Limp Shifter

[smestas]

I was going for a drive today and started to notice that I was having a real hard time getting into 3rd. After a bit more of shifting it wouldn’t go into 3rd at all. A few seconds of trying to get it into gear and the whole stick went limp. Since I was holding up traffic I coasted to the side to see what was going on. I thought perhaps I should check my shift coupler. A few months back I had replaced it and never did screw down the cover plate. When I opened up the cover I saw the problem right away. It seems that the pin that goes thru the bushings and coupler had somehow worked its way out! I was able to manually get the car back into second gear and cruze home for a repair. It took me a bit to find the pin, which had rolled up the tunnel. After half an hour of fishing I was able to retrieve it and get it all reassembled.

Should I put some epoxy on this pin? Has this ever happened to anyone else?

[jmohn]

I replaced the bushings in my coupler a few weeks ago and it took considerable pressure (I used a vise) to drive that pin out and back in; I can't imagine it working it's way loose on it's own unless the coupler you put in was, somehow, defective. You don't say in your message, but did it take a lot of force to reinstall the pin? If not, there's something drastically wrong with the coupler or bushings. If you still have the old coupler (yeah, I hang onto some old parts "just in case") you could try putting new bushings in it and reinstalling it, or, I think, you'll need to get another new coupling.

Jerry M
'78 SC

[Jim Sims]

I would conclude the shift coupler is defective. One of my friends received a new OEM (in Porsche parts bag sealed with the official parts label sticker from a dealer) shift coupling last year in which the pin was so loose it fell out during shipping. He sent it back and received a good one in return. Apparently there are defective Porsche parts (remember the batch of defective oil pressure fed chain tensioners) and you may have ended up with one. That pin should be tight. You may be able to stake the aluminum and use epoxy to retain it temporarily but I would get another coupler. Good luck, Jim

[smestas]

Thanks for the replies!

The coupler that the pin fell out of was a whole new unit to replace one that was broken. I broke the original one trying to insert new bushings.

What I ended up doing was taking the pin and metal rod from my older one and using it in the new assembly. It seemed to fit much better then the one that came with and didn’t look like it needed any epoxy. I sure am glad that I never throw out any 911 odds and ends.