OK this is driving me nuts.

Pretty much every gear is smooth as can be, but whenever the engine is loaded (WOT or 3/4 throttle) I can't get the car to shift into 4th gear. Sometimes I'll pull until it goes in, or I'll pull down and it goes into 2nd, but I can't seem to get it into 4th when the engine is loaded.

When cruising, it goes right in, no problem at all, no grind, etc.


If the syncro was bad, wouldn't it grind? I'm not getting any grinding noise at all, the only thing that happens is it physically won't go into 4th gear no matter how hard you pull, and it ends up going into 2nd if you pull too hard.

Time for a tranny rebuild?

 

interesting, FD's dont really have shifter linkage do they? its just a shifter straight into the gearbox? i'm interested in seeing what some of the guru's have to say on this... subscribing..

 

Hmm, I'm a little confused on how you're shifting.

 

I am not very familiar with the transmission, but I do know that my 4-5 shift which most people have a problem with is perfectly fine, but under load from 3-4 it is nearly impossible.

 

usually its either a 2-3 or 4-5 shift that messes ppl up, if your getting into 2nd easier then 4th maybe your engine is flexing too much and you shouldnt aim where 4th usually is but rather a lil to the right.....???

 

I'll try that and report back.

 

I had that problem with my VW Corrado. Under load, it was much harder to shift into certain gears (can't remember which ones.) I know this doesn't help, but you're not alone Mike

 

Check for worn engine mounts.

 

Will do

 

Is there a lot of play in the shifter? If there is, it could be just a bad bushing or something along those lines. Just get a short shifter.

 

I have a brand new Mazdatrix Short throw shifter....so no that isn't the problem.

 

a corrado will have linkages going from the shifter to the transaxle, underload sometimes they dont line up with the gears at all making it close to impossible to shift into certain gears at WOT type shifts, this shouldn't affect FD's i wouldn't think since all they have is a shifter straight into the transmission, as far as i know at least... i would think shifting a little to the right would help, but i figured he would have tried that already...

 

This is a really stupid question but it somewhat concerns me. I'm going to attempt to shift into 4th under load tonight by aiming a bit more to the right, BUT is it possible that I could actually shift the car into reverse and flow the transmission? Or is there something in place that prevents this from happening. I'm not familiar with these transmissions and I wanted to make sure I don't blow mine into pieces.

 

????

 

no yo wont be able to actually get it into reverse, there should be a lockout that clicks over and doesn't allow you to shift into reverse after like 5mph, but if it doesn't work the syncro's will make a lot of noise and you'll stop trying to go in reverse, very minimal damage to a part that was designed to be damaged ...

 

Awesome, that's what I figured. Thanks for the reply

 

I'm sorry to bring this thread up, but it seems i get the same problem for some reason... Around 7k or so... i can't get it into 4th fast... I ended up going in 2nd which reved the hell out of it... Did you figure out what it was?

 

You missed 4th and hit 2nd.

That should be entirely unrelated to a clunky 3rd-4th shift.

Generally speaking, a not-smooth shift suggests some worn hard parts and synchros. It doesn't really matter which, since the cost to get in there far enough to fix it is several times more than the parts you end up replacing. It just becomes a tranny rebuild.

Dave

 

Well first time i tried to shift fast from 3rd to 4th... it grinded a little as i got between 2nd and 4th... So that was a waste... Then second time i tried it i got it into second gear...

I think it may have something to do with the slight vibration i'm getting when i'm trying to start from the stop in 1st gear... i have a torque brace only and i think the Motor mounts have gone south....

 

By all means fix the motor mounts ASAP before you grind up the tranny or tear into it.

Dave

 

I get the same vibration when I take off in first! Its like a rattling lol... any clue to what it is? Motor mounts?