nag1945

My buddy just picked up a new Z in Long island NY and said it came out of 4th two times. It happens while slow cruising or decellerating. He says if you just touch the handle in 3rd or 4th while goin slow it just moves right out to neutral no clutch needed he says there is no detent feel to it. He took it back to the dealer who doesn't know a corvette from a silverado but said he would look for bulletins on Monday. Any help would be appreciatted thanks

Mitch Millett

If you are cruising or decelerating gently then you can take any manual car out of gear. It is only when the gearbox is under load i.e. acceleration or heavy deceleration that it is difficult. This is for all the same reasons that you can change gear without a clutch....

Ranger

Here are two thread to read that will help frame the issue:

Transmission Problems and Pops Out of 3d

Ignore the bashing in those threads. Also please note that one original posters never came back with a definitive diagnosis from Chevy. So I'd suspect that his real issue was solved by making certain that the shifter is fully seated all the way into the gear. The other original poster stated that his tranny was in fact defective.

So if ensuring the shifter is properly seated doesn't resolve the issue, then it's time to visit a dealer with a good rep for tranny repairs.

Ranger

nag1945

Thanks for the help, I was actually looking at the shifter handle when it popped out of 4th once. It only happens when you are slowing or barely cruising I had hit a bump and it just moved to neutral. I think if it had a more serious detent it would stay in gear. Going up thru the gears it is fine. Do you think the rubber donut seal is helping it go out in 3rd and 4th. Like an old hurst shifter boot in a ford galaxie did the same thing in my 1963. The only diff I can see between the C5 and C6 is that seal in the shifter. thanks very much for the help

Ranger

My shifting drill routine through the years has deeply enbedded the practice of fully seating the shifter on every shift. My C6Z has never popped out of gear. My C5Zs did pop out of first a few times and I traced those occasions to my error of not fully seating the shifter.

If you're certain that the shifter is fully seated, but it still pops out, then there likely is a tranny or shft-linkage issue. That symptom does appear occasionally on C5Zs that have been run hard with less than precise shifting. But I not read reports of it occurring on new trannies.

Ranger

nag1945

I appreciate your help. Do you think the factory shifter can be made to have stiffer detents.. I read the C5 manual it says the detents and plungers ? are in the tranny itself I feel it going into gear it just doesn"t have that clicking feel coming out. Thanks again

Ranger

Believe that behavior is characteristic of the Tremec M6/M12.

Ranger