Gearbox/gearbox oil/bushes/clutch?... help please.

Hi all,

I have a 1977 T2 bay which when cold/warm is <almost> a joy to drive and all gears can be selected pretty smoothly.

However, when it gets hot it is nigh on impossible to select 1st when I've been sitting stationary in neutral, in fact I have to hope I'm on a slope so I can take my foot off the brake and get it into 1st while it's rolling. It is also very difficult to get into reverse without going very quickly from 2nd to reverse ie when I want to reverse I have to put it into second and do a quick up and over and into reverse. More often than not it still klunks in but sometimes it goes in ok.

So I'm wondering if anyone had any suggestions why it's so difficult? My very non expert thoughts are that A) maybe it's a lack of gearbox oil B) maybe it's an issue with the clutch and it needs adjusting (can you adjust the biting point) or C) maybe the gear stick bushes are a bit out of alignment although as I said at the beginning it all feels a lot better when it's not reached normal running temperature.

Finally, I'm based in Farnham, Surrey and would welcome any recommendations for T2 specialists in my vicinity.

Thanks in advance for any and all responses.

Regards,

Steve

 

Worth checking you have actually got oil in the box, and changing it. Easy enough to do. Yes, you can adjust the clutch cable. Yes, bushes can wear and lead to slop in the gear change. Could also be the lockout plate under the gear lever not positioned correctly.

As a start, I’d check the gearbox oil and adjust clutch. If it’s not disengaging properly, the gearbox will fight you.

Plenty of threads on here

 

Change the oil to this: https://www.opieoils.co.uk/p-6363-c...synthetic-car-gearbox-oil-formerly-taf-x.aspx and adjust the clutch cable.

 

don't take out the drain plug until you know you can get the filler plug out.

 

.... 17mm socket, bit of "plusgas" and a long tube/bar over the handle.
Failing that I've got a diagram in here somewhere for how to use jacking up and using the weight of the bus to get a stuck filler plug out

 

All the above really ...
In addition, check the clutch cable adjustment.
Also ....
I find stationary at a junction with the clutch in , if I select 3rd and then slip it into 1st it goes in easier . They're all different and each has its own little idiosyncrasies .
E's Autos seems to get good reports and is close to you ??

Sent from my SM-A320FL using Tapatalk

 

Also, don't forget about the adjustment plate at the bottom of the gearstick. It can also be a source of troubles and bad selection.

 

And avoid drink and loose women...

 

You should have passed this advice over to me years ago then :-D

So what's the best oil to use?

 

Simple things :

1. the flexible coupler at the nose of the gearbox should have no slop in it. If it slops, then engaging gears gets harder.
2. The bushing at the front of the gearchange rod, just in front of the bottom of the gearstick also wears out.

If these are not sloppy then it could be the donut inside the gearbox on the end of the lever that pushes and pulls the mechanism has worn and the hole in it has got bigger (which for a part costing less than a fiver is a total pain needing the engine out and the gearbox dropped out too, but at least you can get at it by unbolting the gearbox nose )

Slop in any of these means you have to exaggerate movements and that the shift plate under the gearstick stops you from being able to move far enough to ensure engagement : also that if you are in first gear you can waggle the lever across to third gear position - the slop should be less than the gap between the gear positions. Your second to reverse trick is possibly a sign of this wear in the linkage.

Then the position of the plate under the gearstick needs tweaking, my setup needed it rotating very slightly, also because it was a non-standard EMPI shifter, the edges of the metal had been worn by the gearstick and the gearchange was actually 'missing' on 1-2 or 3-4 changes because once I removed all the slop, the lever went too far left and right before it hit the stop on the shift plate. On that setup I could get 1-2 or 3-4 changes perfect.

Welding a bit of metal on the integral EMPI shift plate was needed to get all 4 gears, equivalent to replacing a stock shift plate .


If a gearbox gets hard to put into gear when it is hot then it could be that it is getting too hot because there is not enough oil in it - check this.

The other thing this could be is a clutch that is not disengaging properly, when hotter it expands and grips even when the clutch pedal is fully down. Try adjusting it at the gearbox so there is the inch or so of travel before you feel pressure on the pedal.
Or horror, you have massive end float and all that happens when you press on the clutch is you push the crankshaft backwards..(useful trick for keeping a loose flywheel on in heavy traffic)

 

Think a vw repair company called 'beetle link' are based in Farnham Surrey?

 

The standard gear lever is quite thin. I found getting the empi shifter (not the T shaped one),seemed to make it shift easier. Obviously, check coupling, linkages, oil and clutch cable.And the shift plate in the floor. Loosen the two bolts that hold it and put it in first,(I think, someone will correct me if I’m wrong) then tighten the bolts.

 

Hi just because the problem gets worse with driving (or heat) i would suspect that it is internal to the gearbox, from my experience what could be happening is that your 2nd gear synchro is worn (or completely cracked) and gets stuck on the gear cone, that in effect results in second gear being coupled to the pinion shaft (when it should spin free). when you are trying to select first gear you are unable to do so since you are unable to match the speed of the gear to engage it. 1st and 2nd engagement slider is also a part of reverse gear and this would account for your problems selecting reverse. I'd say definitely check the oil, clutch and bushes and once you tried everything else without success I'd be happy to repair your gearbox

One way to confirm the above (after checking the clutch is adjusted) would be: when the problem appears (cannot get it into 1st & rev) stop the engine and try then. if it goes easily then its internal to the gearbox.

 

@Steve Jones if you would like an EMPI Hurst shifter I have a new one for sale. Like this but half the price (plus postage). https://www.vwheritage.com/ac711222-empi-hurst-style-gear-shifter-vw-spare

 

Yup, that’s the one. One of the best aftermarket bits of kit for any bus!

 

Guess that's on the shopping list now!

 

If Steve is a no, would you post to Aus?

 

Postage to Aus would probably be extortionate but I’ll post to the UK. I live in France and I’m on my way to Scotland (currently in Reims) and the shifter is in the boot. Steve seems to have stopped looking at TLB so I guess he is happy with the answer he had on Monday and doesn’t need a new shifter.

PM the UK address to me and I’ll post it to you next week.

 

Don't use anything too fragranced it stings places.....