She's going into surgery this afternoon/tonight. And she should emerge in a couple of weeks(at the most) with a much more impressive powerhouse.
I have a couple of 5 speed vanette boxes at home (PNG) that I will bring back with me so the new year should see the 5 speed column shift introduced back into the little red riding hood.
As for brakes, I have the parts to make a disc setup but I just need the time to sit down and muck around with it all.
The conversion will be completely documented to help people gauge exactly how much work is involved to help pinpoint where their biggest complications may lie.