Hey gang.

I bought my first Corvette ever back in August. Torch Red 2004 convertible with the MN6 transmission, stock shifter. I drove the car for a few months and a couple of thousand miles before putting it away for the winter but I have an issue that I haven't addressed yet and I would like to get some feedback before I pull the vehicle out in the spring. I haven't driven a stick in years but I've come to believe that I am not the problem.

I am less than pleased with the way 2nd and 4th gears engage. There can be a lot of resistance or notchiness when engaging those gears. Here are some symptoms:

I feel a resistance when engaging second gear with the rpms below about 4000 rpm. If I get the rpms above that it engages nice and smoothly.

I feel an even more significant resistance going into 4th gear. There is no audible sound of gears grinding but I can feel a slight grinding, which I assume (maybe incorrectly) are the syncros not quite doing their job completely. Sometimes 4th will engage just fine but most of the time it will not do so smoothly. It does not seem to be rpm dependent like 2nd gear is.

My ideas:
Could the syncro's be crap already?
Is this a shifter issue? Would after market help?
Would synthetic transmission fluid help?
Something else shifter related like some type of adjustment?
Time to go to the dealer and tear it open?

Thanks in advance, oh wise ones.

Karl

 

How many miles on vette
Synthetic Fluid helps
New shifter Helps shorter throws.
is your clutch master sticking

 

about 2500 miles
sticking? No idea. How would I know? Clutch feels fine to me.

Thanks.

 

sometimes the shifter hangs when you have a sticky clutch master or slave. Do you have thee Cags bypass installed.
2500 miles i doubt the tranny is the issue. Have gm take a look it cant hurt after all it is under warranty .

 

I think theres more to your question than you think. I bought a new c-6 and I also think at times I forgot how to shift from 1st. to second!!!!!! I would like to know if we could be dealing with a CDV Clutch Delay Valve like is used in BMW. it sure sounds like the same. Maybe GM calls this Torque Management? If anyone knows I would really appreciate knowing what goes. Thanks all new member

 

No CAGS installed.

 

Put cags bypass in and it will be much better

 

If you don't mind me asking, Why?

 

zman3

If you have not driven a "modern" manual transmission I believe you are simply experiencing the new way they feel when shifting.
All of my cars were/are manual (66 gto, 79 280zx, 80 bronco) and felt/feel different from my 04 vette. I think it is the near total design change from the systems that use real gear oil and are mounted right beside you.
I will say the "feel" improved greatly when I switched to a synthetic atf (amsoil in my case). Gears click into place at the lower rpms and it is like butter above 3000.
In short, I don't think you have a problem from what you have described, just different from what you were used to.
I do recommend a fluid change to synthetics. Changed mine at 3000 miles.

verysoon

 

OK the cags system basically forces you to go from 1st -4th gear when casually driving unless under power. My car 1999 was difficult to shift before cags because . I was trying to shift into second when cags was activated. Now no cags and second is easy to hit and Also the cags option pissed me off. I want to decide what gear I go in not gm.

 

Got it. Thanks.

I think we are talking about entirely different things though. I have had it try to force me into 4th and either I just let it do it or I pause for a second and then it goes into 2nd just fine. This is an entirely different sensation.

 

I've driven "modern" manuals just not for about 10 years. They were all 4 cylinder cars however. This is the first bad ***, torquey engine that I've ever had with a manual transmission. It just seems odd that 3,5, and 6 would all engage smoothly but 2nd, and particulary 4th, would feel like such crap.

I am inclined to think that synthetic fluid would be a reasonably priced first try.

 

it is worth the $19.00 for bypass to rule it out. and no more cags and will not void warranty

 

I do plan on buying the CAGS bypass since it is a cheap solution to an annoying trait of the car, and I would be ecstatic if it fixed this other issue but I have a healthy dose of skepticism. But it tags along for free as a potential solution.