Electrics (Rear demister), Mechanics (1 & 2nd stiff)

[Rockyroad]

Hey guys,
love this resource just spent and easy hour or so reading about all the transmission oils to do's and not to do's. GL-5 alround transmission, safe for yellow metals (with preference for Mobil 1 Synthetic Gear Lubricant LS 75W-90 if i can find it )

Sometimes 1st/2nd are hard to get into, no crunching. when it happens it's worse on downshift. 3-2 extra pressure required by me and it goes in, 2-1 (like at lights when its red then turns green before you've come to a complete stop) I almost have to come to a complete stop before gear will go in, or clutch a few times and use more force. When stopped no hassles.

Potentially relevant info
-New clutch
-Not as bad after been driven for a while, I do 2 hour drives twice a week, usually no issues after long drive. Worse when cold.
-Reverse crunches on the odd occasion i.e. 1 every 20/30 times & not a bad crunch.
-clutch peddle vibrated while driving when clutch was first changed, i adjusted clutch tensioner and that stopped .

Also noticed some whining from transfer case (hubs locked 2H), so have unlocked my front hubs for now (sound gone), presume oil is required here. this has led me to think maybe the oil has been neglected in the transmission in general and my stiff gears are a result of this. I can't remember if the gear was an issue when i bought it in Nov, but it was a sunny day and had been driven, but the clutch was deffo bad at that point, massive juddering when letting it out in gear.

Got a new clutch immediately, and this problem has been consistent since, no better or worse but i can't ignore it any more.

Hence first port of call is new oil all round, transfer, gears, diffs.
but i read about plastic bits whats more likely oil or plastic bits broken?
any ideas?

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On the electrics end i have a couple of niggles,

before X-mas the whole dash went out, this was after requiring my fog lights on for a while (after-market). Next morning no dash, no radio no electricity internally. Front and rear lights worked so happy days cause it was dark before and after work!

bought an array of fuses and pulled them one by one to find the culprit, 20A looked really corroded, so i guess it was just old, no repeat issues since, but haven't required fog lights for any length of time. I think this one was just a coincidence.

However, while down there i was able to trace the rear de-fogger button and see that it was disconnected. there is a male/female connector but they are not connected. solid

Hence i have no de-fogger but I've been apprehensive to connect and see if it works cause i don't want the dash or other fuses to blow that might stop me driving.

What circuit would it be on? i.e. if it is faulty and causes a fuse to blow what else would be affected?

Just had a thought, my windows are tinted, maybe previous owner just disconnected it because the heat was causing it to bubble...hmmm

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As always any help appreciated,
Ros

[Bex]

GL-4 for tranny. GL-5 for differentials.
Regarding clutch issues - you should make sure that the clutch cable is adjusted correctly, no kinks, etc. The cable exerts tremendous pressure, and if you force it, it can actually crack your firewall. If the plastic pieces are gone on the shifter, it would be difficult to get the car into gear even if the car is stopped. Reverse can grind on occasion - it is not syncronized. I usually put the gearshift into another gear first, then into reverse. You should only go into reverse when the car is stopped.
Rear defroster works off its own fuse - 15amp - bottom row of the fuse box, 4th fuse from the left. Might be a good idea to check the fog light wiring - your radio and dash lights work off of two different circuits. Were your gauges working??

[Rockyroad]

Hi bex,
Cheers for the reply, fast as usual. I got the impression from others on here gl-4 was hard to come by. I take it, gl-4 is a better choice to gl5 (yellow metal safe) for tranny if i can find it, but am i right in thinking gl5 is ok for tranny as long as it is yellow metal safe?

Ill try your reverse gear trick.
So if the oil doesn't fix it and the clutch cable is connected properly (looked good when i adjusted) would it be worn gears? The clutch was very bad before i replaced it, could a bad clutch affect gears if used for a long time with a lot of clutch-riding?

Gauges i believe were working just couldn't see em when dark outside.

Thats great i'll connect defroster up. Yeah ill have a look at the fog light circuit when weather is more agreeable.

[Bex]

Many of the modern oils indicate GL3/4/5. You just must make sure that it is safe for yellow metals.
Regarding your clutch - did you also replace the cable? If the clutch is new, it shouldn't be biting that way, unless the cable isn't adjusted properly. Where on the pedal is the clutch engaging?? You need to confirm that the cable you replaced is the same exact cable as what was stock on the car. The cables have two separate ends - one with a lock nut, and one with a large rubber boot. They are not interchangeable. If you have a helper, have someone sit in the car, and you (of course) get under the car. Just at the end of the clutch cable, by the tranny, is a lever. Push that lever just until you feel resistance on it. Then have your helper depress the clutch pedal. The clutch cable should move forward one inch (not the sheath/covering, but the cable itself). If the cable does not move one inch, then either it's bad or is not adjusted properly (or you have problems with the clutch pedal assembly itself - check the mounts where the cable attaches to the pedal under the dash, as well as the mount just in front of the lever that you pushed). Also, if someone was driving the car and really forcing the cable, it is also possible that the welds on the clutch pedal itself are weakened. The enormous pressure that the cable exerts can crack these welds, as well.

And yes, new oil everywhere, if you have not already done so - tranny, transfer case, both diffs, etc. Just a warning: make sure that you can get the filler plug off, before you drain anything! It's a 10mm square socket for the plugs. Good luck.

[fordem]

RockyRoad - it sounds like you still have a clutch issue - can you consistently get into 1/2 with the engine off? if yes - it's a clutch drag problem.

[Bex]

Fordem, can you explain this further? If you can get into 1/2 consistently, but no other gear, etc., with car off??

[fordem]

You're slightly off track Bex.

It's not that he can get into 1/2 but no other gear - his post says that 1/2 are stiff - a 3-2 shift requires extra pressure and a 2-1 shift crunches - this points to either a problem with the synchros or the clutch. the fact reverse also crunches, points to the clutch.

Now - if there is a clutch drag problem - when the engine is running and the clutch disengaged (pedal depressed), the input shaft continues to turn - the problem may be that the pilot shaft bearing is defective, the clutch incorrectly adjusted, or even some sticky substance on the clutch - the main thing is the input shaft continues to turn when it shouldn't, and this rotation is what causes the crunch.

If the engine is off, the input shaft doesn't turn, you can shift with no additional pressure.

What we're doing is looking at the reported symptoms and the possible causes of the symptoms and then performing a test to eliminate one of the causes.

[Bex]

Hmmm....Yup, completely misread that, and was hoping for another little trick!! In rereading the first post, it appears that Rocky only has crunching when going into reverse. This would not be unusual as reverse is not synchronized, and I find that this is totally alleviated by going into reverse from another gear, rather than straight from neutral. He advises no crunching at any other time, if I'm reading this correctly. He also is saying that when the car is rolling, he has a difficult time going into first. Actually, depending on the speed, is this unusual? I was taught never to go into first with the car really moving, and frankly, if I was rolling, unless just creeping along, and not at a complete stop, I would take off in 2nd. The other matter of more pressure needed to downshift from 3rd to 2nd - would/could this not be a lever issue? The massive shuddering as he is letting out on the clutch could possibly be a cable adjustment problem, with the clutch biting like that. Hmmm....

[fordem]

Back when I learned to drive, first gear was usually non-syncromesh, so I was taught never to shift into first unless the vehicle was at a standstill - fast forward a decade or so and most cars have syncromesh on all forward gears, eliminating the need to have the car at a standstill to engage first, and you can usually select first as long as the forward speed is less than perhaps 5 mph.

Yes - the additional pressure on a 3-2 shift could be a mechanical issue, in which case it will remain when shifting with the engine off.

The massive shudder could also be caused by some sort of sticky residue on the clutch linings/flywheel/clutch plate, which could/would also cause clutch drag and the resulting crunch on reverse and increased pressure on 3-2 & 2-1 shifts.

[Bex]

Originally Posted by fordem

Back when I learned to drive, first gear was usually non-syncromesh, so I was taught never to shift into first unless the vehicle was at a standstill

Sadly, we are showing our age....