gearbox 1st gear problems

[drumnut182]

Anyone know how to take out the shift shaft on a 5speed diesel gearbox? Once you have the nut off will it then slide out or do i have to dismantle the box?...its the thingy which has the gear shift lever attached to it which goes at right angles accross the gearbox which selects the gears......mine doesnt go into 1st gear and i cant work out why!! this is my next investigation point...after looking at the lever linkage etc....have got all gears except 1st...cant work it out...any help would be apreciated.
Thanks. ROB

[Fritz]

Rob,,,,,,,,,it looks like you have answered your own qusetion,,,,,YES THE box will have to be stripped to get the selector shaft out .

There could be a number of reasons why you can't get 1st gear, and the only way you will know is to have the box taken apart to find out......

OR simply drop the gear oil then have a fish about with your finger through the drain hole once the flow has ceased,,,,,,if you start finding slices of gear teeth, broken springs, brass coloured bits in the oil, it might just be cheaper to find another box to solve your problem......

Regards

Fritz,,,,,,,,,

[carl666]

I have a petrol don't know if the gearboxes and linkage is the same but I had the same issue couldn't get 1st ....ended up lossening the pinch bolts on the shaft between the gear stick and the gear box and moving the linkage one spline at a time until I could get all the gears.
Takes a while but it's worth the trouble......I think there could be something on WIKI about it.

[drumnut182]

ok thanks....have drained oil and nothing other than fine metal filings came out (or were stuck to magnetic plug) no heavy bits, so that was ok.....then i thought id disconnect the linkage completley and try just to click the gearshift lever on gearbox into place in the 1st gear position. It wouldnt go there...all the other ones were ok and freely clicked int their repective positions but not 1st....therefore i would gather from that that the prob is in the gearbox not anything to do with the linkage (which all worked fine before) ...otherwise it would go in!
So, i want to take the gearbox shift arm off and replace (as i have the old gearbox one which works fine in 1st) assuming that that might do it!
If not then its a take gearbox apart time which i obviously want to avoid if poss!
So can i remove it and replace it whilst still on vechicle? Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks

Note: Im able to drive around with all gears at except 1st with no noise or rattles and they all go in ok (except 1st!)