Lord Flashart Posted July 26, 2008 Report Share Posted July 26, 2008 Hi all. The car seems to be developing a problem getting into second gear. It's not jumping out, but needs a firm hand to engage the gear. All other gears are easy. Any ideas? I don't realy want to strip the gearbox! Flash Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisR-4A Posted July 26, 2008 Report Share Posted July 26, 2008 Hi all. The car seems to be developing a problem getting into second gear. It's not jumping out, but needs a firm hand to engage the gear. All other gears are easy. Any ideas? I don't realy want to strip the gearbox! Flash Hi, if the anti rattle spring and plunger have fallen out of the bottom of the gearlever they often end up just where the lever needs to be to select second. With the gaiter removed you should be able to poke about with a bit of wire and see if the plunger is in there . Best Regards Chris Quote Link to post Share on other sites
marvmul Posted July 26, 2008 Report Share Posted July 26, 2008 I hope for you that Chris is right, but a more common cause is the bush of the second (or is it third?) gear, this bush has a vertical rim which can break off. If this happens selecting 2nd gear is difficult because not only the hub does slide, but also the gears on the main shaft for 2nd and 3rd will move a bit. This can be checked after removing the cover. If the bush has failed, the gears can be moved about 2mm instead of less than 0.5mm. Late TR6's have stronger steel bushes instead of the earlier soft metal one's and these can be used in the earlier gearboxes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Don Elliott Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 If you do a few rolling starts in 2nd gear because your starter is not working, this "top-hat" bushing will break. In fact the flange will separate from the bush. It will break even sooner (first try) if you do a rolling start in reverse. It will also pop out of gear in 2nd or 3rd when going down a hill in compression. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Nigel Lay Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 (edited) Engaging second when the oil is cold has always been 'difficult' on TS952 (gearbox No. is around TS18,000), thought this was just an idiosyncratic trait of the gearbox, maybe not . All OK when warm and no problems for over 4000 miles. Nigel (with TS952) Edited July 27, 2008 by Nigel Lay Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lord Flashart Posted July 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 Sounds like my problem is similar to yours Nigel. Once the box is warm it's Ok. It's never jumped out of any gears yet so hopefully not to serious! On that note, anyone know of a supplier of cheap gearboxes? It might be worth picking one up just in case! Flash Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 Hi Flash, It's all too easy to get unnecessarily worried about the gearbox. All TR boxes dislike going into second when cold, that's a fact of life. If you don't have a noticeable problem when the car is warm, then you don't have a serious problem. At the risk of stating the obvious, the heavier the oil in the box the more likely you are to have a problem getting 2nd when cold. Which is why I've always preferred using an old-fashioned non-synthetic 20/50 or 15/40 multigrade engine oil in an o/d box, whether it's Standard Triumph or Rootes or Volvo. Lots of folk will tell you that's wrong. I've also preferred to double declutch, up and down, on a cold box - and often as not even when the box is hot. Force of habit, in part, I learned to drive on pre-war crash boxes. Lots of folk will tell you that's wrong too. I've heard all the tales of what will happen, and what I'll find worn or broken in due course when I open up the box. Touch wood, over 40 years I've driven plenty of boxes to 6-figure mileages - but I've yet to have to strip and rebuild, let alone replace one. Maybe I'm just lucky ? Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
88V8 Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 All TR boxes dislike going into second when cold, that's a fact of life. If you don't have a noticeable problem when the car is warm, then you don't have a serious problem. I've also preferred to double declutch, up and down, on a cold box - and often as not even when the box is hot. Force of habit, in part, I learned to drive on pre-war crash boxes. Lots of folk will tell you that's wrong too. Yes I was reminded this morning that my TR6 doesn't like 2nd when cold, altho it liked it even less when first purchased and the box was half empty of oil How the devil can it be 'wrong' to double-declutch and thereby save work for the synchro? I also have this habit, but inherited from my current Landrovering where the synchro died long ago. Most of my pre-war motoring was on a 34 Lanchester with Daimler fluid flywheel + Wilson box, perhaps the best transmission ever installed in a car so long as you didn't mind the power absorption. I suppose double declutching knackers the clutch hydraulics a bit faster.... Ivor Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lord Flashart Posted July 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 Cheers Guys, Sounds like maybe I'm being to picky. If it's a normal fault then I'll leave it alone and find something else to tinker with! Flash Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Smith Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 .......If it's a normal fault then I'll leave it alone ....... It's not a fault, it's a trademark! Cheers Andrew Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lord Flashart Posted July 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 Well there are plenty of other "Trademarks" to fix!!! Flash Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Smith Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 Well there are plenty of other "Trademarks" to fix!!! Flash Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Don Elliott Posted July 27, 2008 Report Share Posted July 27, 2008 Paul - Do what I do. When you want to shift into 2nd, don't grab the stick like a golf club and pull it sideways towards you out of 1st to get it into 2nd. Put two fingers together to front of the gear-stick and with these fingers straight down, flick it straight back, cradling the knob between those two fingers pointing straight down. It should snap into 2nd hot or cold. Also when you are at a stoplight and waiting, then the light goes green, don't "crash" it into 1st gear. Flick it into the 2nd gear gate then flick it straight forward into 1st. This will eliminate all knashing of teeth (both in the gearbox and in your own mouth) and away you go - narry a wimper or a sound. Putting it into 2nd before-hand puts it all into syncro so it becomes smooth. Now you have all of the story. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
vivdownunder Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 Dear all, Funny how TR owners figure out the same way of driving from all over the world. Don's two finger 1st to 2nd is definately the best way to treat the sidescreen gearbox sensitively, although on a RHD drive car, pulling the stick towards you from 1st to 2nd actually gets you from 1st to top. To "stop" the gearbox, I find you only have to pull the stick back and snick 2nd, then push straight forward into 1st. The above is certainly a much cheaper option than bruising or breaking a tooth off 1st gear. I learned to drive at 14 in Diamond T timber delivery trucks, so double de-clutching has always been the go, and like Alec, I have never broken a gearbox over many, many miles travelled. But the doomsdayers would probably say I'm just lucky too !. Cheers, Viv. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lord Flashart Posted July 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 (edited) Thanks Gents, I'll try the suggestions. The other thing I'm thinking of is I'm sure this has got worse since I changed the gearbox oil a few weeks ago. I've put in the Penrite stuff recommended on their website (Mild Ep gear Oil). Before that it just had 20/50 multigrade in there. As Alec suggested maybe I need to go back to this. I'll let you all know how I get on! Flash Edited July 28, 2008 by Lord Flashart Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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