Car shifts harder at a stoplight than rolling up to the light.

wrinkledpants · 03-24-2013, 04:10 PM

Clutch was rebuilt at 90k miles with the G50 update, and has 200k on it now with some kind of Kennedy Racing stg 1 clutch. I've got the OE tranny oil in it (fresh, but will be trying the Delvac stuff), new shifter ball and cup, and the car shifts great when it's warmed up. But, when I come to a stop light, if I'm moving just a little it shifts into 1st fine. But, if I shift into neutral and take my foot off the clutch, and then try and shift back into first, It takes some force and patience to get it to slip in. Or, if I roll up to the light, shift into neutral without taking my foot off the clutch, it'll slip back into first just fine. But, once I take my foot off the clutch, it shifts hard. Shifts fine when the car is shutoff, too. I've tried going to 3rd into 1st, 2nd into 1st, but none of those combinations seem to help.

Brake fluid is topped off, pedal is firm (at least it feels that way), clutch engagement is towards the top of the clutch stroke. Normal?

JohnJL · 03-24-2013, 05:44 PM

So from waiting in neutral, clutch in and shifting into 2nd, then into 1st directly without any pause or clutching isnt smoothe?

porwolf · 03-24-2013, 05:57 PM

Shifting into 1st when the car is rolling slowly is always smoother than starting in first with the car standing. Same goes for reverse. I understand that is when the engine and wheel gears are matched pretty closely in speed, which is the perfect way to switch gears, even without synchronization. In your case though it should not be hard to go into first with car stopped. Something is not right with the transmission or clutch. Clutch alignment or gear shift linkage alignment?

wrinkledpants · 03-24-2013, 06:03 PM

If I shift into 1st while the car is rolling, push in clutch to stop, and then not let the clutch out until the green light - I can shift in and out of first pretty easily. Other gears, too. It's when I let the clutch out in neutral at the light, push the clutch back in, and try to get the car into any gear.

I can keep the clutch in, shift in and out of any gear. At the same stoplight, I can then let the clutch out in neutral, and it's tough to get back into gear. Even though just a few seconds ago it was easy to shift in and out of first. For some reason, letting the clutch out at a stop light always makes it hard to get back into gear. So, I've gotten into a habit of keeping the clutch in at a light, but it's tough during stop and go traffic. It takes so long to get the car into gear if I let the clutch out in neutral that I can't get it into gear fast enough if I want to wait for a green light to shift back into first.

Not sure it would be an alignment or linkage since it seems to be dependent on whether I let the clutch out or not. I'm not savvy in the internals of a tranny or how it works - so it's hard for me to understand what's happening when I let the clutch out in neutral, and why that would create a different shifting situation than if I had just left the clutch pushed in.

wrinkledpants · 03-24-2013, 06:06 PM

So in summary:

- car shifts into first while rolling smoothly
- car shifts in and out of first if I approach a light in first gear already, and don't let the clutch out during the red light.
- if I approach in first, shift in and out smoothly while at the let and not letting the clutch out, but then let the clutch out in neutral, THEN when I got to get back into first, it's hard shifting. Basically, if I let the clutch out at the light, it will be tough to get back into first.

Jcslocum · 07:45 PM

I would bleed the clutch and change the oil to the Delvac and see how that goes. I think you just might have a slight clutch dis-engagement issue, which bleeding might solve. Is this a newish issue?

wrinkledpants · 03-24-2013, 06:36 PM

Yeah - I think it's a newer issue. I don't really remember it being an issue, but then my fluid got low, and I think I sucked air into the system. The brake light came on, but I had fluid above the min mark. That said, my parking garage has tall speed bumps in the inclines, so it's entirely possible that the fluid moved forward or backwards enough that I got air into the system. I filled it up, pumped the clutch a bunch with the car at odd angles hoping the air bubbles would work themselves out, and the clutch has returned to a normal firm feel. But, I don't know that it's entirely empty of air. So, maybe a tranny fluid change, and bleed the slave is where I will start.