Manual Transmission - Issues shifting into 1st & Reverse (Compilation thread)

[Jeremynolan94]

Does getting stranded in Bridgeport, Texas for 2 days count?

I'll count that

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[PA JLUR]

Has anyone tried adjusting their shifter cables? Found these instructions on the forum. I’m getting the occasional challenge of getting mine (JLUR/4.88/35s/Act-HDSS) into 1st and was going to try this soon.

 

[cander58]

Has anyone tried adjusting their shifter cables? Found these instructions on the forum. I’m getting the occasional challenge of getting mine (JLUR/4.88/35s/Act-HDSS) into 1st and was going to try this soon.

Im having this same issue with the OEM clutch since getting the recall performed.

I took it back and they adjusted the cables but its still the same.

Might work for some but not me

 

[m3reno]

What's weird is the majority of us are complaining right around the 10,000 mile mark after the change. Mine started at around 15,000 miles and at 20,000 I brought it in to have the recall done. Now at 32,000 miles having issues again.

 

[AVGeek99]

No deep water crossings that we went through on the Ouray trip.

Agree. There was nothing deep, but there were a couple spots where we went through some water that was 18 inches or so. At least one crossing on Imogene and one 100 yard or so stretch on Poughkeepsie. But again no deeper than 18 inches, and the water was mostly clean. There was no murky mud, so it really shouldn't have done anything.

 

[AVGeek99]

It does feel like my high school car which was my dad's 1978 VW Beetle never had clutch problems. Of course the speedometer never worked and you had to guess how fast you were going based on how fast the wind was blowing your hair..... BUT it shifted great.

It was a 78 Beetle. Speedometers didn't really matter. Kind of tough to get going too fast in one of those.

 

[AVGeek99]

Has anyone tried adjusting their shifter cables? Found these instructions on the forum. I’m getting the occasional challenge of getting mine (JLUR/4.88/35s/Act-HDSS) into 1st and was going to try this soon.

This is what I think I need to try. With mine, when I have difficulty getting it in 1st or reverse I just need to put it in 2nd or 3rd, and then it goes right into first and reverse without issue. It feels like something is loose causing the difficulty with 1st and reverse, but then putting it in another gear aligns everything making it easy to get in any gear.

But what do you have to do to get the cente console out so you can work on the shifter?

 

[ski-line900]

This is what I think I need to try. With mine, when I have difficulty getting it in 1st or reverse I just need to put it in 2nd or 3rd, and then it goes right into first and reverse without issue. It feels like something is loose causing the difficulty with 1st and reverse, but then putting it in another gear aligns everything making it easy to get in any gear.

But what do you have to do to get the cente console out so you can work on the shifter?

4 bolts in each lower corner which are behind plastic covers. Then it should lift up (not fully removing) with some gentle persuasion, there are a few push clips holding it down. This gives you enough room to access the adjuster, I usually stuff a small towel or something to prop the front passenger side up (where the adjuster lives).

Fully removing no doubt gives you more room, but that's a more involved process you'd have to search for instructions. I've done the above way a few times and it takes less than 10 min.

 

[SadRobot]

Has anyone tried adjusting their shifter cables? Found these instructions on the forum. I’m getting the occasional challenge of getting mine (JLUR/4.88/35s/Act-HDSS) into 1st and was going to try this soon.

@notthenewguy posted about this in one of the threads I believe. If I remember correctly it was not successful. I've read this works in the case of all the gears being off (As in 3rd is where 1st should be).

I could be completely wrong about this but I'd assume if when the Jeep is off you can easily shift through all the correct gears then your cables and bracket alignment are fine. If the shifting is only difficult when the engine is on it would either be hydraulics are leaking OR there is something preventing the pressure plate from fully releasing. Someone here can correct me if that assumption is wrong.

@Gator Overland was able to fix his issues by replacing the slave and bleeding the system. So seems like his issue was leaky hydraulics.

 

[m3reno]

@notthenewguy posted about this in one of the threads I believe. If I remember correctly it was not successful. I've read this works in the case of all the gears being off (As in 3rd is where 1st should be).

I could be completely wrong about this but I'd assume if when the Jeep is off you can easily shift through all the correct gears then your cables and bracket alignment are fine. If the shifting is only difficult when the engine is on it would either be hydraulics are leaking OR there is something preventing the pressure plate from fully releasing. Someone here can correct me if that assumption is wrong.

@Gator Overland was able to fix his issues by replacing the slave and bleeding the system. So seems like his issue was leaky hydraulics.

I believe it is hydraulics because during shifting while I am in motion I will get a grind going from 2nd to 3rd. It's not that often but as of late it's a bit more frequent. I narrowed it down to two things Hydraulics or dementia!!

 

[SadRobot]

I believe it is hydraulics because during shifting while I am in motion I will get a grind going from 2nd to 3rd. It's not that often but as of late it's a bit more frequent. I narrowed it down to two things Hydraulics or dementia!!

Mine never grinds at all. Just feels like it's hitting something that is preventing it from shifting.

Try pulling a 15" vacuum from the reservoir and let it sit overnight. Just make sure not to go above that so the pressure doesn't pull a seal on either cylinder. This is what finally got all the air out of @Gator Overland's system. His shifting has returned to normal.

 

[fspalt]

@Gator Overland can you explain how you did this? Seems like something easy to try if there is a small amount of air in the system. You could mark thee reservoir to see if there is any change.

Mine never grinds at all. Just feels like it's hitting something that is preventing it from shifting.

Try pulling a 15" vacuum from the reservoir and let it sit overnight. Just make sure not to go above that so the pressure doesn't pull a seal on either cylinder. This is what finally got all the air out of @Gator Overland's system. His shifting has returned to normal.

 

[SadRobot]

@Gator Overland can you explain how you did this? Seems like something easy to try if there is a small amount of air in the system. You could mark thee reservoir to see if there is any change.

Here is the CFII dry vacuum procedure. So if you don't have their rubber gasket then you can create something similar. I wish I had tried this before I gave up and towed it to the dealer.

 

[fspalt]

So he left the vacuum on overnight? Or did he do the procedure as written and let it sit overnight before driving?

@Gator Overland can you explain how you did this? Seems like something easy to try if there is a small amount of air in the system. You could mark thee reservoir to see if there is any change.

 

[SadRobot]

So he left the vacuum on overnight? Or did he do the procedure as written and let it sit overnight before driving?

I believe he did this then drove it and it still had some shifting quirks. Then he drove home and did it again but left it on overnight. He has a video of it so when he shows up in the thread again I'm sure he'll post it.

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