No 1st, 2nd, 5th, or Reverse

[Jimmer307]

Alright so today I took my 1995 Talon TSI AWD out for a spin because I felt bad that it just sits in my Grandparents garage all the time. I took it out, and it was running perfect. I was going up a hill in first gear and come to a stop sign so I put it in neutral. I go to put it into 1st gear and 1st gear is 3rd gear? So I decide to try and see if 2nd will work and 2nd gear is 4th gear? So at this point I'm thinking WTF. I was on my way to an important meeting, so I limp there and park my car. After my meeting I go to back out of my spot so, I put my car in what I think is reverse and it is 4th gear?

So the moral to the story is that I only have 3rd & 4th Gear. I can freely shift my shifter from top left to top right and I am still in 3rd gear & same goes for 4th gear only bottom left to bottom right. So it is like 1st, 2nd, 5th, and reverse don't even exist.

BTW: When I bought the car a month or so ago, I realized that the shifter seemed kind of sloppy. There was alot of side-side play in gear, but I never imagined that all but two of my gears would disappear.

My questions is WTF is wrong with my car?

****UPDATE****
Check post #7

 

[DSM nOOb]

sounds like a shift linkage problem on the cable that controls selection during side to side movement of the shifter.

 

[kqodprez]

Bolts on linkage are lose. Tighten them up and you should be fine. Happened to me back in the day and I thought I needed a new trans...

 

[Jimmer307]

I thought it was a tranny issue till I realized that 5th and reverse were out as well. I figured it wasn't that serious just didn't know what it was. I will check the shifter cables tomorrow. Since this happened, I plan on buying the symborski shifter kit and the brass shifter cable bushing kit as well. I want to make this as stiff as possible . I know I'm setting myself up for a "that's what she said," but I can't take that sloppy ass shifter I had. I am also considering buying a B&M short-throw shifter. Any input?

 

[1992GSX]

The same thing happened to me in my last tranny...although for me it turned out that my 1-2 and 5-R shift forks went out.

 

[Jimmer307]

Well I went to check under the hood today and everything seemed to be moving fine. The bushings on top of the tranny are pretty sloppy, but they are connected. The shifter components under the shifter are moving properly as well... I am going to replace the bushings & install the symborski kit and if that doesn't help than I dono wtf to do.

 

[Jimmer307]

****UPDATE****

The problem is extremely hard to expalin, but here it goes...
I can go into first and second, BUT if I shift it too far to the left with my shifter it misses 1st and 2nd and goes into 3rd or 4th... The shifter is very tight to the left (1st, 2nd, 3rd, & 4th) but very sloppy to the right (Where 5th & reverse should be). It just seems that the car ALWAYS wants to go into 3rd and 4th still. It is still very sloppy in gear, but tight in transition. I noticed something is loose on the thing the shifter cables connect to that actually change the gears in the transmission (sorry for the vague description, but I don't know what the #### it is called). Any further suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Jimmer307]

The problem was fixed. The problem was that one of the two bolts that hold the clutch cables to the transmission worked it self loose and fell off while I was driving. We popped a new bolt in there and it shifts PERFECT NOW. BTW in the process I put in the Brass shifter cable bushings in, and it is a night and day difference. These things take ALL play out of my shifter and it shifts rock solid. Now I am just waiting on my symbroski kit to show up before I put everything back together.