[Zoe]

Hello friends,

this is my first post on this forum. I've been an MKII owner since 1991, with a bit of a gap between when I had to junk my first one (sniff), but luckily I found another one in 2001 and am happy ever since :wink: I've been on the mailing list as well, maybe some of you remember me; I've dropped off due to work overload and traffic.

Still, I love my Supra, still have a tiny bit of my old Supra page online (www.anja-christen.de/Supra.htm), so I am not new to the car and its great community.

Anway, enough of the intro. Here's my problem:

This weekend we went driving in the mountains, and after a very quick climb up to 8000 feet my third gear didn't work any more. It simply wasn't possible to select it, when trying to push the lever forward where it usually lived, it simply didn't move, like it was blocked.

Later on (driving down a mountain pass without 3rd is not exactly perfect) after a small break, it would go in, but not really smooth and exact, and in the position where the 5th is located!! The 4th goes in, but very badly, like there are multiple "brackets" where you could push the lever to. Funnily enough, the 5th still goes in, but only when shifting from 4th to 5th.

Any pointer what the problem could be? I am reluctant to pull the gearbox and rebuild it (besides that I don't really have a place to do so). I am no stranger to dirty fingers, broken fingernails and wrench sizes

The car is a 83 model with manual transmission btw.

Any pointers are welcome!!

Thanks and greetings from a very sunny Germany,

Zoe

 

[Deanfun]

i'd hasten to say that you might have to pull the gearbox... that doesn't sound to pretty at all.

the weird selection setup is confusing though.

 

[Speed Racer]

Sounds like your 3rd gear synchro went "bye bye" - that is the most likely reason why it won't accept 3rd gear.

As stupid as this sounds, how is your transmission fluild level? Have you ever drained and changed it? It could be that you may have to have the transmission rebuilt, or perhaps just change it out for another one.

 

[Norbie]

It may not be as bad as all that! My transmission was doing a similar thing and it turned out to be a loose shifter, ie all but one of the bolts had fallen out, and the remaining bolt was almost out. You should check this first, and also check the condition of the nylon bush at the end of the shifter.

 

[trdmkii]

what norbie said sounds right, did you say there was any grinding....i had a transmission syncro go out and it just grinded the hell out of it, or course it was in my old ford ranger(<--it was free would never drive a ford unless it was free)....but anyways it does just sound like somethings not lined up correctly. just my 2 cents :silly:

 

[Zoe]

Hi Guys,

thanks for the replies! The gearbox wasn't making any noises at all, it was quiet as usual. I also blip the throttle when shifting to help the synchros and get a smoother shift.

I replaced all fluids two years ago, including gearbox and diff. OK, I didn't check the gearbox and diff fluid since then (lazy me); it is a pain without a hoist.

I guess I'll pull the shifter and have a look. Maybe it is really the mounting of the shifter or the plastic piece at its end. Problem is to fond the time, work is going crazy at the moment....

Thanks all for your help. With a bit of luck I'll be able to take a look this weekend. I'll keep you posted!

Zoe

 

[Zoe]

Update!

Ok friends, here is the update. Today I removed the shifter, it wasn't pretty how it looked like:

These were the small "parts" that I pulled out of the dungeon:

The shifter before cleaning:

and after cleaning:

OK, so it looks like it is "only" the nylon ball at the end of the shifter that broke to a zillion pieces. Is there anything else that disappeared?

Is it possible to get the missing piece of plastic alone (without buying a complete shifter)?

I am grateful for all hints, tips, links, donations etc etc

I am aware of the group buy of the short shifter and this would be the perfect time to get one; actually I am trying to get one, but for the meantime I need something else....

Thanks again,

Zoe

 

[jdk_ii]

Very common problem.

The factory rubber "green" bushing disintegrates from oil and heat.

The lower nylon bushing must have cracked. Not as common, but
does happen.

These parts are as common as dirt at a Toyota dealership.

I don't know how much they would cost in Germany, but
here in the US, both pieces are a total of $16

 

[Zoe]

Thanks! That is good news!

At the next opportunity I'll pop over to Toyota and see how long it takes to get the parts! (damn 8 to 8 job!)

Zoe

 

[Zoe]

AAAARGH

So I got the replacement nylon ball that sits at the end of the shifter. Put it on, put the stick back in, some grease, fixed the first lid. Test shift - great. Fixed everything, tets shift - third gear not going in. AAARGH.

Pulled everything out again, everything looking good. Put it back together, shifted OK. A turn around the block - fine. Put the upper lid back on, test shift - third gear not going in.

*bang head against steering wheel*

What did I do wrong? You mentioned another nylon part (a green part)? Its not on the parts list at the dealer, what is it, where would it go? Is it the solution to my problems?

Is the upper fixation of the shifter worn out so badly that sometimes the third gear won't go in?

Do I really have to rebuild the transmission? (something I can't do myself and that's probably quite expensive as well)?

Any help and comfort is appreciated!

Zoe

 

[jdk_ii]

search supraforums.com for green nylon.

it will have the part numbers

 

[Norbie]

Eeek, what a mess! Looking at that, I can't help wondering if some of that crap has found its way into your gearbox internals. It's possible that a chunk of shifter bush is interfering with the operation of the shifter forks. The only way to be certain is to pull the box apart and visually inspect it. I know that not what you wanted to hear, but if there are foreign objects floating around inside your box you want to get them out as soon as possible.

 

[Speed Racer]

Zoe,

Here are the two part numbers you need:

rubber bushing #33505-35020
nylon cap #33548-31010

I cannot guarantee that this will fix your problem, but you're going to need to replace these parts anyway. I would agree with what everyone is saying, it sounds like your problem is more severe than just replacing these parts...and perhaps something "has" gotten down into the mechanism like Norbie is suggesting.

I hope you figure it out!

 

[Zoe]

Thanks guys for your helpm you're great!

I called the shop today, no they don't know this part number. I persisted, and voila, at Toyota Germany they do have the rubber bushing in stock, I should get it tomorrow. Let's see whether it changes anything. (I already got the nylon cap btw)

Is there a parts book online somewhere or in any way available e.g. as CD-ROM (or paper)? Can't get it here...

I'll see a friend of mine tomorrow, he's a Toyota mechanic, lets see what he says. If I really need a tranny rebuild or swap (in case I find a good used one), he's the one to do it. Not for free, but at least I know it is in good hands.

I'll keep you posted....

Zoe

 

[dogstar]

best of luck in the gremlin chase.

if i were in the same boat, id probably start looking for a w58 transmission, it will probably be cheaper to buy a used one than to rebuild it, in north america a used w58 in good shape fetches 100-800 dollars, depending who you ask.

even if you find out your problem is something small and cheap, then its never bad to have a cheap back up.

 

[Zoe]

I'm haaaaaappieeeee!

YES!!

It works, it works, it works!

So, thanks to SupraRacers part number the gearbox is shifting again as it should! (Next time you're coming over, the beer is on me )

So, what happened?

The part that broke and caused all this mess was this very nylon/rubber bushing. It broke sometime ago, and as a result, the shifter end (with the metal ball with the nylon cap over it) drops deeper into the eye of the shifter fork (or how you may call that thingamagick in English). You will see a spring on the shifter that presses the shifter downward into this eye, it rests on this nylon bushing, and if this breaks, it goes deeper down.
As a result of that, the end of the shifter is not sitting centered in this eye, but lower, and the conical upper part of the shifter is working at the copper (or what it is) insert of the eye, slowly distorting it. This will eventually eat away at the nylon cap as well.
And then, voila, it happens that the shifter and the eye make bad contact and the gear won't go in because the eye can't be moved by the shifter. (everything clear? ) What the resulting effect of the damage is, is totally random as it depends on the deformation of the copper insert of the shifter fork eye.

Now with the bushing in place, the shifter sits higher in the eye as it's designed to be, moves correctly and thus the gearbox shifts well and smooth again.

What I have to do next and pretty soon is to change this copper insert of the eye to prevent the new nylon cap being eaten away again.

If I manage to make pictures of that part I'll post it here. I was working at dawn yesterday evening, so no pictures of the repair approach here.

Thanks again guys!! With the parts sheet only and without you I'd never found the problem!

Zoe

 

[Speed Racer]

Congratulations!

I'm glad that took care of your problem. I was getting a little concerned that the problem might be something to do with your synchros or maybe something broken off and fell down into the gear box.

I'm getting ready to put those exact same parts on my shifter (which is why I happened to have the part numbers handy).

Best of luck & I'm glad everyone was a big help to you. That's what the Mk2 forum is all about.