One of the 2 L engines I bought came with a side shift transmission. This transmission was properly attach the engine and had the new looking but with surface corrosion from sitting fly wheel and clutch/pressure rate set up I posted separately.

So checking the oil condition and shift action both seem like obvious checks, but short of opening it up is there anything else I should be thinking about so I don’t burn the time installing a box that needs attention?

Thanks!

Only way is to pull the stack. Dr Evil has instructions in his signature. I think it just takes a 13mm to get to it.

Moving the gearshift means nothing. The insides could still be trash.

Hi - thanks for the note, hope you had a good weekend.

Pulling the rear cover off is pretty easy, true. That would let me look at the gear teeth and sliders etc. Seals should be done anyway I suppose.

No..or atleast the Doc said that,mine is not good and have found replacement one in my country but it has no history and is rather expensive.

Might want to get a blanket under it to catch the the loose parts once you remove the rear cover. It's been about 7 years but I remember a stack of washers or bearing that will fall out. Heavy grease holds them in place when you reinstall the cover.

Good tip! Been there, dropped those.

It’s ok to use grease to hold them in place upon reassembly?

You cannot determine the level of wear on the dog teeth and syncros by just shifting a transaxle out of the car. I highly recommend opening it up before installing in a car, it requires minimal disassembly to inspect the gear stacks.

Do you have a running car? If so bolt it up and see if it runs. You can pull and replace a transmission in an afternoon easy. Especially if the gear oil is not full of metal flake, chances are its okay in the short run.

If it makes bad noises its bad, and needs to be rebuilt anyway... If not, happy motoring.

Zach