Odd Gear "feel" in tranny.

[rreimund]

I've searched high and low as I'm thinking this is possibly a common problem, but no luck.

I've been noticing that when i have my car in first gear and I take off, if I lightly touch the shifter i can feel what appears to me to be the tranny gears rubbing/tapping or something through the shifter. You can even see the shifter oscillate ever so slightly - faster as the speed increases and vice versa. I also can feel it a bit in second, though not as pronounced.

Tranny otherwise shifts great - no noises and good engagement, etc. I just had the tranny mounts replaced and the Guibo (flex disc) and center bearing as well.


Thoughts?

[Adnan]

Hi,

When the stick is pushed up, the fork in the shift rod will rub in the groove it's riding in. Normally, the fork will "float" within the groove, with minimal friction. What you are probably feeling is the friction that you are generating. Same is true for any gear, in general but it will depend on fork length, bushing design, etc.

The bobbing back and forth of the stick as you lift off or apply throttle is also normal as a box ages, in my experience. Others with more detailed Getrag expertise may offer more insight and I might be proven wrong. The torque of the engine causes wind-up in the gear train and this can result in fore and aft movement of the input shaft, which you notice as a movement of the stick. Remember that the gears are helical, and the screw action causes axial force.

What fluid are you using, BTW? I switched to Redline years ago and have been very happy with the results. You will encounter a heated debate of MTL vs. D4ATF (it's like Coke and Pepsi) but I went by Getrag's recommendation. There is a sticker on the bellhousing, visible from the engine compartment, that tells you whether your tranny uses ATF or gear oil. Mine required ATF.

Hope this helps,
Adnan

[Paul in NZ]

i can see the stick shift slightly too as you throttle on and off,its normal as the whole engine and transmission move as the engine tourque twists the engine,and the mass of the car does the reverse if you are on overun....i also get tht slight rumbly feel if you hold the shifter lightly ,no noise or anyother worrying symptoms.My gearbox whines a bit in third more than any other gear too.

[gale]

Mine will do that more often than not, usually in 3rd or 4th. If I momentarily change gears and put it back into the gear it was in, it will usually go away. Sometimes it takes 2 or 3 shifts like that to smooth it out. The donor trans has 145k on it. Don't know it's prior fluid change history from before 130k when I acquired it. I just figure behavior like that is the nature of the beast for an aging trans, but I'm told they're good for excess of 400k miles if they get regular fluid changes and aren't mistreated.

I usually don't worry about the chatter unless I'm cruising for an extended distance and then I'm more diligent about doing the shift routine to get it to smooth out.

[ThoreauHD]

Is there any truth to the rumor that you need to change manual transmission fluid twice as often as a automatic? Say if the auto is 60K transfluid/pan replacement, you hit the manual at 30K miles. I don't have a manual, so I'm not certain myself.

[rreimund]

Well, I've got the Redline MTL waiting to go in. So perhaps that will remedy the issue somewhat. It's not something I'd really noticed before I got all the work done. But it might just be that I'm paying more attention to see how it all feels now. Also could be that with the tranny mounts changed, etc. it just got shifted a bit and it's more noticeable. Just wanted to make sure it wasn't real bad. :-)