Since 2nd gear is giving me fits at low rpms only (with more spirited driving it seems to shift fine into 2nd, which seems to be the opposite of what would be happening if I was having hydraulic or major synchro problems). Sometimes getting into 3rd gear takes a little extra pursuasion too.

After re-bleeding the system with no improvement, I got back under the car and looked at the CAGS plug. Much to my surprise, it wasn't unplugged. CAGS is still plugged in, yet I can still shift through all the gears at any speed I want.

Could the CAGS solenoid be part of my grinding problem here?

Oh... a little more info... there has never been a 1-4 light that has illuminated on my dash.


[Modified by Jim85IROC, 8:15 PM 4/23/2003]

 

With CAGS enabled, you shouldn't be able to shift into 2nd or 3rd, so I would say that could be a factor.

Off the top of my head I don't know all the conditions of CAGS, but I do know if you keep your foot to the floor, you will never experience CAGS again.

 

I just unplugged cags and took it for a ride. I didn't get it to grind on the 1-2 shift a single time. It still grinds when downshifting from 3-2, and downshifting into 1st is still just a fantasy.

But... I couldn't get it to grind on the 1-2 shift a single time. Not at high speed, low speed, or inbetween. Granted I didn't shift it like my hand was on fire, but before it would give me that little "clunk" every time.

Now... here's what sucks. When I test drove the car (of course) 2nd gear was completely fine on the upshift and downshift. Only 1st gear protested. Right after I bought the car, downshifting into 2nd became a hassle.

So... I change my master & slave. After changing the master & slave, 2nd gear got worse on the downshift and started to show up on the up-shift too. I naturally assumed that I still had air in the line dispite no problems whatsoever with other gears, even shifting into reverse from a stop. So... tonight I pop the cap off the reservoir to find that there's no fluid in there. I don't know if it leaked out or if a bunch of air worked itself out of the system. So anyway, I bleed the system and I don't get any air out. The pedal feels hard right from the top with the slave hanging. Put it all back in, drive it and it's just like it was before I bled.

I'm pulling my hair out trying to figure out what's at fault here. What really pisses me off is that it seems that changing the master & slave made it worse.

 

Cags shouldnt cuase that but what I would do is go through and bleeed the system again and make sure thats not the problem. Then do a fluid change on the transmission. Use the good stuff (BMW stuff I think) that is reccomended by http://WWW.ZFDOC.COM

 

Did you change the hydraulic hose too? A hydraulic system working at 100% will not make your tranny worse. If you bled the system properly and changed all three components then your problem is in the transmission unless your master or slave was defective which is possible. I believe it happened to someone else on this forum.

 

Someone else is having problems too with their tranny so I'll suggest the same thing here. When was the last time the fluid was changed in the the tranny? Sometimes a simple fluid change will make a world of difference. Old parts love new fluids, I'd try that because I know it worked for my girls 99 camaro with these similiar problems

 

Any bets on who can get their clutch working correctly first Jim? I have bleed mine so many times that I taste clutch fluid in my dreams. Gonna drop the slave tonight and try my old one. If that don't work then I am gonna check the master. Both are new units.

The only advice I would give is if you can move from reverse to first and back to reverse without any problems, your cluch hydraulics are working correctly. Mine is notchy as heck when I try to move between first and reverse, and 50% of the time I can't get into reverse at all. It will not go into reverse after sitting over night.

If I come up with any miricle fix, I will let ya know.


[Modified by Aaron71771, 9:04 AM 4/24/2003]

 

Just a little more info. When I changed the master & slave, I didn't change the line between. It looks brand new and frankly I really can't believe that the stainless line is flexing enough to cause a problem. Hell, the line on the f-bodies is just plastic.

I've got 3 quarts of the BMW fluid in the garage and planned on putting it in until I discovered that nobody in town has a 17mm allen socket. :rolleyes: I've got to order one and wait for it.

Let's see... what else. Oh yeah, I've been told by others that if it can go into 1st and/or reverse easily without putting it into a different gear first that the hydraulic system is working properly. That's why this has been so frustrating for me. If the hydraulic system wasn't part of the problem, it would seem to me that all this screwing around wouldn't keep making my grinding situation change with every little thing I do.

I mean, I know that ultimately I need a rebuild. BUT, I'm trying to make sure that the rest of the system is functioning properly so I don't just wind up ruining the new trans.

Oh yeah, one more thing. as soon as I put my foot on the clutch pedal it starts to release (i.e. I don't have to push it halfway to the floor before something happens) and by mid stroke the clutch feels completely disengaged. It's a nice smooth progressive transition. It *feels* like it's working right, but at this point who knows.

 

My clutch has to go to the floor and then some, I even bent my old pedal with my "muscular" legs and had to buy a new clutch pedal. :crazy:

 

jeeze dude. You may want to try bench bleeding your master cylinder. That's what made the difference for me. I bled the system and had absolutely NO pedal. I pulled the master off, hooked up my bleeder pump to the brake line fitting, and pushed the fluid up through the master until the reservoir cup was half full. I capped it, installed it and my pedal has been great since. It was easy and seemed to work real well.