What can I do to help my manual Transmission?

Question

I just bought a 1991 Mazda navajo and lately it has been hard to shift from neutral to first. It just gets a little stuck and you have to push hard to get into 1st gear. Once in any gear it runs great but getting there is a little sticky. Will replacing and changing the transmission fluid work or is there a bigger problem i should be worried about?

Answer 1

Try filling your clutch resavoir with brake fluid, you are probably low. It should be located on the driver side upper firewall.

Answer 2

Are you having any trouble shifting into any other gears, or just 1st? Are you trying to shift into first while the vehicle is moving or stationary? It could be the dog teeth on your first gear are getting worn and not guiding the gears together properly, thus resulting in multiple attempts to get it to line up. If you are having trouble shifting into all other gears, check to see if your clutch fluid is full, and see if it is leaking anywhere. If for some reason you have a bunch of debris in your transmission, I suppose that could cause your problem, but I would think that to be unlikely. Try this: Next time it is difficult to shift, let it coast forward or backward a few inches and try to shift again. If it is easier to do, then that would be a good indication that your dogteeth are wearing out. If that does not help any, you could still have worn dogteeth. If you do have badly worn dogteeth, you could still keep driving it, just with a hard shifting problem. You could get the transmission rebuilt, but that is expensive. Also, it is quite easy to replace a manual transmission. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Typically, a manual transmission has simple gear oil in it and it doesn't need to be changed like automatic transmission fluid. If you're not getting noise from the transmission, chances are that's not the problem. You can double check the oil level easily: Somewhere on the side of the trans is what looks like a drain plug (like for your engine oil). Take it out and stick your finger inside. The oil should be right up to the hole, but not running out.

I'd look at your clutch master/slave cylinder and make sure you have proper fluid in there (assuming it's a hydraulic clutch and not a manual one with a cable). It sounds like the clutch may not be disengaging all the way. It could also be that your clutch is just worn and needs replaced. Either way, it sounds more like a clutch issue than a transmission issue.

Good luck.

Answer 4

I think U've confused everyone with:
"manual Transmission" & "shift from neutral to first."
[manual transmissions don't have a neutral, automatics usually are not shifted into first]
assuming transmission is an automatic-if u have to give an extra push to get trans to shift into fir...drive check the inkage for alignment. changing transmission fluid on a used car also a good idea.

Answer 5

If this is only happening in 1st gear then it could be the synchro mesh. Make sure the fluid in the gearbox is properly topped up (use the correct fluid for your vehicle) and if it persists you might want to have someone look at it.

Answer 6

Check the clutch hydraulic reservoir (it is the smaller one by the brake master cylinder).
You may need a new master or slave. Can't tell which from here.
Try pumping it up too after is sets for a while.
You may need to bleed the system, but if there is a leak it should come back for you.

Answer 7

You can try changing the transmission fluid, but chances are it will need to be fixed eventually.

Answer 8

Have your car inspected form underneath. You may have a binding shifter bushing or bent activation rod. Also bleed out your clutch, if it's hydraulic..

Answer 9

try that first, but it might need a cluch it might not disengage the engine fully to shift into gear