Greetings! I'm a long time lurker and this is my first post after searching the forums for an answer to my dilemma. My son was accelerating from a stop light, when 3rd gear went bang in his Midlands transmission. Off to a mechanic it goes. Used Midlands trans sourced (supposedly only ~40K miles on it), new flywheel, clutch and throw-out bearing installed. Car is back and is driving okay. Gear shifter is like trying to shift in mud; but I've found the solution for that and the fix is on the way. The more concerning issue is still 3rd gear. If you're accelerating even remotely aggressively, you get a slight grind going into 3rd. This can be quelled by pausing in neutral for a heartbeat, then shifting into 3rd. Downshifting causes it to happen EVERY time. Looking for thoughts beyond throwing it out (along with the $2500 I spent fixing the car) and going to the Getrag 6-speed.

Car is a 2004 R50 with 122K on it.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts and ideas...

 

Hey Buck, unfortunate turn of events, i feel for you. The muddy shifting you describe sounds like worn shift cables is that what you've got coming? i have seen the ends under the airbox completely separated, still shifted but felt like more of a suggestion then solid input. The shift cables could also be the culprit behind grinding if its not fully engaging the transmission when your asking it to.

Havent had the issue your describing on a mini, but i did have this issue on a subaru transmission which made it well over 100k. Turned out the main shaft bearings inside the trans were on their way out for years and it really only affected 2nd gear in my case.

- Have you tried bleeding the clutch again to be safe your getting full engagement?
- Have you tried absolutely standing on the clutch pedal when trying this shift?
- What kind of gear oil did you use?
- Again, shift cables. Inspect the ends under the airbox

Best of luck, hope you find a simple solution. I know the pain of pulling things apart right after installation is rather FUN!

 

Thanks for the ideas Scoobaru. I was going to look at the replacement pin in the shifting arm to start. Cables were the same in the car when the 1st trans went bang. No issues, super smooth. The mechanic did notice the bushings were shot and did something to fix them, as he couldn't get the correct cables (I think took the bushing from an incorrect cable and made it work) that's yet another thing I'm going to look at.

I was thinking about changing the gear oil as well, as I don't know what he put in it. Beyond that, I can try bleeding the clutch some more. Yes, I'm fully engaging the clutch, tried pushing it through the floorboards to see if that did anything. No change.

 

What clutch kit did you put in?

 

No earthly idea. The mechanic was 6 hours away from me, so he did the parts ordering. Based on prices I see on O'Reilly's/AutoZone/AdvancedAuto/NAPA, it's not a LuK or Valeo kit.

 

grinding when going into or out of gear can be because you are not getting the clutch to disengage the trans. that's why the suggestion above to "stand on the clutch pedal"

so bleeding the clutch, making sure the slave and master are good, then clutch (pressure place, throw-out bearing, clutch lever)

 

What happens if you double-clutch the downshift? It sounds kind of like a bad synchro.

 

Always grinds on a downshift, whether double-clutching, pausing, whatever.