A little snippet I never knew that worried Issigonis about introducing the rod change...........
"Even as the new (BL) management was rather apologetically launching the Maxi in April 1969 – with off-the-record hints of ‘not invented here, at least, not by us’ – work was in hand to address the more glaring weaknesses of the car.
An even longer-stroke version of the E Series, the 1750cc unit, was created for greater power, and a rod-operated gearshift was developed. (for younger readers the Maxi was launched originally with a very poor cable operated gear change).
All of the transverse-mounted BMC-style power units – A, B, and E series – were to be progressively moved to this rod-type remote control. Issigonis had been well aware of the possibility of simplifying and improving the gear change linkages in this way, with the control rod entering the gearbox low down at the rear.
However, he did not want to put his trust in the sliding oil seal that this required, as it was well below the surface of the oil in the transmission/sump. Though, by and large, these seals proved reliable, provided that they were not damaged during assembly."
Source:
http://vehicle-engineer.com/Sections/Th ... ord3=Rover