79vetter

I've got a Brand New Clutch and Rebuilt Transmission. I also took off the shifter and Linkage to clean it up and lube it. I then installed it back in using the procedure in the manual whereby I lined up the notch in all of them and then tightened them down.

Here are the symptoms:

If I start the car cold I am not able to shift into Reverse or First or Second at all- its gives me a nice grind and will not engage. So I have to turn the car off, shift into Reverse or 1st and then start the car again to be able to move. When I turn off the car, it will go into gear semi-smoothly.

As I start driving the car, It will shift decently from 1st to 2nd etc. but if I have to stop completely it is very difficult to get it into 1st again but it eventually will without grinding.

So it seems that the more that I am moving the easier the shifting will be.
Any suggestions on this?

thanks rob

moosie982

Sounds like you need to adjust the clutch some more. Peace,,,Moosie

panic

check also the linkage, it's easy that it gets loose and gears do not engage properly.
did you put oil into trans?

birdsmith

Ditto the clutch- sounds to me like it's dragging, i.e. not fully disengaging. If you've got the correct linkage in there it should be no problem to correct with a simple linkage adjustment.

79vetter

Yes, I did put gear oil in it.
Well, I moved the clutch adjustment nuts up the shaft a little bit but it still did not make a difference. If I start the car and try to shift into Reverse, it will grind. I have driven the car around the neighborhood a few times just to see if it will work itself out (since its new) but no change there either..
Any other suggestions?

PRNDL

Sounds (more than) a little like my problem. See if any of this helps:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1440106

The Spark

Reverse does not have synchros so it may grind when putting it into reverse. Are you still having problems with 1&2?

79vetter

Yes, I just started it up in Neutral and tried to get it into gear (1st or 2nd)
I physically cannot get it into 1st or 2nd.
As soon as I turned the car off I was able to shift through all of the gears like a knife through butter - no problem.

The Spark

Have you tried starting the car with it in gear and the clutch in?

OR TO BE SAFER

Have you put it in 1st (with the engine off) push in the clutch and try moving the car?

If you car jumps or does not move freely with it in gear and the clutch in, then the clutch is still engaged and needs to be adjusted.

435/427BB

how much free travel do you have in the pedal?

big_G

The clutch is not fully releasing. You need to adjust the clevis further out to the end of the threaded push-rod, not towards the firewall. You should feel a transition from easy pedal to resistance with about 1 inch of initial pedal travel.

435/427BB

you sure???? mine adjust tward the firewall to get more free travel

big_G

More free travel is not going to help a clutch that is not fully disengaging.

...Roger...

If 1" at the top of the pedal doesnt do it then try 1/2" and if that doesnt make it better then try no play at the top.No play will for a long period of time will ruin your throwout bearing but will be OK for a test.If this doesnt work then you probably have an internal problem.Did you have the flywheel surfaced?Did you replace the pilot bushing?Did you slide the clutch disc on the input shaft and make sure it slides freely?I lube the input shaft with dry moly.

...Roger...

You want to go down the shaft like BigG says away from firewall to get your clutch to disengage more.When you get it right neutral to reverse with no grind after 10 seconds.

435/427BB

Your correct but if he tells us he has 3 inches of travel then we might have a better idea of the problem....

79vetter

Yes, I can put it into gear and then start it up.
I adjusted the nuts on the alignment rod more towards the end of it so that the lower nut is about 1/2 inch from the end of the rod. There is definitely no free play in the pedal. I tried starting again and shifting into first but still a no go. If I shut the car off then I can.
My new clutch is made by Luk. I messed up the new Luk T/O bearing so I bought a new Timken bearing since I could not buy the Luk bearing individually. I don't remember if I lubed the end of the shaft going into the pilot bushing - I don't think so. The pilot bushing is new as well.

thanks Rob

The Spark

This is a strange one.

I screwed my TO bearing because I did not have any freeplay - thus the bearing was always in contact with the clutch. After replacing the bearing and clutch with Centerforce parts I adjusted the linkage by laying under the car and making sure I had enough freeplay to let the TO disengage completely.

I did not see if you can shift into 3-4 with the engine running.

If you have your clutch engaging and disengaging properly and you still can't get into gear without grinding, I think you have internal transmission problems.

jaki30

Check the TO bearing aginst the original. Believe it or not, at one time Chevy had more than one length TO bearing. The shorter one was not enough to disengage the clutch. To check if the clutch is disengaging, get the car to a hill. Shut the motor off and see if the car will roll when you push the clutch pedal in.

The Spark

A friend emailed me this when I burned up my TO bearing...
the bearing should be 1-1/4" long, not the 1-3/4" passenger car bearing

He's extremely knowledgeable on C1,C2,C3 Vettes. He's never let me down.

It sounds like you can get the clutch disengaged since you can start it with it in gear and it does not jump (I assume).