2G Weirdest Transmission issue…

[Dave_UK]

This is officially the weirdest transmission issue I’ve ever come across!!

Replaced the clutch slave and master cylinders (with huge help and thanks to @EC17PSE) and ran an STM braided line kit directly from the master to the slave. Clutch worked fine, no issues, parked the car up.

Went back to it today, and it was in gear. A bit weird as I never leave cars in gear and as far as the shifter in the cabin was concerned, it was in neutral.

Clutch down, popped it in and out of a few gears and eventually the car was genuinely back in neutral. Left it for a few mins to answer the phone, came back to the car…. Back in gear….??? With the shifter still in the neutral position….?

Any ideas??? (FWD GST by the way)

 

[dwb]

Maybe you have a vacuum line acting like a rubber band and interfering with the shift arms. Take a look around and make sure nothing is touching your shift arms/cables, both under the console and at the trans.

I never park a manual trans car in neutral unless I have the wheels chocked. I always put it in 1st. Can't trust a parking brake 100%.

 

[luv2rallye]

Check the shifter bushings at both ends of the shifter cables. Also make sure the shifter cable set casings are properly clamped down on the tranny so they can't move.

 

[pauleyman]

Its not possible for in car shifter to be in neutral but trans is in gear. Cable or bushings have something wrong. Loll at everything you touched and check where cables bolt onto trans. ....
Gary beat me to it.

 

[Dave_UK]

Its not possible for in car shifter to be in neutral but trans is in gear. Cable or bushings have something wrong. Loll at everything you touched and check where cables bolt onto trans. ....
Gary beat me to it.

I wish that were true but...

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So I had a buddy come over and sit in the car while I tried a few things....

1. With the car sat on the floor "in neutral" trying to move the car turns the engine over.
2. Depressing the clutch, 1st, 3rd, 5th are all easy to select, 2nd is tough, 4th near impossible.
3. If you depress the clutch, rock the car even just a tiny amount, it will slip into 4th no problem.
4. Go from 4th to neutral, car is fine and can be rocked easily.
5. Leave it for 10-15 minutes, come back to the car, shifter is still in neutral but the car has slipped back into gear, not sure which one but 4th gear is looking like the culprit.

Could the shifter cables be THAT BAD they are shifting the transmission back into 4th without actually moving the shifter in the car?

 

[Dave_UK]

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Video of the shifting. Please excuse the poor audio....

 

[pauleyman]

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Video of the shifting. Please excuse the poor audio....

It has to be something physical at the trans. 2 4 and reverse all push the select lever at the trans forward. Check to make sure a radiator hose, wire etc isn't in the way.

 

[Dave_UK]

It has to be something physical at the trans. 2 4 and reverse all push the select lever at the trans forward. Check to make sure a radiator hose, wire etc isn't in the way.

I will check thank you, Would this still occur even though rocking the car on its wheels, even a fraction, frees up the shifter? Surely it would refuse to go into gear under all conditions if it was being physically restricted by another component?

 

[pauleyman]

I will check thank you, Would this still occur even though rocking the car on its wheels, even a fraction, frees up the shifter? Surely it would refuse to go into gear under all conditions if it was being physically restricted by another component?

Most common issues I see are if you have fmic piping etc. 2g also has a weight on the shifter that sometimes interferes. It should be obvious at trans side. Stick your hand in there and shift it at the trans.

 

[luv2rallye]

- From your video, the shifter itself IMO appears sloppy. Remove the console and inspect it.
- Another thing you could check is the Select Lever Shoe as it wears down over time (https://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/97-gs-t-fifth-gear-grinding-help.376341/#post-152266167) and then creates problems. You disassemble the shift levers on the tranny to inspect it (to remove and measure the Select Lever Shoe piece).
- Watch the shift levers position closely while an assist rocks the car. Perhaps even measure their exact before and after rocking positions.
- Another thing is if the shifter cables aren't clamped down on the tranny and on the shifter or have too much lengthy "curve" in them. If they are allowed to move around and back, the inner cable can move further/shorter than the casing depending on how much "curve" there is possibly shifting the gear. The outer casings should not move any direction or you will have shifting problems.