I have a 95 maxima stick shift. Ever since last week the first gear either pops out or sometimes it wont go in at all. I don't know if this has anything to do with it but last month I had a leak in my master clutch and my gears seized.
Thanx

 

most likely that could of caused the problem...if your trans seized up, i would take it to a local shop not a dealership (they will RIP you off).

 

you think that I might need a new tranny?

 

If the gears seized, you may have bent a shift fork, shift rod, fork retaining clip, etc. Hard to say until it's been opened up, and once you open it up it makes sense to spend the extra money to put new bearings in and reshim them. The dealerships often don't reshim properly, so be sure your rebuilder is competent.

I'd suggest you PM Rob Tilley (Tilleys99) and see if he has anything he can do.

Dave

 

Does it make a difference that I have a short shifter?

 

Probably not. If you can get into 3rd and 5th without trouble it's probably good. The mechanism the holds it in gear is inside the tranny.

If you want to check (a good idea), lift the front end and unbolt the shifter rod from the bracket on the tranny. Then insert a long screwdriver into the holes in the bracket and use that to twist/push/pull it into each gear. It should move with a nice snug pop into each gear.

Also inspect the underside of the tranny and make sure that none of the bolts have fallen out. The ones I'm thinking of have 14mm heads. I tend to suspect the seized gear episode caused internal damage, but it could be caused by one of these bolts coming loose.

Dave

 

It could be just a synchro problem by the sound of it. Assuming there's no grinding noises etc. I can't be more specific, bc I own an auto and so have had no incentive to study the gearbox of a Max. Typical synchro problem is when you engage the gear, sometimes the engage will feel a bit 'sloppy', and when you accelerate, it jumps out of gear. The harder you accelerate, the quicker it pops out. Sometimes you can 'hold' it in gear, sometimes not, it depends on the type of synchro used in the box. Any of this seem like what's happening to yours?

 

Actually it pops out when I slow down and when I stop it wont go back in.

 

Synchros generally only cause cruddy shifts. If it's popping out of gear it's something else.

Dave

 

you think it might be the clutch?

 

I checked one of my transmission books and it said that synchros can contribute to it popping out of gear because a bad synchro can prevent it from properly engaging in the first place. But I still think it's gear dog damage or shifter linkage.

The clutch would tend to affect all gears equally, I think. But when you take it apart you'll need to check it thoroughly for damage.

Dave

 

1st gear synchro. Get a new trans or rebuild it.

 

did you mean get new synchros for first gear or new tranny or both?

 

I think he meant, either rebuild the box or find another one.
It should be worth rebuilding it because it doesn't sound major. If you had damaged a gear tooth, you would be experiencing much worse problems such as jamming in gear. You're probably going to need to replace the synchro parts and quite possibly you've got a bent selector fork or similar, as an earlier poster suggested. However, if you don't know how to build gearboxes, find someone who does. It is not a job for amateurs. My own first efforts were with a Gilera motorcycle gearbox and it took me many attempts.

 

Thanx for all the help. So I basically need to go back to my mechanic and try to get the synchros and a have them rebuild my gear box. should I also get new tranny oil?

 

Well, have them look at it first before ordering any parts! Nobody knows what's damaged until you open it up. Me, if I were going to rebuild a tranny, I would definitely replace all the bearings and seals, the parts are cheap enough, and it will need to be shimmed accurately to set the correct amount of play. And of course you should replace the oil, after all it's going to be in there for a long long time . . . rebuilding a transmission is like working on any other engine part, just that you need to know what you're doing and follow the mfr's specifications quite precisely. All this takes me back to memories of using my mum's kitchen oven to heat up the alloy gearbox so as to drop the roller bearings in.
(Of course, if it really is 'poping out' and not popping out, you could try contacting the Vatican and maybe sprinkling it with holy water .. hehe)

 

(Of course, if it really is 'poping out' and not popping out, you could try contacting the Vatican and maybe sprinkling it with holy water .. hehe)[/QUOTE]

Thanx for looking out I was trying to pay attention to my other words I had a feeling I f'd up somewhere

So if I took it to a mechanic how much would this cost me time and money

 

It's all 'hours' so... what do they charge these days in the US? $50 per hour?
The parts... like I said, it's impossible to say without all the shafts and dogs out and cleaned and under a bright light, and I am totally unfamiliar with Nissan gear parts prices. Usually have to multiply everything I think it might be, by ten. I am way out of date on these things... maybe $5 for a roller bearing and seal? How many bearings and seals, maybe 5? Say $25 for bearings and seals, if the synchro is damaged maybe $100 in synchro rings, maybe allow another $100 for a bent selector fork or rod ... say $250 in parts, plus labour, maybe 12 hours of labour? About $1,000. Probably I am miles out... there must be guys here who know. C'mon gearbox guys!

 

A Bearings, synchros, and seals kit runs $400. The labor might be 6-10h @$60/h, but I dunno. Forks, etc are in the $30-60/ea range.

Dave

 

thanx for all the info I'll probably take it to the shop this weekend. I have one more question I've been adding more gas and releasing the clutch alot slower in first and it goes in ok do you think it might be something else?