Hey guys,


My tranny feels real notchy in this weather? I dont know if its the weather but the tranny is definetly notchier than it used to be. Had some BIG runs today with some BIG cars and I missed 3rd once and I know it wasnt me but the tranny is making things HARD!!

How do you guys feel?

Maybe I need a new clutch (still stock) does that effect tranny notchiness?

-Zee

 

Funny you posted this, I've been experiencing the same thing the last few weeks.

I've driven manuals all my life, and never had to replace a clutch or have any work done on a transmission. Check that, I had about 150,000 on a '69 Camaro when I needed a new clutch, but I wasn't the only driver.

The last few weeks, the transmission's been feeling like I'm beating the synchros on a few shifts, popped out of gear (first) at a standstill once or twice, and I even started thinking about replacing the ATF with Redline. The shifter feels, like you said, "notchy," to the point where I started wondering about adjusting it.

Car has almost 66,000 miles on it.

Don't recall this in other winters (I'm in NYS).

 

Hey guys,

Mine's doing the same thing. I've had mine for two months now (2000 M6 Coupe with 25K miles). This is my first manual transmission car so it has bothered me a little bit. It has a notchier feel to it and has popped out of gear a couple of times on me.

I have noticed that it seemed prone to this when the weather was below 30 degrees and seemed to "loosen" back up a little as soon as the car was warm.

Does this sound like what you are experiencing?

Jeff

 

That's it.....

 

yup thats exactly it.

My car only has 16k miles!

Guess we have to just deal with it. Cant wait for SPRING lol.

 

I changed trans & diff fluids to Mobil 1 synthetic about 5K miles ago when I installed a C6 shifter. No more notchiness, even in this cold VA wx

 

Try changing the oil to Amsoil or royal purple and allow more time for the trans to warm up before rowing the gears hard... I bet it will make a big difference as it did in my car as well.

VR

 

Do you think the notchiness could be caused by the restrictor described in
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...307&forum_id=1

see Last C5 / Steve Cole of The Turbo Shop as follows:
In the Clutch
A Simple, No-Cost Fix for LS1 Camaro and Corvette Clutch Problems

The clutch comes out, and the Camaro launches hard. The tach hits 6,000 rpm and you stab the clutch pedal, yank on the shifter, and slam the trans into Second gear. Again the motor climbs to 6,000 rpm and you press on the clutch and bang the shifter into what should be Third, but you miss the gear. The motor revs, your foot comes off the gas and you search for Third. On the next pass, the same thing happens. You discover that the only way the trans will shift into Third is if you granny-shift the trans. First to Second is OK, but Second to Third just won’t go.
If this sounds familiar with your fourth-generation Camaro or Corvette, you’re not alone. The LS1 Camaros and Corvettes are plenty quick and have great power. The T56 trans shifts great most of the time, but often it just won’t let you bang Third gear. Several clutch companies claim to offer the solution, but in a recent discussion with Steve Cole of The Turbo Shop, he let us in on a cool little secret that he says will solve these clutch problems and make that T56 shift like a dream.
Ironically, the solution is not with the clutch, but with the hydraulic actuating system. Steve has been building and fine-tuning a high-rpm 302ci LS1 Camaro for Chevrolet that debuted at the SEMA show last year. The Camaro suffered the same fate as the description above and managed to kill a clutch in a matter of minutes. This led Steve to investigate the problem.
The hydraulic clutch actuating system in ’98-and-later Camaros is very simple. It starts with a plastic, injection-molded master cylinder that uses a standard piston and seal assembly to apply pressure when the piston is stroked by the clutch pedal. A –4 steel-braided, Teflon-lined hose connects the master cylinder to a hydraulic slave cylinder that bolts to the front of the transmission and actuates the push-off diaphragm clutch. Steve decided to create a complete bench-mounted system to see if he could locate the problem.
Through experimentation, Steve discovered that it took 5 ½ strokes of the master to move the slave piston through its complete travel. After many hours of experimenting, he discovered a delay in both the actuation of the slave cylinder and the time it took for the fluid to return to the master cylinder. Eventually, this pointed to a restriction in the hydraulic line between the master cylinder and the slave. After a little more detective work, Steve discovered a restrictor in the steel-braided line just downstream of the master cylinder line fitting. By using a pin micrometer, he discovered that the –4 line (which should have an inside diameter of around ¼ inch) included a restrictor that reduced the inside diameter (id) of the line to 0.064-inch or roughly ¼ the id of the hose.
Steve surmised that the restrictor not only delayed release of the clutch, but, more importantly, slowed engagement of the clutch as well. This means that after releasing the clutch pedal when the car is launched, the hydraulic fluid is still trying to return to the master cylinder when the clutch pedal is hit again for the One-Two shift. This again delays the return of fluid to the master. When it comes time for the Third-gear shift, the fluid is still stacked up in the line, preventing the clutch from releasing properly. This is what causes those missed shifts. Slowing the shift down allows the hydraulic system time to recover and perform its normal function.
Once Steve discovered the restrictor in the line, he used a 1/8-inch drill bit and carefully drilled out the restrictor to 1/8-inch, cleaned and flushed the line to remove the chips, reassembled the line to the system, and then bled the system to remove any air. With the system back on the car, a quick test blast down the street instantly eliminated the Third-gear shift problem. Since then, the Camaro has run numerous 12-second quarter-mile runs with no hint of a problem.
So why did Chevy engineers design the hydraulic system like this? Steve thinks that the restrictor has little noticeable effect on clutch disengagement. However, when engaging the clutch, the restrictor softens the “hit,” which reduces the abuse on the drivetrain. On quick, fast shifts, this unfortunately adds slippage and also builds heat very quickly in the clutch and flywheel. For everyday driving, the restrictor may be acceptable, but for performance driving and dragstrip use, this could mean the kiss of death.
This quick fix also applies to older supercars if they employ the stock Chevrolet hydraulic clutch actuating system. Steve’s only experience has been with the ’98-and-newer hydraulic clutch systems, but it’s possible that the older hydraulic systems may also use a restrictor. The only way to determine if the line has a restrictor in it is to slide a 1/8-inch drill bit down the length of the inlet side of the braided steel hose. If the bit hits a restriction, then you know you’ll need to modify the hose. Unfortunately, typical AN –4 lines will not work on this system since the GM line uses special GM hybrid fittings that are not compatible with AN lines.
The best news about this whole deal is that other than investing a couple of hours to remove the line and drill the restrictor, this modification costs nothing. We’re not guaranteeing that this modification will earn you the title of Mr. Six-speed, but it can’t hurt. It certainly doesn’t cost anything to try it.

 

Not on mine -- I tend not to shift that fast when I'm driving "normally."

I think it's got to do with the cold weather, since it's not there in the summer (at least last summer).

 

Change the tranny fluid to Mobli 1 synthetic ATF! You will be amazed at the difference it makes!!

It made my 98 so much better that i changed out the fluid in my 17,000 mile Z06. It made it smoother too.

Bill

 

Any synthetic (Mobil 1, amsoil, royal purple) should take care of the problem.

 

My new '03 shifted like crap from the day I drove it off the dealership lot. I could never get a smooth shift into 2nd or 3rd even with the CAGS bypassed. This is one reason why I opted for ordering an automatic in my '04 vert and only occasionally I miss the 6 spd manual. My '92 6spd was by far the smoothest shifting transmission Chevy ever offered (ZF transmission).

I am currently scouring the web for details on the new '06 6spd auto and perhaps do a retro-fit into my '04.

 

I too have had mine (02 z06) pop out of first gear. It does this because I fail to fully put it into gear sometimes. And since it has been cold, it is noticeably notchier. I will def. be switching to a fully synthetic transmission fluid when I can get my electrical problems sorted out.