newbie needs help

[cooperjosh]

hi all. I am new here but have been on other x sites. I am in north county San Diego and my x is stuck at my office, Here is the deal. 04' v6 mt, 2wd, 111000 miles on her. its stuck in 3rd gear and cant get it out. I was stopped shifted 1, 2, 3rd, tried to down shift and nothing. just did a new clutch about 5000 miles ago. the past day i herd a slight grind as i down shift. I can roll the truck running or not with the clutch peddle pressed. i cant get the thing out of 3rd any way i try. any advice. I am very tight on cash and need the truck for both jobs. Am i looking at syncros, shift fork... i am not afraid to with guidance i am not afraid to tear the trans apart but have never done something like that before. Can anyone help in any way before i drop more $ than i have. I opened the shift tower and cant see anything wrong in there. thanks for any help or support

[superslidestyle]

Sounds like you lost the 3rd/4th gear synchro.  Don'T even attempt to work on the tranny internals.  Its a specialty thing to work on them.  At this point you can either rebuild it, starts at $850 & up, buy a rebuilt one, $1200 & up, or buy a junkyard tranny, if you can find it, and hope its in good condition, $300 & up + time + mechanic fee.

[Bobby B.]

It's not brain surgery, it's a mechanical device.  It comes apart, it goes together, etc. 

Did you do the clutch or have it done?  Did you crawl under there and see if the clutch fork is in place and moves when someone steps on the clutch pedal?  I remember X2THAT's trans broke in that area inside from rust and crud.  Have also seen the clutch plate's "fingers" snap, get jammed, etc.  When the clutch was replaced, were all of the other important parts replaced/serviced correctly (pilot bushing/throwout bearing replaced, flywheel resurfaced, oil leaks from a failing rear main seal taken care of, etc.).

I'd start by looking at the clutch, then working off into the trans.  I know it's a pain to get in there, you have to pull the T-bars before the trans making for more work, but it's all doable.  If it is the trans, then in all likelihood it might be easier and quicker to find a local replacement in lieu of rebuilding, but you can rebuild it if you want.

[cooperjosh]

I replaced the clutch myself, new every thing and had and had the flex plate resurfaced. everything was working fine. When it first happened, I was able to press the clutch and the truck could roll with the engine on or off. I pulled the trans out today, to take it to a shop or do it myself. the clutch plate, fork and bearings look and spin just fine. I put the shifter back in and it's still stuck in gear. I pulled the shift tower plate off and don't see anything wrong or odd in there. I think its in the gear box. I'm not sure if it's a synchro or a shift fork. I did some searching on line and found an exploded view of a trans from a 84 datsun, the trans # matched i hope. The PDF included a trouble shooting section that identified the stuck in gear as a possible shift fork. I cant find a mech shop manual beside the standard ones from perts stores. does anybody happen to have one I could use? Thanks for the input!

[superslidestyle]

Its a synchro.  As a veteran mechanic and motorhead, I'm telling you, you won't be able to rebuild it yourself.  the biggest problem is in taking measurements of tolerance, seeing which gears need replacing (cause there will be major damage) and which you can reuse.  That is where experience comes in.  You need a gasket and seal kit, bearing kit, and who kows what else.  If you want it done right, to last, get it rebuilt.  Take it from those who have gone before you. 

[superslidestyle]

I dont' agree with Bobby with that, "its easy to do and anyone can do it" mentality.  However, he is right in that you should start with the clutch.

[Bobby B.]

I dont' agree with Bobby with that, "its easy to do and anyone can do it" mentality.  However, he is right in that you should start with the clutch.

Never said it would be easy, but if someone wants to tackle it, there's no reason they can't if they study up and get the tools they need.  Anyone can learn to do it if they're willing to put in the time.  Otherwise there wouldn't be so many knuckle-dragging idiots working at transmission shops doing shit work while at the same time giving knowledgeable and quality mechanics a bad name.

Everyone has to learn somewhere, should they want to.  Way to pass along some encouragement.  Good job there SS.

[superslidestyle]

No, you are correct.  Everyone has to start somewhere and go tru the trial and error thing, so I'm sorry if it sounds like I was shooting him down.  Hey, if you do tackle this, post it up here with pics so that we can learn too.