New 911

[Roger Hall]

I inherited a 1984 Carrera that had been sitting in a garage for 7+ years. 1st and 2nd were rough from day one. I changed the gear oil and found lots of little needle shaped filings on the drain plug. It ran much quieter but in less than 100 miles when I was slowly pulling out of a parking lot towards a stop sign then I shifted into first and all I could find was 3rd gear. Seems like I am looking at rebuilding the 915 gearbox. The car only has 61,000 original miles on it so I am a bit surprised but it is what it is. Any thoughts or suggestions?

[Knockdown]

Have you checked the shift coupler bushings, shift rod bushing and shifter cup bushing? After awhile these plastic parts have a tendency to disintegrate.

[tdw28210]

Agree with Knock.. Check the connections and couplings before cracking open the 915. My shift rod ball cup had almost completely broken free in my 85. Someone with bigger huevos than me welded it back in place while still in the tunnel.... Next to the fuel lines.... Yikes

[72911]

Yup,
Same thing happened to me while driving back from the vintage races in Watkins Glen last year. I had to stay in 5th gear for about 2.5 hours because I couldn't get into any other gear. The shift rod seal had been leaking and trashed the coupler bushing. It came apart in small chunks.

[Roger Hall]

Agreed I plan on going through the Shift linkage first but the bits of metal on the drain plug are a bad sign

[Peter Zimmermann]

Originally Posted by Roger Hall

Agreed I plan on going through the Shift linkage first but the bits of metal on the drain plug are a bad sign

If those metal bits are small gear teeth, then yes, it's a bad sign. If the metal is primarily "hair," then maybe not. If the gear oil was never changed that could be normal wear. A good linkage inspection is necessary because it sounds like you have a bushing/coupler problem. BTW; what kind of gear oil did you use?

[Luccia at Pelican Parts]

Congrats on the inheritance! I believe we have some articles covering the shifting components so be sure to take a look (posted below). Would love to see some pictures of it as well, if you have any. There are many moving parts in the transmission, and they have a tendency to drop small microscopic metal particles into the oil. Can read more in our transmission fluid article here: Porsche 911 Transmission Fluid Replacement | 911 (1965-89) - 930 Turbo (1975-89) | Pelican Parts DIY Maintenance Article. I also posted some Pelican threads below that might give you some additional input on the metal shavings.

Porsche 911 (1965-1989) Technical Articles - Pelican Parts
Too much metal on my tranny drain plug? Should I be concerned?
Transmission Problem: Metallic Shavings in the FLuid