Club 80-90 Forums

Having issues selecting gears (esp first, the shifter selects what feels more like third!)
Decided to use the Bentley manual to help adjust gear selection. All went okay, and can select gears when still, but as soon as the truck moves, gear selection is very difficult... I cannot get first at all. Its even worse than before, and first/second are impossible to select

I centred what I believe to be the ' shift rod finger' to the housing, before setting the 23mm gap between the finger and the plate within the housing (see image)



So, where have I gone wrong? Can anyone advise?

With the stock gearstick a Syncro or 4 speed gearbox will push the selector ball at the gearbox into the 3rd,4th plane in neutral
So having visually checked that the nylon tips on the fingers of the front shift rod are present and intact - they often wear and or crack and break up/off leaving a thin bare steel finger (there are repair kits available for the guides)
Simplest way is to go underneath and lossen the pinch bolt in the middle that holds the two halves of the linkage together so they can rotate relative to each other and have 2nd person in the cab move the gearstick in netral left and right a few times across the gate and then hold it over to the right, person underneath checks the gearbox selector ball is pushed fully out (ie to the right) and is vertical (ie can be pushed in by hand and springs back out)
and then tighten the pinch bolt in that position
2nd person in cab can then go through the gears and select them all and the person under can see that the ball is being moved back and fro in the 3 available planes

You have your 1)plastic guides and alloy block at front bottom, s) the ball at bottom of stick and 3) the plastic selector at rear.

Chick which is loose.

I have done all three over the last 20 years. repair kits easily had.

good luck

Thanks for the replies.

I followed the Bentley instructions, loosening the pinch bolt, etc. but did not have someone in the cab to hold the stick, Aidan.
I'll repeat, this time with a spare body to make sure the stick positioned correctly.


I did notice that at the gearbox end, that although the selector was upright, there was 'wiggle' in the horizontal part of the mechanism, where it runs through a support/guide. I didn't have time to investigate further, but if you get hold of the gearbox side, it seems to pivot within the support - is this likely to be caused by a worn bushing?

Any recommendations on where to buy this, or the plastic finger guides mentioned by Aidan?

silverbullet wrote: ↑24 May 2026, 08:37 https://brickwerks.co.uk/product-catego ... cc72DxpDeJ

Thanks, I was looking on there earlier - there's so many options! 
So there *should* be nylon ends on the front forks of the shift rod? It's not really clear from the Bentley drawing. I'll have to order some. Has anyone fitted this 'softer' plastic option?

https://brickwerks.co.uk/product/gear-s ... ternative/

My opinion is biased as I make the premium tip repair kit for BW.
The originals were a molded hard nylon type material that was formed directly onto the shift rod, impossible to replicate so I chose to go with a hard engineering polymer that will successfully bond with epoxy and a soft alloy rivet pin for security.
Can't speak for the cheap copies, not my work.

silverbullet wrote: ↑24 May 2026, 16:17 My opinion is biased as I make the premium tip repair kit for BW.
The originals were a molded hard nylon type material that was formed directly onto the shift rod, impossible to replicate so I chose to go with a hard engineering polymer that will successfully bond with epoxy and a soft alloy rivet pin for security.
Can't speak for the cheap copies, not my work.

Thanks Silverbullet, appreciate your openness. I'll be swapping to an 094 box hopefully later in the year, so didn't see the point in the more expensive option at the moment, just wondered what the cheaper one was like.

The syncro variant of the 094 transmission uses a 4-speed derived gear linkage.
The 5-speed 2wd uses a different gear selector arrangement at the gear lever end.

silverbullet wrote: ↑25 May 2026, 06:19 The syncro variant of the 094 transmission uses a 4-speed derived gear linkage.
The 5-speed 2wd uses a different gear selector arrangement at the gear lever end.

Oh, that's interesting, I saw that there was five-speed specific parts and assumed they were for all models.
You live and learn! Seeing as I can keep them when I fit the five-speed, decided to order the luxury version 

if you use the 4 speed gearstick and linkage with a 5 speed you will still have to go under the gate to get 1st, just like selecting G in a the Syncro
Don't get lazy about it and pull away in 2nd all the time, the gearbox won't appreciate it