After the deception of the gearbox not working properly, I fitted the old one again. A lot of work, especially when everything is clean an freshly painted and you don’t want to damage the new paint.
With the “old” replacement gearbox back in the car, I could finally drive DeKeijzer again and get some kilometers on the clock. First impressions were good, but a weird resonating noise while driving was annoyingly present.
Now and then, I work as a volunteer at 2CV garage Sander Aalderink, and in the after hours, I could put the car on the lift to check where the sound came from. It turned out to be the Italian reproduction exhaust muffler that was fitted three years ago was touching the chassis crossmember. I had great difficulty in getting it to fit leak-free the first time when I mounted the original gearbox and the engine back in the car, but now, even with the engine mounts loose and a lot of force and persuasion, I couldn’t prevent it from touching the chassis.
So I finally fitted a new Walker one. Problem solved; it fitted perfectly. I fitted a new clutch cable while I was at it. That turned out to be a revelation; a much smoother and lighter clutch pedal! Amazing how improving the things you touch on a car can increase the driving experience.
After this I could finally enjoy putting the engine carefully to its paces. I even fitted a temporary rev counter to prevent myself from exceeding the recommended 4000rpm limit set for the first 2000km by Burton 2CV Parts.
