Intermittent difficulty pulling out of gears
 

I have a 86 carrera with a 915 trans. I have recently been having some intermittent difficulty pulling out of gears. Going from 2nd to 3rd, 3rd to 4th or 3rd to 2nd. Its only a problem pulling it out of gear, not putting it in gear.

any ideas??

thanks

I've been having the same problem with 5th gear......I'm curious to see what other say.
Thanks, Stu

Difficulty pulling out of gears can sometimes be worn engine/tranny mounts. When you're on the power the engine/tranny is all twisted up and things get out of alignment. I recently replaced all my mounts with Wevos and was amazed at how much better the shifting got. If your shift rod/coupler bushings are old, that could be part of the problem, too.

Difficulty getting out of 5th can also be a problem with the 5th/reverse lock out, esp if you installed a factory short shift. The lock out cam gets jammed on the shifter. Pull the shift boot up and watch the mechanism to see if that's the problem.

I'd be inclined to think this is a linkage/alignment problem than a transmission problem, as all the transmission problems I've seen have been the car popping out of gear, not getting stuck in gear. But I've only been doing this for a couple years, so take that for what its worth (not much :)).

How big of a job is it to replace engine and tranny mounts?

thanks

I've also had random problems getting out of gear - but this is after I have coasted up to a stop light with the clutch in and maybe 3rd or 4th gear. I am completely stopped with the engine idling and sometimes I'll have to push hard to get the transmission out of gear.

Easy. I did mine in an hour. Just remember to put a jack under the engine when changing the mounts. :D

This is a problem that Porsche tried to address over many years with varying success.

Yes; linkage, mounts, lock-outs, and general age and wear & tear all have an effect. Try this thread ”915 Trans rebuild-internal diagnosis’

The ribs on the back side of the syncro are because Porsche thought the syncro got oil-stuck to the brake band. In fact that causes greater wear between the two. If there is any wear on the brake bands, replace them.

Of course the syncro ring is a wear part like a clutch disc or brake pad. The sliding sleeve is the other half like a pressure plate, flywheel or brake rotor.

Too often few inspect every little detail in a transmission and some noticeably worn parts keep being used. Those can gang-up and cause problems.

Best,
Grady

There is also a possibility that due to wear or maladjustment ... the clutch disk [or rusted/binding pilot bearing] could be dragging and never fully disengaged!

A dragging clutch disk means that constant torque is being applied to the transaxle input shaft, and that hydraulic/viscous drag can't properly slow down synchronizer components when the clutch pedal is depressed! The net effect is that shifting is more difficult ... especially 'pulling out of gear!'

A definitive indicator is whether or not grinding occurs when fully stopped and when trying to shift into reverse ... if grinding occurs consistently, SOMETHING is causing the transaxle input shaft to continue to apply torque while the clutch pedal is disengaged.

Rebuilding my transmission is on "THE LIST" I have been whittling down the easy things (like replacing my headliner :rolleyes: ) and building my confidence while reading threads like this. I wish that Wayne guy would write a book about transmissions LOL

i dont hear any grinding. just occasional resistance when i pull the stick out of 3rd and 4th gears. it happens about 30% of the time.

I started to rebuild my tranny using the articles from this site. So far, I have spent more time remove 2 stupid screws that actually tearing the gears apart. :p

The proper Porsche WSM test to check if the clutch disengages goes like this.

In neutral and at ilde with the transmission at operating temps press the clutch and wait exactly 10 seconds. Then switch into reverse. If there is even so much as a hint of grinding "something" keeps the input shaft spinning. If the clutch properly disengages the input shaft has stopped spinning by then and it goes into reverse without any noticable grind.

A bad or gunked up pilot bearing or a misadjusted clutch can be the culprit.

Hmmmm?
 

I had the exact same problem with my 915 after a number of rebuilds! See my thread: 'need 915 tranny advice'. It describes your problem to a 'T'. 4th attempt at fix was to replace motor mounts front and rear. The fronts were fine, rears 29 years old. Replaced all four mounts still had the same problem. Grady nailed it in his reply to my thread. 3rd & 4th gear syncros and slider were replaced. Problem solved.
Best of luck,

Re: Hmmmm?
 

how much was the syncro and slider replacement?

Lets see syncro rings (2), slider gear (1), gasget set (1) motor mounts (4), that's around $450-500 in parts. Could be all you need, but plan for the unexpected. Good luck