's an aftermarket knob, filling the inside void with silicone will stop the noise. RAY
rjm RAY

There are two brass plugs at the rear of the lever housing behind which are springs and brass plungers. Make sure that these are in place.
Iain MacKintosh

Hello,
Well I discover many places may be involved in rattle.

I will proceed as you all suggested and your advices were really instructive. I will have a look at that today.

Thanks all,

Jean G.
Jean Guy Catford

Ray has an excellent point. I eliminated a bulk of my shifter buzz by simply filling the shift knob ID with silicone. Easy fix worth trying.

Regards,
Jim
James Budrow

blue-tac is excellent stuff for things like this and it can take very surprising force and weight (don't know about white-tac I've never tried it)
Nigel Atkins

I have exactly the same issue on my car ('66 GT, manual non-OD). It is fine in fourth, and okay in second and third when off the power, but under power in second and third the gear lever rattles. It is not the knob (it had an aftermarket one when I bought it, I fitted an original and it made no difference), so following this thread I will investigate and if it fits with the symptoms listed here I'll report back.

I'm decorating the house at the moment, though, so it might not be immediate!

Piers
Piers Colver

Many previous owners think that the shifter lever plate is supposed to be solidly held in place by the 3 shoulder screws.

It is not.

The shifter lever plate is supposed to "float" on the shoulder screws, and is held down by the spring washers (very important).

If is not done correctly, the shifter plate will be bent/distorted
when the shoulder screws are tightened directly onto the plate. In time, vibrations and rattles will result when the plate becomes
worn.
Daniel Wong

The '66 3 synchro transmission uses a different shift lever hold down system. It consists of a plate, a large spring and a large C clip that holds everything down and engages into a grove in the top of the shift tower. No anti-rattle bushing was used with these transmissions, so the rattle lies elsewhere. RAY
rjm RAY

Thanks for that RAY. Guess I'll wait for a quiet day and spend some time in the garage!
Piers Colver

"The shifter lever plate is supposed to "float" on the shoulder screws, and is held down by the spring washers"

Two-turn Thackery washers, which indeed are not intended to be bolted down tight unlike single turn spring washers. The replace the large spring that pressed down on top of the lever ball on earlier gearboxes. As well as the plate being distorted it is likely to make the gear change very stiff.
Paul Hunt

This thread was discussed between 21/07/2013 and 31/07/2013

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