Driven: Quaife IB5 Sequential

It’s been a while since I’ve driven a Fiesta ST150. In a previous life I used to work for Ford, so I’ve sampled my fair share of Uncle Henry’s creations, but this one is rather different. It’s equipped with a 5-speed sequential gearbox developed by Quaife Engineering for the race and rally market.

Today the prototype isn’t to be found at Brands Hatch or the forests of Kielder however, it’s in the slightly more sedate setting of Sevenoaks. And, as we trundle out onto a quiet suburban road with company director Michael Quaife at the wheel, the pronounced whine from the straight cut ‘box seems strangely at odds with its situation. It creates a faint air of surrealism, which is somewhat heightened by the fact the car producing this hardcore soundtrack is completely standard barring its transmission.

We pull over to swap seats and I tug the chunky gearlever backwards to engage first. Pulling away is a doddle and little different to any other Fiesta, as is the change up to second. Afterwards, though, the temptation is to push the lever forwards to find third, and initially you have to consciously override this to keep going up the ‘box. After a few times this becomes second nature and the classic pull-up push-down action is actually more intuitive than a normal H-pattern.

The lever requires a reasonably firm hand, particularly at low speeds, but the effort isn’t obtrusive and the shifts are as smooth as a normal synchromesh box. Being a fully mechanical system it’s best to use the clutch, and this is really the limiting factor in shift speed – the mechanism itself is very slick and notably faster than a synchromesh unit.



On the open road the Fiesta buzzes along with vigour. The close ratios and lowered final drive suit the engine down to the ground, but it does make things a tad frenetic, with a gentle motorway cruise now in excess of 5,000rpm. As a track day or competition mod it would be perfect though, with the performance noticeably sharpened by the lower gear ratios and reduced losses. What’s more Quaife do offer longer final drives, as well as a quieter helical cut ‘box.

Coming back into Sevenoaks we whine and chug our way to a standstill. One foible of sequential gearboxes is that you can’t guarantee the drive dogs will be correctly aligned to change gear when stationary. As a result you have to remind yourself to change down to first before coming to a standstill, for fear of being stranded in a higher gear, but it’s no great hardship, and it certainly wouldn’t be a problem on track.

Quaife set out to produce a quality competition gearbox for the clubman’s budget and all the indications are that they’ve succeeded. The modest fully-trimmed interior of the demonstrator may seem an unlikely place to sample it, but there’s no doubt the gearbox is the real thing.

Quantum shift

The experience of driving a well setup Caterham Superlight on track has somewhat redefined just how good a car can be. With its impeccably damped suspension delivering virtually zero body roll, its beautifully stiff chassis responding to every action, and its telepathically accurate steering delivering superb turn in and feedback, the Caterham was a revelation. It forms the perfect track day tool in the same way that the Lotus Elise comes together so beautifully on a B-road.

The real reason, however, that I found myself at the Brands Hatch Indy circuit last week to sample Quaife’s 60G sequential gearbox. It’s a race-spec unit intended to replace the ageing Ford Type 9 gearbox found in many kit and race cars, including various Caterhams, Westfields and Ginettas. What’s more in the case of this unit it features a Geartronics pneumatic paddle-shift system, which enables you to change gear at the touch of a button.



The system comes with its own ECU that provides an automatic ignition cut on upshifts and a throttle blip on the way down, meaning the car can be driven clutchless on the move. It renders heel and toeing redundant (which is useful if, like me, you can’t do it) and cuts gearchange times to as little as 30ms on the way up and 100ms on the way down.

It proved hugely effective and very straightforward to use when driving hard. A switchable auto upshift system prevents over-revving if you fail to change up, although on this occasion I suspect it had been set somewhat low to prevent careless journos destroying the test car. Meanwhile, the downshifts were very rapid and reasonably smooth at higher engine speeds. Meandering out of the pits and when on the road the system is a little more intrusive, but a simple dip of the clutch smoothes over the changes.



The paddle-shift system proved very impressive and would no doubt be a useful addition to the club racer’s armoury. It also made for an incredible track day accessory and perfectly complemented the Caterham’s racy persona. The chance to sample it in such an evocative setting was fantastic and many thanks to Race Tech magazine and Quaife for the opportunity.