4speed not shifting out of first.

[vetteKID]

Well, I went for a cruise at lunch a few days ago after about an hour of driving, stop and go, some 45 mph cruising. I pulled into a court to turn around and while placing it into first gear, it seemed "too easy". I then tried to place into second and it would not budge. It took some jerking and it finally got into second. So I limped home....in second. Pulled into the drive way and it went right into reverse. I let it cool down and I then messed with it for awhile and it seems that there is no neutral position. The clutch seems to be working fine, very smooth transition from clutch in to clutch out. I haven’t checked the linkage. I don’t hear any grinding, wining or clunking. There had been a strange vibration above 4000 rpms but I think that the timing was off, or the cam didn’t get broken in properly. any ideas?;help

 

[TimAT]

Couple of possibilities here. It may be the shifter is worn and needs adjustment or a combination of worn shifter and worn bushings. If the tranny is in any gear, there's an interlock that's supposed to keep it from getting into another gear at the same time.

Check the shifter first. Under the car, the shifter has a notch or hole in the body that will take a 1/4 rod. When all the linkage is in neutral, the rod will slip right in. Look at the levers on the trans- they should stand straight up if they're in neutral, you can move them with a wrench if not. Check all the bushings on the levers and the arms on the bottom of the shifter, along with the clips that hold it all together.

As far as the vibration, check the driveline for bad u-joints, and also make sure the trans and bellhousing are tight..

 

[fine69]

vetteKID,

The shifter linkage in our old 4 speed Vettes are prone to linkage binding. I once got stuck in reverse - talk about embarassing. I got used to adjusting the linkage on the fly.

I finally switched to a Hurst Competition Plus shifter (linkage), and also got the factory-look shifter handle (http://www.mamotorworks.com/corvette.html?frame=4.327.1178 ).

It looks completely stock, but my shifting woes are long gone. It now shifts nice and smooth.

Ralph