Sorry you are are having so much trouble, now I see what you meant by cup.
wonder if a bicycle wrench would fit just enough to hold the flats/ or a thin wrench from an electric tool to change a saw blade?
"What mm size wrench is needed for the flats, Lawrence? " I would have to measure it somehow with a caliper. I have no wrench that grabs it due to the fact it is below the mouth of the cup. Only the Ferrari tool kit wrenches (thin) fit in the slot between the cup and the mount but none engages the flats because the flats are below the gap between the cup and mount.
If you beg Daniel at Ricambi, he might pull a new motor mount out and fit a 17mm or 19mm wrench in there to see if it fits. One of those 2, I think.
I'm going to go the console, gear shifter removal route. Probable will get started sometime today. I tried several electrical tool blade/wheel removal thin wrenches. No luck. I've thought about getting a thin reciprocating rasp or belt sander device to cut accessible flats on the cylinder suitable for a Ferrari tool kit wrench (thin). The cylinder is not hardened steel.
Here is a picture of where I am in this project in case anyone is interested. In the picture notice what was under the console. It's an old Ford ignition key. Due to the worn out plating, it appears well used. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Finally got the shift shaft out. I also removed the seal on the exterior but popped out the washer that holds it in. But it is accessible so I can relatively easily reinsert the retaining washer. The real trick now is to remove the inner seal without shoving the retaining washer into the crankcase. My crankcase is still sealed up and taking off the pan is a PITA. A sharp hook of some sort will be needed.
Those washers are very firmly set in place by the factory. I have never seen one pop out accidentally. Probably been removed before by some misguided individual replacing the seals. If you keep the shift shaft in position plugging the hole into the sump you won't lose anything on there. I also use it as a back stop to aid in positioning the new seal on installation. Sets of scribes or picks usually have a few shapes including straight and 90 bend. A set of different ones is useful. You may find the seal so hard it breaks and really does not want to come out easily or in one piece.
OK, I'll reattach the shift shaft to the shift rod after I install the exterior seal and retaining washer, then move the shaft so it plugs the hole between the crankcase and tranny. I can then hold the shift rod with locking pliers so the shift shaft cannot be moved toward the front of the car while I work on the interior seal. Will start on it over the weekend. Have had enough 'fun' for one day. I noticed there is a small notch at the periphery of the exterior crankcase hole that should be helpful getting the retaining washer started during reassembly.
On second thought I'll deal with internal seal removal with the old external seal in place and no external retaining washer.
Both new X seals are in place. In view of the fact that I mistakenly pulled the external retaining ring out, I am wondering if I should stake it to ensure that it will not come out during transmission shifts. The block is aluminum and quite soft. There is plenty of metal around the retaining washer so what I'm thinking about doing is taking a conical punch and denting the metal just outside of the retaining washer periphery. That would force some metal into the washer's path preventing it from coming out. What do you think?
As I recall that is pretty much what the factory did. As I said, I have never removed one (still cannot figure out why you would) so I never needed to figure out how to put it back. It needs to stay in or you'll have a very big leak.
Just in case anyone hasn’t seen what it looks like in there wher the two seals are, here it is. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Having replaced the shift seals, I can attest to the fact it is much easier with the engine out during an overhaul.
I wasn't referring to you. You said it was an accident. That suggests it was out before and not properly reinstalled.
I used a dentist's tool and was cautious to grab the seal but not the aluminium. No clue how it's called in english, but here's a picture: (How is it called in english?) Image Unavailable, Please Login Best from Germany Martin
