Lost 2nd, 4th, and Reverse last night.

[bryanthompson]

They're just gone. No grinding, no strange sounds, just, can't seem to find 2nd, 4th, and reverse. It felt really strange limping down the highway, shifting from 1st to 3rd to 5th, but I ended up making it home.

I think the problem is in the linkage somewhere, because the pattern seems waaay off. When I was able to get 4th gear, it seems like I had to push the stick very hard to get to gear, but the upper gears seemed to catch earlier than usual... know what I mean? As if the whole shift pattern has moved down (toward the back of the car, and maybe a little to the right) 1/2"

Tomorrow I'm going to go out and look her over... hopefully it's nothing. If it's something big, though, I'm going to go get a beater car to drive for the next two months, and wait for my new tranny to arrive. I saw this coming, so one of our board members agreed to sell me a used one, and a rebuildable engine to toy with.

Are there any common parts in the linkage that get bent, wear out, or break that could cause this to happen, or should I be looking at synchros and things that are more difficult?

[ae1969]

99% linkages.........

Raise the car up.......and you should be able to shift it manually back at the tranny.

This happened to me before.........

[bryanthompson]

Thanks, alex I hoped that was the case, as it didn't make the crunch of death sound. We gotta do something about keeping the evil kittens out of our cars... if they aren't playing with timing belts, they're messing up our trannies. Not to mention the paw prints on my freshly washed car!

[speedracing944]

bryan,
There is a bolt at the back of the tranny which has safety wire going through it to prevent it from loosening. This bolt is what keeps the shift rod attached to the tranny. I would bet if you looked at the shift rod going to the tranny, the bolt is loose or missing and the rod pulled out a little.

Speedy

[bryanthompson]

Thanks, man. I'll check that out.

BTW, I'll be up in madison on the 10th, but we leave the next morning. One of these times, we'll be able to meet up!

[speedracing944]

maybe we can meet for a beer at the Great Dane friday night. I will PM you with my phone number.

Speedy

[bryanthompson]

woohoo! That bolt was the culprit, speedy. Thanks for your help! While I was in there I changed the tranny oil, and man... I don't think she's ever shifted soo smoothly. Also, there's no slop in the forwards-backwards motion. perrrrfect!

[speedracing944]

The bolt should have a hole in the head of it so you can safety wire it to eliminate the bolt working loose. Did you install the safety wire?

[bryanthompson]

The bolt that I took out didn't have a hole in the head. I've highlighted it in this pic from clarks-garage... Is it possible that it's not an original bolt? If it's incorrect, I need to order the right one so this doesn't happen again.

[speedracing944]

The bolt in the picture with the wrench on it was the one I was thinking about. That one should have safety wire on it... not sure about the one which was loose for you.

Speedy