Club 80-90 Forums

Just about to give our best offer on a 1.9 petrol with 4 gears. However wondering if there is a lot of difference ...and whether it would be worth waiting....for a 2.1 with 5th gear.

Would be interested to hear peoples opinions on the difference between the two and if the 2.1 may be better. The garage told me the ones with 5th gear could cause problems...but not sure if this was just sales talk.

The extra power of the 2.1 is certainly a noticeable benefit. If fuel injected then a little more to go wrong and harder for the home mechanic to fault find, but that said, the F.I. system on them is pretty reliable.

The 5 speed boxes are very common and no less reliable than a 4 speed. Opinions vary as to whether they are any advantage though. The dog leg (position) of first gear takes a short while to get used to.

With any gearbox new to you, giving it an oil change is always a VERY good plan

We have a 2.1 injected 5 spd , never driven another t25 so cannot compare.

Drove ours though France in June and the 5th gear is great on the motorways!

The dog leg first does take some getting used to and my partner doesn't like driving the van because of that. I love it though !

I was informed by someone who knows these things that on standard boxes 4th on a four speed equals 5th on a five speed box ie 5th is not like having overdrive. I was also advised that five speed boxes are more prone to problems, but Aidan is the expert on this topic. I am sure he will clarify things.

I have had both types of boxes and have no strong opinion as to which I would prefer. The bodywork on the vans you are looking at is much more important

lots of different ratios

no such thing as 'if i replace my 4 speed with a 5 speed it will be better'

the 2.1 does stand alone because it has a taller diff but vw did a taller 5th gear but did not fit it to the 2.1 AAP code box , not sure why.

5 speed boxes have a different spread of gears , generally its combination of diff and gears

depending on the engine setup and you driving needs depends on your box.

a 1.6d will not work with a 2.1 box , but a 1.9 petrol is ok , but a little less pull due to the lower revs. if its cruise then ideally the 2.1 is the easiest straight fit , although if you have a petrol watercooled 4 speed box you will need the 5 speed petrol mount and gear stick /front rod

for general driving the standard 4 speed box is just fine usually abd code.

this may help if your into it ,
http://www.brick-yard.co.uk/VehicleSpec ... fo/gbx.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have a 5speed 1.9 soon to be 2.1, I have always wanted to change to a 4 speed box cause I do not like the dog leg first and my wife cannot drive it. This has been an on going problem for the last 15 years but although I had access to a 4 speed box I never got around to changing it. For driving I would opt for the 4speed as there appears to be no advantage to a 5 speed eg;- fuel economy etc. HTH

ive got a 5 speed 2.1 dj i looked far and wide, i drove a 4 speed and 5 speed (both 2.1) in the same day when i was looking and apart from the dogleg 1st (tricky for about the 1st hour) the 5 speed was more responsive through the range. mine pulls and accelerates as well a family car, better than the mrs' volvo v40

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