ZF RBT vs. ZFQ

[Alan B]

I just put my order in for a new CAV should get it in a few months!

The engine will be a 351w push out to 438ci and 630 bhp, I know I'm pushing it.

So my next purchase is a transaxle and I need some input on either a ZF RBT or ZFQ??

What I know so far is:

ZF RBT:
Easier to get parts, company has been around for sometime, a lot of boxes out there

ZFQ:
Had some issues with the design but I think that's been fix, harder to get made in England

Which box can take more horsepower??
Which one shift better??

Alan

[Alan Watkins]

[QUOTE=Alan R;347276]ISo my next purchase is a transaxle and I need some input on either a ZF RBT or ZFQ??/QUOTE]

Dennis Olthoff at Olthoff racing has extensive experience with both. He might be able to help.

olthoffracing.com

[Ron R.]

Alan,

I just recently made this choice. PM me for my thoughts, if interested.

Ron

[Mike Drew]

Is the ZFQ still available new? When I had dinner with Chris Melia a few months ago, I got the impression from him that they had suspended production after 50 or so were built and there would be no more?

Chris--can you confirm/deny my vague recollection?

[Rich E.]

A little birdie told me that Quafie won't be making the ZFQ anymore nor will they support the existing ones with spare parts.....

[Ron R.]

Correct.

Originally Posted by Bigblockquad

A little birdie told me that Quafie won't be making the ZFQ anymore nor will they support the existing ones with spare parts.....

[Mesa]

What was behind this decision? Is there a thread that details the reasoning? On the surface it would not make me warm and fuzzy about buying a Quaife product in the future.

Really leaves the guys that bought then in a bad spot.

[Kevin L]

Originally Posted by Bigblockquad

A little birdie told me that Quafie won't be making the ZFQ anymore nor will they support the existing ones with spare parts.....

If true, and I have no reason to doubt, then darn it. Hope I don't blow it up

Any thoughts on what spare parts one might buy while there are still parts to buy (if there are any even available now)?

Kevin

[Mike Drew]

I don't know this for a fact, Chris will chime in here soon enough (hopefully) and shed some light on the situation, but it's my belief that the ZFQ used mostly (or all?) standard, off-the-shelf Quaife parts, simply packaged in the ZF orientation. So hopefully there will be parts support in the future.

Even more hopefully, for those people who went that route instead of the ZF way, there will be no NEED for parts support.

Fingers crossed?

[Alan Watkins]

Originally Posted by Mike Drew

Fingers crossed?

All ten of them!

[Jac Mac]

Would be interesting to see if any Quaife Porsche bits might fit!

[Scott Calabro]

G50 bits?

[Alan B]

Well I guess it's going to be the ZF RBT dodged that bullet

[EGLITOM]

Originally Posted by Scott Calabro

G50 bits?

From what i read the ZFQ is identical to a G50 in terms of internal dimensions ( Shaft distance, gears dimensions ). The fact that Quaife also producing replacement ratios and shafts for G50´s makes it likely that this parts are partialy used in the ZFQ.
Chris will know better

TOM

[Chris Melia]

I am no longer involved with the ZFQ as I have other commitments, as usual there is a lot of speculation on the forum. Quaife have part bins full of parts and if they sell out they can make more, there are no interchangeable parts with Porsche transaxles.
Quaife also have billet tail housings available which are 60% stronger than the cast units. Two batch runs of ZFQ's were made totalling over 70 transaxles, Quaife said, to make another batch run of 35 units they would require an upfront payment of many tens of thousands to go ahead, they also said that they would increase the unit price by around $1600 a unit. Considering that Superformance production had fallen from over 34 cars a month down to under 5 cars per month this did not make economic sense to procede with another batch run.
Just another problem from the credit crunch I'm sorry to say.

Quaife have asked me to post the following

We have produced 80 of the ZFQ gearboxes and have every intension of producing more. We hold stock of all spares and should we run out would have no problem producing more. The only reason we have currently ceased production is that of the current global economic climate and the fact that the investment required to produce another batch of 30-40 gearboxes would not make sense in this current climate. If there is a group of 10-15 people who want them we would happily resume production.

Kind regards

Dale Phillips

Operations Manager

RT Quaife.

[Alan Watkins]

Chris -- Thanks; it's always valuable to hear from the people who know, and what you and Quaife say makes far more sense than the birdy tweets.

Rich -- who's your little birdie and why is he/she spreading falsehoods?

[David Morton II]

I will be honest and say that the ZFQ was developed at a time when there was at least a 2 year waiting list for SPF gear train because Lloyd couldn't cope at that time. He is now up to speed so SPF owners can now be assured they have a constant supply.

I do believe they have had somewhat of a bad press over the failure of just a single gearbox plus a good deal of stick from sources that claim that English is not their first language but have managed to tread on everyones toes non-the-less and have actively crowed over the prospect of this one failure on this very board which I believe to be bad form and extremely unprofessional from a so called engineer..

Quaife are a very prolific supplier of high quality drivetrain parts for all kinds of motorport in Europe, and their name is synomynous with quality and performance and I for one, although never having used their products or met or even know anyone associated with the ZFQ, would like to thank them for their efforts, and those that fronted the money for it, for what they achieved for many many people.

I do agree though, that this announcement is a tad overdue..

[Ron R.]

Originally Posted by awatkins

Chris -- Thanks; it's always valuable to hear from the people who know, and what you and Quaife say makes far more sense than the birdy tweets.

Rich -- who's your little birdie and why is he/she spreading falsehoods?

Alan,

What exactly are you talking about?

What Rich said is true...entirely. Quaife is not making these transaxles anymore, and parts supply will be an issue in the future. There are no more planned runs of ZFQs, Chris Melia, who fronted the whole development in the first place is out of the transaxle business...said so himself.

What he reiterated here confirms what he told me months ago (and what I was told by seveal others "in the know"); namely, given the increased cost of additional runs by Quaife, the added capacity of RBT, and the decreased demand of transaxles in general, he (Chris) no-longer would consider fronting additional runs of ZFQs.

Others chimed in with questions of parts interchangability, and these appear to be limited, at best.

Finally, a Quaife rep says that they will do additional runs if 15 or so owners will step forward with comitments. They may also supply parts, and can make what they need.

OK. Great, but I'm not sure that all of this is that comforting. Particularly if Quaif's commitment to the transaxle is that closely tied to the "current climate."

That said, I'm sure the ZFQ is a fine unit...almost bought one myself several months ago at a steep discount ...until several of the "little birds" whispered in my ear. Sorry if all of this makes current ZFQ owners a little nervous, but it is what it is.

Who knows, in the future, there may be some added value to having a "limited edition ZFQ" in your car!! Don't have a crystal ball, though.

[Mike Pass]

I'm not too surprised that Quaife don't want to make a new run of ZFQs to go into stock. There is a minimum run that is economic to do which is about 15 boxes as there is a cost in the setup time and obtaining castings etc etc.. Someone would have to find the money to create 15 boxes which is in the order of £90,000. Quaife are a business and in these difficult times do not want to have that amount of capital tied up in ZFQ boxes in stock. The GT40 enthusiasts who fronted up the money initially do not want to fund this either and who can blame them. We are all finding the financial conditions a bit hard. If someone wants to step in I am sure that they could come to a deal with Quaife.
As far as replacement parts is concerned I am aware of a UK GT40 owner having spares provided in the last few weeks due to damage caused by issues external to the box.
Cheers
Mike

[Alan Watkins]

Originally Posted by Igofaster

What exactly are you talking about?

Birds: "Quaife...won't be making the ZFQ anymore nor will they support the existing ones with spare parts....."

vs.

Quaife: We wil make them if there is demand and we hold stock of all spares.

I doubt RBT would make transaxles if there were no demand either.