I was out for a drive yesterday, enjoying the nice weather in MD, when I ran into a transmission problem. TL; DR the car seems to be stuck in third and the shifter barely moves other than into reverse.

I was trying to downshift from 3rd to 2nd for a ramp, but couldn't get it into the lower gear. I put it back into 3rd and after the ramp it shifted to 4th just fine. I managed to get almost all the way home without having to slow much, but at a light I could not get the shifter into first OR second. I limped home using only third and after parking it tried to row through all the gears with the engine both on and off. No dice -- I have no neutral or any side-to-side motion UNLESS I use the reverse lockout. The clutch works; I can start the car with the pedal in, but as I slowly release it in what SHOULD be neutral, it creeps forward. I also noticed that there were bubbles in the clutch hydraulic fluid after the drive, telling me I probably boiled it at some point, but they've settled out by today and the problem still persists. The stick is hard to move even with the clutch depressed, unless I'm going into reverse.

It's going to be a while until I can put it up on stands to look underneath, so I'm trying to get a list of things to check. I assume linkages should be the first thing. Bushings? Other things? I would prefer not to drop the transmission if I don't have to (no lift, so clearances to work underneath are rather tight)...

Any other thoughts? This has been a VERY expensive month for car repairs on our daily drivers; I can park the Vette for a while if I need to but if it's something simple I'd rather fix it myself.

Thanks in advance...
[RICHR]

 

An interesting thread to read and refer to the correct section of the FSM. 7B-3 should have images and procedure.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...alignment.html

 

Sigh. I got under the car today to look at the linkages. One was very loose (the nut had almost slipped off completely -- there was no lock washer!) but even after tightening that, I still can only move the shifter into reverse. I'm wondering if that loose linkage allowed the gears to get into some sort of otherwise-impossible state. I can't easily drop the transmission in my garage, so unless someone can think of anything else I can check from the outside, I fear it's a trip to the shop.

Thanks
[RICHR]

 

I believe you need to concentrate on 'shifter gate' alignment and fabricate a key or what's been mentioned in the past - hacksaw blade. I wouldn't look elsewhere until you confirmed shifter linkage!

*** If someone had a shifter 'out of the car' maybe they could confirm the width of the required device,

@Ray Quayle or someone else maybe can put there hands on the one left behind on the line @BG

 

The nut that attached the lever from the 3rd gear rod to the side of the gearbox.

I *may* have fixed it, though. I was back under the car trying to find the neutral-adjustment (can't get to that from inside OR outside without destroying the transmission tunnel...) and realized that the lever and arm were in the third-gear position even though the shifter handle was in "neutral." So I loosened the nut again and while doing that the rod POPPED forward into actual neutral. Tightened it up again but not fully tight (I'll need to hold the rod in place so it doesn't pull again) and when I got in the car I was able to row through all the gears again.

I'll crawl back under there and give it a better tightening tomorrow and then put it down and try running through the gears more.

Thanks
[RICHR]

 

Awesome; I can tighten to spec and then move back again. I was afraid I'd loosen things again if I did that. I guess if I drive it for a while and it hangs up again, there's some secondary issue at work but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

And just to be clear, I replaced the missing lock washer before reinstalling stuff...

Thanks
[RICHR]