Can't Shift Into First

[OsoMoore]

Any tricks to getting the last roller bearing for the 1st/2nd gear shaft on? The "book" says to heat to 120 and use a special tool, but I'm hoping there's a trick to make it simpler than that.

[OsoMoore]

Got it! Just put the bearing in the oven at 250F for 20 minutes. Then the bearing dropped on without any force necessary. Output shaft assembly complete!

[OsoMoore]

Didn't have an engine hoist or a high torque wrench. O'Reilly lent me one (no charge if I return it).
I need to be able to torque bolts to 181lbs to prepare to adjust the shift forks. But I can't do that with the transmission un-braced. So then I mounted the transmission on the engine with the end still off. Then I easily torqued bolts with the engine bracing things. Getting there!

[OsoMoore]

Finished adjusting the forks, and put the intermediate housing back on.
Ran into a little problem. When I engage first and fifth to lock the shaft, I after a bit of torque I started to get movement again. Because I was torquing on the small shaft (input?) it began to turn the engine counter-clockwise. That's a no-no, so I stopped.

Back when I had the jig on, I engaged two gears at once to torque the bolts before adjusting the forks. But now with the housing on I can't. I think I might have engaged 1st and 3rd when I had the jig, but now I have to engage fifth and another. With the jig on you could engage both the 1/2 and the 3/4 shafts at the same time. With the housing on, detents eliminate that option.

So I have two questions:
1) Am I going to need the shaft locking tool to torque these things back on? Or is there some combination of gear engaging that will suffice?
2) When I was trying to tighten the input shaft, when I was getting close to torque, resistance suddenly dropped and I stopped. This is when the engine began to turn backwards. I thought having two gears engaged at once would prevent this. Is it possible something was damaged? All the gears seem to be engaging fine now. I'm not sure if I should take off the intermediate housing and look.

[OsoMoore]

Back to valve adjusting until I figure out what to do next. Any ideas are appreciated.

[OsoMoore]

Valve adjustment went great, and I'm back to brainstorming the right way to lock the shafts for tightening the final two nuts.

Also discovered I had the wrong nut for one shaft, so that's another PP order.

Here's the new valve video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68vmdOfeQdE

[uwanna]

Originally Posted by OsoMoore

Valve adjustment went great, and I'm back to brainstorming the right way to lock the shafts for tightening the final two nuts.

Also discovered I had the wrong nut for one shaft, so that's another PP order.

Here's the new valve video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68vmdOfeQdE

Found this post on locking in two gears. I did it this way on my 915, and it worked great.
It's ironic that your thread and his have the same name!

Can't Shift Into First

[OsoMoore]

Originally Posted by uwanna

Found this post on locking in two gears. I did it this way on my 915, and it worked great.
It's ironic that your thread and his have the same name!

Can't Shift Into First

Ok, I'll do exactly what he did. I'm worried because I thought I was doing something similar, but was getting rotation. I'll probably take the housing off to verify nothing went wrong inside, then put it back together for the final torquing.

I can't wait to get this over!

[OsoMoore]

The transmission is back together. Hopefully I can put the whole thing into the car tomorrow. I'll probably have a few more questions then.
Thanks for the help everyone!

[OsoMoore]

The engine is back in! My amazing and beautiful wife spent 2.5 hours helping me ease it carefully into place. We raised the car high, rolled engine underneath, and then lowered down onto big jack stands. Then with a small jack under the transmission and a large jack under the engine, maneuvered it into place until we could screw in the mount bolts. Now I just have to hook every thing back up!

Am I lucky or what?

[OsoMoore]

So, things are going back together (after a break to watch the Bear's game).

But I have a few hangups.

What is this rotating rod with two arms on it? I also seem to recall it had a wire thingy on it, but I can't find the wire. Its not mentioned in the various manuals (or I don't know where to look).


I seem to recall this connector being un-connected before the engine ever came out. Does anyone know what its normal role is?


Also, the "Throw-Out Lever Shaft Lower Circlip" on the bottom of the transmission over-expanded when I removed it, so I'm going to need a new one. Is this generic enough that I can find one at the local level? Or am I going to need to order online for a tiny ring?

[john walker's workshop]

throttle bellcrank, old voltage regulator plug, which is not needed now because you have an internal regulator and the old one has been removed. the clutch cable goes over the bellcrank, not under, as pictured.

[OsoMoore]

Thank you JW. I still have a long way to go on knowing what everything is.

Now to find one of those circlips locally... I know some guys who rebuild 915's and I suspect they will sell me one for less than the cost of getting one shipped across the country.

[Jon B]

Originally Posted by OsoMoore

The bellcrank lever has been installed backwards in this photo.

[911pcars]

This might provide faster response as to how parts fit together or are related to other parts:

Genuine Parts Catalogue - Classic Genuine Parts & Technical Literature - Porsche Classic - Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG

[OsoMoore]

Flipped the bell crank lever around and found the throttle linkage wire on my shelf.
CV joints greased and installed.
Hooked up many pipes, tubes, and lines.
Filled oil as well as dumped 1 cup onto valve covers. Looked great on the clean paper I put down to detect leaks.
Battery back in. FP relay back in.

Crank. Crank. Crank. Crank.
Surely it just needs to get fuel pressure up again.
Crank. Crank. Crank. Crank.

I know to troubleshoot this, so I pull an injector and stick it into my handle glass bottle. Sure enough, no fuel.

Hmmm, didn't I park it with a nearly empty tank? And she's at an odd tilt angle on jacks still.
2 blocks to the gas station and 2 gallons of gas in the gas can...

VRRRRRMMMMM!!!

(Ok, it was rough at first because there was a small vacuum leak but I found it quickly.)

Now I have to go to sleep/work and other silly stuff. And then I can adjust the clutch/linkage and put some wheels back on it.

Thanks everyone who helped me feel able to do something this crazy!

[OsoMoore]

Got her the rest of the way assembled and went around the block a few times.

I need to do more clutch adjustment. I was hoping to avoid adjusting at the pedal (it worked great before I disassembled) but so far I haven't been able to find a good setup using only the adjustable bolt and the nuts on the line itself. Right now the clutch seems to bind a little when you reach full push.

I did a fair bit of linkage adjusting for shifting. Second gear is a little odd, but goes in alright when rolling. Maybe the new synchro needs to wear in some? I'm going to play with that linkage a little more. I was hoping it would go in really smoothly. I'm going to take a look at the front bushing for the shifter. The back one looks fine.

[OsoMoore]

I had some wierdness because the little aluminum bolt in the linkage worked loose. All my linkage adjustment in the world doesn't help if the other side of the joint is loose! Now she is shifting great. Second gear is wearing in and becoming smoother and easier.

Sometimes I shift into second for fun! Garage is clean, car is back together, and life is good. I'll post a wrapup with tips I used a little later when I have time.

[OsoMoore]

Drove the car a good 50 miles more today and she is running great. Here area few things I learned, which might be helpful for people doing similar rebuilds.

1. Read John Walker's thread here: Can't Shift Into First
2. You don't need the special transmission output shaft lock tool. Just engage two gears at once. I usually used 5th and 3rd: Can't Shift Into First
3. You don't need an engine stand to do the job. Torque on and off the big shaft bolts while the transmission is bolted to the engine so it will counteract your pressure. Just be sure you locked per tip #2.
4. If you can't get your synchro rings to stay put while putting in the big circlip, just use some wire ties: Can't Shift Into First
5. Get OEM parts, the R&S ones might set you back a week when you have to return them.
6. You can probably get a local shop to press old dog teeth off and new back on for a few dollars. A Porsche shop will have all the tools on hand.
7. You don't need a shop to put the last roller bearing back on when reassembling the shaft. Just put the bearing in the oven at 250 for a little while, and then it will drop right on to the shaft perfectly.
8. When putting the engine back in, don't forget the throttle and clutch cables go below the transmission mount harness.
9. Finally, use the PP search and don't be afraid to ask. We have amazing experienced folks here who do far more than can be reasonably expected.

Thanks again everyone and good luck! If someone is ever near Milwaukee and needs a hand, send me a PM.
- David