2002 Z06 Difficulty Going into Reverse- Need Help!
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2021
Posts: 48
Likes: 7
From: Signal Hill, CA
If you're interested in tearing apart your transmission, I'd highly recommend watching multiple T56 transmission rebuild videos on Youtube. There's a lot to learn and just seeing what they do and listening to what they say can provide tremendous help.
There are 4 shift forks in the T56: 1/2, 3/4, 5/6, and reverse. The 3/4 shift fork was made aluminum and you can "upgrade" to the Viper's steel/cast iron version (which is what I did, shown in my parts list).
Generally speaking there should be no reason to replace shift forks. I bought a replacement reverse shift fork just to see if my old one was bent, and it wasn't.
Shift fork pads are typically plastic and it's common to buy them as a complete kit or individually. Each shift fork has 2 pads, though they all use unique pads expect 5/6 and reverse use the same ones. You can also buy brass/bronze pads for extra money, and these usually have tighter tolerances leading to improved shifting. HOWEVER, for a daily driver they are likely to wear out faster than plastic (although they won't break like plastic). I chose 5/6 brass pads since I believe they won't wear as fast for those gears.
I guarantee that broken reverse fork pads won't be your transmission's only issue. The reverse synchro ring will surely be worn (even if it looks okay), as well as the synchro slider and possibly reverse gear.
In my opinion, if you can manage to remove the transmission, you ought to be able to disassemble it. In my list of parts you'll notice "Wilde Tool G409P Lock Ring Pliers" which I bought specifically to deal with the snap rings used in the T56. Other than a hydraulic press (with press plates) and a custom transmission stand I believe that was the only special tool I didn't already have on-hand.
Of course, if you do end up removing the transmission you'll have to decide whether you're going to only deal with fixing reverse, or go for a full synchro rebuild (like I did; my 1st gear was also an issue). Conceivably you don't need to remove the transmission to partially disassemble it to fix reverse.
Also I did all of this work in my garage on Quickjacks.
There are 4 shift forks in the T56: 1/2, 3/4, 5/6, and reverse. The 3/4 shift fork was made aluminum and you can "upgrade" to the Viper's steel/cast iron version (which is what I did, shown in my parts list).
Generally speaking there should be no reason to replace shift forks. I bought a replacement reverse shift fork just to see if my old one was bent, and it wasn't.
Shift fork pads are typically plastic and it's common to buy them as a complete kit or individually. Each shift fork has 2 pads, though they all use unique pads expect 5/6 and reverse use the same ones. You can also buy brass/bronze pads for extra money, and these usually have tighter tolerances leading to improved shifting. HOWEVER, for a daily driver they are likely to wear out faster than plastic (although they won't break like plastic). I chose 5/6 brass pads since I believe they won't wear as fast for those gears.
I guarantee that broken reverse fork pads won't be your transmission's only issue. The reverse synchro ring will surely be worn (even if it looks okay), as well as the synchro slider and possibly reverse gear.
In my opinion, if you can manage to remove the transmission, you ought to be able to disassemble it. In my list of parts you'll notice "Wilde Tool G409P Lock Ring Pliers" which I bought specifically to deal with the snap rings used in the T56. Other than a hydraulic press (with press plates) and a custom transmission stand I believe that was the only special tool I didn't already have on-hand.
Of course, if you do end up removing the transmission you'll have to decide whether you're going to only deal with fixing reverse, or go for a full synchro rebuild (like I did; my 1st gear was also an issue). Conceivably you don't need to remove the transmission to partially disassemble it to fix reverse.
Also I did all of this work in my garage on Quickjacks.
Part of me wants to do this job myself. Part of me is worried about running into problems, usually things that don't come apart like they're supposed to or special tools that I don't have and can't borrow. Still, I want to have 'transmission rebuild' on my mechanic's resume. Steve
