When People State Imprecise Gear Change

[Kennyb 0]

Hi Guys

 

Just a question for people who say they have an imprecise gear change.....what do you mean

 

I have a bit of trouble sometimes gettin 1st in but not always.....is this what you mean??

[hengti 2]

guessing, just difficulty in selecting the right gear cleanly.

 

the 205's box is superb and, in good condition (internally and externally - rods, etc), is extremely precise IMO

 

 

i have a Renault at the moment..

[welshpug 1,657]

just general wear and tear over the 20 years or so of these vehicles lives, in my experience they are, even at their worst, far better than say a ford offering!

[Anthony 1,003]

Imagine stirring a bucket of porridge and it being a lottery whether you get 1st, 3rd, or 5th - that's how bad they can be.

 

205 gearchange is never what I'd call brilliant (compared to say the rifle-bolt change of something like an MX5) but with all the linkages in good order and adjusted properly, it should be a clean precise change with barely any detectable play/slop.

[hengti 2]

box was one of the highlights for me in mine; it's a long throw but, given the French's reputation, really good. could happily quickly swap between rev/1st whilst autotesting (for eg.); Clio's box is awful in comparison!

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

There are quite a few factors that contribute. So if YOU would like to try and improve (de-sloppy) yours, you could try going down this list which is in order of 'ease to check/rectify & cost':

 

1) Gearbox oil level

2 Linkages slack (but in good nick)

3) Linkages worn (they have plastic cups which wear; in particular those under the exhaust which literally disappear)

4) Pivot/joint condition on the sub frame

5) Clutch cable (adjust/worn)

6) Clutch

7) Gearbox internals

 

This process of elimination should see you or anyone with anything other than easy & satisfyingly precise gear-changes find out what's wrong AND what they need to do to rectify it.

[welshpug 1,657]

also not forgetting that there are a handful of relatively cheap bushes in the gearstick assembly itself too.

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

also not forgetting that there are a handful of relatively cheap bushes in the gearstick assembly itself too.

 

Very true.

 

Mmmm....'cheap bush'!

[Kennyb 0]

next thing is gear linkages then I think.......i did wind the clutch up to silly height but had same problem........dont get a cruntch just sticks hard and wont go in sometimes....

 

If clutch was worn I guess i'd get a cruntch and winding the clutch cable would make it a bit eaisier i guess????

 

:-)

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

I did suggest g/b oil. Have you tried that?

 

It's only £5; so just drop it and refill with 2ltrs. That could help, and certanly won't do any harm for hardly any effort.

[kyepan 291]

count and tighten your gearbox retaining bolts if it's crunching, no doubt one or more will have worked themselves loose.

[Kennyb 0]

Gearbox oil has been changed and is full......

 

Also its not crunching at all!!!!!!!......just stiff to get in most times and other times its fine????

 

Anyone have any others ideas or had same problem and resolved it?

[Mikey S 29 1 Cars]

Gearbox oil has been changed and is full......

 

Also its not crunching at all!!!!!!!......just stiff to get in most times and other times its fine????

 

Anyone have any others ideas or had same problem and resolved it?

 

 

what gear oil did you use though? if it was a cheapy ep 80/90 it will make the gearchange feel awful, especially when cold, but with the proper oil (total bv, available from gsf) it makes a world of difference.

 

 

mike

[Kennyb 0]

na got ok stuff from gsf

 

Anyone had a similar problem and solved it then?

[omega 82]

na got ok stuff from gsf

 

Anyone had a similar problem and solved it then?

 

 

i think ive seen a pic on here somewhere with diffrent rods dont where he got them frombut they are in a alloy block

[projectpug 0]

Check your clutch is adjusted properly can be a common cause of gear selector issues.

[Kennyb 0]

Clutch adjusted fine.....like I say no crunching like clutch isn't disengaging???????

 

Any other ideas?

 

Cheers

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

Any other ideas?

 

Surely you've had a sh1t load of ideas!

 

Why don't you just tell us what you've checked?

[kennygti 0]

yer i have the same problem of not being able to select 1st properly but with no crunching. I find if i just lift up te clutch a little while still applying pressure to the gear lever it will go in. Same thing in reverse aswell sometimes. Another thing i seem to have an intermittant problem whilst changing gear i lose a bit of power especially when driving hard. As if the clutch slips for a second but isnt actually slipping. Any ideas?

[Guest Wheres_my_wig]

Are you sure it isn't the clutch slipping, i cant really think of what else it could be? To test, when accelerating hard in second on a dry road, or first for that matter, do the revs go up in line with you speed? if the revs seem to go up quicker its probably clutch slip...

[Kennyb 0]

New linkages on way from miles....i'll keep it posted after they are changed

 

not much else I haven't done bar clutch.....but that was done about...16000 miles ago tops

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

Thanks KB. Miles' linkages are excellent. It may solve everything.

 

My guess is you'll find what I found, i.e. the plastic cups inside the old linkages are knackered.

 

Good luck.

[AndyJ 1]

Mine sometimes doesnt want to go into first from standstill when its cold... ive always put it down to a naff synchro not being able to spin up the box while the oil is cold, cos bringing the clutch up and down will make it slot in fine.

 

--

AndyJ

[DrSarty 90 1 Cars]

Mine sometimes doesnt want to go into first from standstill when its cold... ive always put it down to a naff synchro not being able to spin up the box while the oil is cold, cos bringing the clutch up and down will make it slot in fine.

 

Mine's not perfect and can do that too. And I have a completely reconditioned box, new gear linkages, fresh oil and a new cable. The only thing left is the clutch and the joint on the sub-frame.

 

Bit by bit we get there.

[Kennyb 0]

Links all changed to mile's ones....still having same problem but gears are solid'er.

 

Just been looking at some lucas oil additive....do you think this would be a benifit in helping rid the problem?

 

B

Edited February 7, 2009 by Kennyb