Z06 Shifter linkage issue/bent fork?
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: May 2017
Posts: 15
Likes: 1
From: Tyler Texas
I went back and read your original post. How you drove the car should not have busted the trans, unless something was ready to go. Lots of people shift hard and push the car. My 2000 FRC has seen hard track duty for many years and I have never had any trouble with the trans.
There are a few things that come to mind:
1. With the car in neutral, engine running, clutch in, does the car want to move when you put it in 4th. this might indicate clutch problems of some sort.
2. Can you drive the car in 4th (as a test only to eliminate clutch issues)
3. The shifter forks have a wear point where they sit in the slider gear groove, wear there will jam stuff up. If you google Tremec T56, you can find the repair manual that will be close to yours, You have slightly different gear ratios in the M12.
4. Of course there's the famous paper shims Tremec uses. All the rebuilders put brass back in ( I think that's what they use)
5. I'm not a big fan of short throw shifters, but that is personal taste. That being said, maybe there is something like a worn trans and the short throw. There are lots of folks with short throws that like them and have no problem AND pound the crap out of their car with no problem
6. Have you changed the trans fluid? That would be one thing to try. Use Dexron III. DO NOT USE GEAR OIL!!!!!. drain into something so you can see if there are any particles. I have a pumper I bought on Amazon that looks like the liquid hand soap pumpers, but sized for 1qt plastic oil containers. You will need something like this as the fill plug is on the side.
7. I think there are neutral detent *****, and I recall several years back that folks were messing with the detent springs to smooth up shifting. Just a memory of reading about them here. I have no direct experience on this.
There are a few things that come to mind:
1. With the car in neutral, engine running, clutch in, does the car want to move when you put it in 4th. this might indicate clutch problems of some sort.
2. Can you drive the car in 4th (as a test only to eliminate clutch issues)
3. The shifter forks have a wear point where they sit in the slider gear groove, wear there will jam stuff up. If you google Tremec T56, you can find the repair manual that will be close to yours, You have slightly different gear ratios in the M12.
4. Of course there's the famous paper shims Tremec uses. All the rebuilders put brass back in ( I think that's what they use)
5. I'm not a big fan of short throw shifters, but that is personal taste. That being said, maybe there is something like a worn trans and the short throw. There are lots of folks with short throws that like them and have no problem AND pound the crap out of their car with no problem
6. Have you changed the trans fluid? That would be one thing to try. Use Dexron III. DO NOT USE GEAR OIL!!!!!. drain into something so you can see if there are any particles. I have a pumper I bought on Amazon that looks like the liquid hand soap pumpers, but sized for 1qt plastic oil containers. You will need something like this as the fill plug is on the side.
7. I think there are neutral detent *****, and I recall several years back that folks were messing with the detent springs to smooth up shifting. Just a memory of reading about them here. I have no direct experience on this.
1. No
2. Yes, it drives fine in 4th. Agreed it was only to test, hard on the clutch.
5. When I was shopping for vettes and found this one my only concern was the short throw shifter. Driven a few vehicles that had them and I DEFINITELY understand the appeal, however I dont mind the "sloppy" feel of a stock unit and am a strong believer in keeping things as manufacturer intended.
6. I have not done this yet, only owned car for a few weeks. This seems like it might be my next step. Many people are messaging saying worn out fluid might be a culprit.
Thank you again
Tech Contributor
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 32,910
Likes: 2,402
From: Anthony TX
CI 6,7,8,9,11 Vet
St. Jude Donor '08
To answer your questions/comment:
1. No
2. Yes, it drives fine in 4th. Agreed it was only to test, hard on the clutch.
5. When I was shopping for vettes and found this one my only concern was the short throw shifter. Driven a few vehicles that had them and I DEFINITELY understand the appeal, however I dont mind the "sloppy" feel of a stock unit and am a strong believer in keeping things as manufacturer intended.
6. I have not done this yet, only owned car for a few weeks. This seems like it might be my next step. Many people are messaging saying worn out fluid might be a culprit.
Thank you again
1. No
2. Yes, it drives fine in 4th. Agreed it was only to test, hard on the clutch.
5. When I was shopping for vettes and found this one my only concern was the short throw shifter. Driven a few vehicles that had them and I DEFINITELY understand the appeal, however I dont mind the "sloppy" feel of a stock unit and am a strong believer in keeping things as manufacturer intended.
6. I have not done this yet, only owned car for a few weeks. This seems like it might be my next step. Many people are messaging saying worn out fluid might be a culprit.
Thank you again
The WORN OUT FLUID usually only causes the synchros to have a hard time synchronizing. When my 98 had approx. 50,000 miles, I started to get a little grind when shifting at WOT from 3rd to 4th.
I Drained the old dino ATF out and it looked like metal flake paint.
The NEW ATF solved that issues and the shifts were a LOT smoother.
I had 30K on my 02 ZO6 and thought what the hell, and changed that to a synthetic ATF also. There was a little improvement in shift quality but nothing to write home about. That fluid didn't look too bad. It too had very small metal particles suspended in the ATF.
Unless your ATF is severely degraded or NON EXISTANT, I don't see it being the cause of that issue.
Change it. Get 4 qts of AMSOL Torque drive or some similar synthetic ATF. It will take 3.75 qts to fill it back up. Easy enough to drain and refill.
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: May 2017
Posts: 15
Likes: 1
From: Tyler Texas
The WORN OUT FLUID usually only causes the synchros to have a hard time synchronizing. When my 98 had approx. 50,000 miles, I started to get a little grind when shifting at WOT from 3rd to 4th.
I Drained the old dino ATF out and it looked like metal flake paint.
The NEW ATF solved that issues and the shifts were a LOT smoother.
I had 30K on my 02 ZO6 and thought what the hell, and changed that to a synthetic ATF also. There was a little improvement in shift quality but nothing to write home about. That fluid didn't look too bad. It too had very small metal particles suspended in the ATF.
Unless your ATF is severely degraded or NON EXISTANT, I don't see it being the cause of that issue.
Change it. Get 4 qts of AMSOL Torque drive or some similar synthetic ATF. It will take 3.75 qts to fill it back up. Easy enough to drain and refill.
I Drained the old dino ATF out and it looked like metal flake paint.
The NEW ATF solved that issues and the shifts were a LOT smoother.
I had 30K on my 02 ZO6 and thought what the hell, and changed that to a synthetic ATF also. There was a little improvement in shift quality but nothing to write home about. That fluid didn't look too bad. It too had very small metal particles suspended in the ATF.
Unless your ATF is severely degraded or NON EXISTANT, I don't see it being the cause of that issue.
Change it. Get 4 qts of AMSOL Torque drive or some similar synthetic ATF. It will take 3.75 qts to fill it back up. Easy enough to drain and refill.
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assuming there is fluid in it... if the fluid level was extremely low that could cause the trans to overheat and things would start failing... a big issue with the t56 is the fluid shifts towards the back under hard acceleration which starves the front of fluid to keep it cool and with low fluid on top of that is asking for trouble... it's worth it to check in my opinion
Last edited by StingrayRebel; Sep 19, 2017 at 02:59 PM.
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: May 2017
Posts: 15
Likes: 1
From: Tyler Texas
assuming there is fluid in it... if the fluid level was extremely low that could cause the trans to overheat and things would start failing... a big issue with the t56 is the fluid shifts towards the back under hard acceleration which starves the front of fluid to keep it cool and with low fluid on top of that is asking for trouble... it's worth it to check in my opinion
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: May 2017
Posts: 15
Likes: 1
From: Tyler Texas
When I lift the vehicle what is the best procedure at home? I am getting a lot of mixed messages that people using jacking pucks or say you should jack by the two metal slots by the diff with a piece of wood to cushion.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 32,910
Likes: 2,402
From: Anthony TX
CI 6,7,8,9,11 Vet
St. Jude Donor '08
I just use my low profile jack and jack the K member from the center of the K member..
NEVER EVER had and issue and I've had 4 different C5/C6s.
I also use the jacking pads on each side of the car BUT, you have to be careful that the jack doesn't damage the BODY panels.
Its easy in my book. I put the jack stands on either side of the K member.
BC
NEVER EVER had and issue and I've had 4 different C5/C6s.
I also use the jacking pads on each side of the car BUT, you have to be careful that the jack doesn't damage the BODY panels.
Its easy in my book. I put the jack stands on either side of the K member.
BC
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Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: May 2017
Posts: 15
Likes: 1
From: Tyler Texas
I just use my low profile jack and jack the K member from the center of the K member..
NEVER EVER had and issue and I've had 4 different C5/C6s.
I also use the jacking pads on each side of the car BUT, you have to be careful that the jack doesn't damage the BODY panels.
Its easy in my book. I put the jack stands on either side of the K member.
BC
NEVER EVER had and issue and I've had 4 different C5/C6s.
I also use the jacking pads on each side of the car BUT, you have to be careful that the jack doesn't damage the BODY panels.
Its easy in my book. I put the jack stands on either side of the K member.
BC
Update on the car: Took it to a reputable trans shop by me and after looking it over they are pretty sure its the part you mentioned previously at the top of the trans unit. They are in the process of getting to that section of the car to check it out.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 32,910
Likes: 2,402
From: Anthony TX
CI 6,7,8,9,11 Vet
St. Jude Donor '08
Well,,,,,,,,,,, I am GLAD that I got you to get that car out of the possession of that STEALERSHIP.
I was a little dismayed after telling you that there was most likely something simple wrong and you checking each part of the assembly and finding NOTHING WRONG.
Hopefully, the garage that you have now will be able to fix it at a more reasonable rate and at a significantly reduced cost!!
Hey,, Nothing else, you understand you're car a lot more now.
Bill
I was a little dismayed after telling you that there was most likely something simple wrong and you checking each part of the assembly and finding NOTHING WRONG.
Hopefully, the garage that you have now will be able to fix it at a more reasonable rate and at a significantly reduced cost!!
Hey,, Nothing else, you understand you're car a lot more now.
Bill
Last edited by Bill Curlee; Sep 28, 2017 at 03:36 PM.
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: May 2017
Posts: 15
Likes: 1
From: Tyler Texas
Well,,,,,,,,,,, I am GLAD that I got you to get that car out of the possession of that STEALERSHIP.
I was a little dismayed after telling you that there was most likely something simple wrong and you checking each part of the assembly and finding NOTHING WRONG.
Hopefully, the garage that you have now will be able to fix it at a more reasonable rate and at a significantly reduced cost!!
Hey,, Nothing else, you understand you're car a lot more now.
Bill
I was a little dismayed after telling you that there was most likely something simple wrong and you checking each part of the assembly and finding NOTHING WRONG.
Hopefully, the garage that you have now will be able to fix it at a more reasonable rate and at a significantly reduced cost!!
Hey,, Nothing else, you understand you're car a lot more now.
Bill
Jamie
Thread Starter
Heel & Toe
Joined: May 2017
Posts: 15
Likes: 1
From: Tyler Texas
Update and to close this out. Transmission shop found that is was the 3rd-4th slide ring and hub, also replaced dog kit. Metal was folded over and after bending it back shifts through all the gears. Rather than calling it a day, they replaced the parts that where bent so it doesn't happen again. They charged $1400. For the amount of labor and work put in on their end that seems like a fair price. Way better than the $5400 the dealership wanted.
Thank you everyone for your help
Thank you everyone for your help
Instructor
Joined: Apr 2014
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From: Houston Texas