clunky, slightly awkward gear changes.

[Olly]

Hello,

Changing gear in my 1.6td van is becoming a bit clunky and awkward, especially in first 5 - 10 mins of driving. once or twice it hasn't wanted to get in 1st gear.

Does this sound like a lubricant issue, or worse?

Thanks

[Aidan]

Sounds like worn pinion bearing/failed first gear bearing, I'd drop the oil and check the magnet and see what you find, an oil change won't do any harm, probably improve it for a short while, then it will get worse, stop using it then. Thing is if the first gear bearing has collapsed it can damage the pinion shaft then the rebuild becomes very expensive.
Obviously you need to check the linkages too before condemming the box, but if it was ok and then became worse chances are something has gone or worn beyond limits

[Ian Hulley]

Changing gear in my 1.6td van is becoming a bit clunky and awkward

Sounds like my 5 speed did right before it dumped us in the services near Brussels with a broken synchro hub. Only difference is mine was worse the warmer it got.

Listen to Aidan, he da man

Ian.

[ermie571]

or it could simply be lubricant!

Mark came round and lubricated all the bits front down following some advice on here.....firstly, drop the spare tyre, and grease (spray or tube) the bottom of the gearstick. Then follow the gear linkage along van, and grease where-ever you can see some sort of join. Mark said the worst bit is above the fuel tank...I can't advise more as I was fiddling with something else! If I remember correctly, all the dirt from the road gets in there, and bungs everything up....think he said sommat about wd40 first to clean it up...could be wrong though.

The end result is from a heavy gear change to a very light and easy one! However, it always selected gears....never lost them or jumped out, which is probably an indication of something a little more serious


Em
x

[Mr Bean]

Nobody mentioned dragging clutch which is a classic - can't get into first gear - symptom. My 4/5 syncro hub failed at about 110,000 which several pepe's have said is not unusual. Apparently unless new they need crack testing before re-installation but are available new for under £100. Mine wasn't and it did busting the selector gismo but the gear change still worked but stifly. The aperture for the linear bearing was damaged and needed a cunning salvage. To be honest though my first gear selection was unaffected. I should also mention that it is not unusual to find early morning gear selection a bit stiffer in the very cold weather. To be honest while most say that gearbox is built like a brick toilet I find certain areas to do with gear selection somewhat flimsy and certainly not reflective of "Sound German Engineering". Couple that with an almost silent engine, a couple of very high top end gears and you have the recipe for overstressing.
Or is it just me?
Cheers
Wolfie

[Olly]

Thanks for advice everyone.

A mechanic told me it could be clutch drag, but that that would mean the biting point would now hit much sooner, which it doesn't, so going to try a gear box oil change and go from there.

Olly

[VWCamperfan]

It's been said on here before but good advice is always, well, good! Undo the filler plug first before draining the oil out. Some people have drained the oil first and then can't get the filler plug undone to fill it again!

[Olly]

Concerning my 1.6td 1988 van:

Does anyone have an exploded diagram from Bentley or similar of the gear selector lever, ball and cup, bushs, boots and bellows that they could e mail or put on the Wiki?

I have looked at the wiki which is really good and pretty comprehensive, but I'm getting a little confused as to the difference between all the boots and bushs etc and could could do with a really clear diagram. Have seen excellent photos on wiki too.

Realised I have a very sloppy change mechanism with loads of play and suspect this is certainly not helping my clunky gear changes.

Thanks to Mark too for the advice about getting gearbox oil filler undone before draining!

[T-3PO]

Olly, have a look at http://www.vagcat.com/epc/cat/vw/T2/1985/4/55/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Under "GEARSHIFT LEVER" the 5spd 1.6td is the diag on the right.

If it turns out to be just a sloppy gear lever then a rebuild kit, courtesy of the Brickwerks, is well worth the money and if you've got the spare cash the quick shift tops the whole lot off!