1st Gear Difficult to Engage Options

[jkb944t]

I have had a problem with engaging 1st gear ever since I have had this 914. I have already done all the bushings and rebuilt the transmission. I can easily engage all the other gears including reverse.

I really have to pull hard to the left and down to actually engage 1st gear. It feels like a linkage issue but reverse is very easy to engage so I am not sure that is the case.

Does this just sound like a basic linkage adjustment issue? Any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated.

Jeff B

[Dr Evil]

Some further internal mechanics to consider that can cause this issue.

When you select 1st (or any gear) you push the slider onto the synchro band. The synchro band compresses just enough to let the slider pop on and engage the "dog teeth". The synchro band rotates a little during this evolution and that is when it pushes on the blocks and break bands inside of the synchro band. These push against the synchro band and cause it to push on the inner surface of the slider where it locks the slider to the synchro band and holds it against the dog teeth.

If the band is worn, the slider does not get smooth engagement with the teeth (grinding) and can pop off of the teeth because the band cant lock it into place (popping out of gear on acceleration).

This is why you need to look at what you have for these parts installed, and using the above understanding you need to select what needs tweaked. Often, I find that bands are too strong so that compressing them with the slider is difficult. The opposite yields the same issue, though, in that the band is too loose and rotates too easily so it energizes all of the break bands and blocks inside thus keeping the band too rigid and making the slider very difficult to force on.

What is interesting is that 1 and R are on the same slider, and 2 is not. So, putting it in 2nd indicates that there is likely external issues at play; clutch drag, shifter alignment, etc.