Richmond 6-speed tranny trouble

[larry bud]

This is unreal. I've had this thing in my '86 since August 03. Really just a little more than a year of driving.

Now in 6th gear, it's making quite a noise, and chatters when accelerating.

I was able to get home in 5th, which still runs just fine....

I'm not familiar with transmission diagnostics... could this be a bearing of some sort? I'll check the fluid level tonight, but I'd be surprised if it's low... Hopefully that's all it is and nothing has been damaged.

If it comes to rebuilding, I've never rebuilt a tranny.... any good advice? I definitely want to do it myself.

 

[WhalePirot]

When I was shopping tranny options, I was told the Richies were noisy; so noisy that some were being removed. That was part of my rational for redoing the 4+3.


Hopefuly you have no maintenance coming.

 

[larry bud]

When I was shopping tranny options, I was told the Richies were noisy; so noisy that some were being removed. That was part of my rational for redoing the 4+3.


Hopefuly you have no maintenance coming.

Unfortunately, this is beyond noisy. Worked fine until yesterday.

 

[WhalePirot]

Unfortunately, this is beyond noisy. Worked fine until yesterday.

Sorry to hear it. Ken and I phoned today and spoke of your tranny.

First order is the level of the lube. How did that check out?

 

[larry bud]

Sorry to hear it. Ken and I phoned today and spoke of your tranny.

First order is the level of the lube. How did that check out?

I drained the lube last night, but ran out of time. There are two plugs, and the plug in the middle of the tranny has fluid running out of it when I removed it. I *believe* the fill plug is on the top of the tranny, tough to get to. I'm not sure how else to check the level.

 

[Ken]

The fill plug is the higher of the two on the side of the case. The bottom one is the drain, but as you can see, you really can't get it all to drain through that hole; there'll always be a little left in the bottom.

 

[larry bud]

The fill plug is the higher of the two on the side of the case. The bottom one is the drain, but as you can see, you really can't get it all to drain through that hole; there'll always be a little left in the bottom.

Ok, got it filled back up... Still making noise and getting worse. I only drove it about a mile, and it seems like it's starting to make noise in gears other than 6th.

When there's a load on it, I hear "click click click click..." about 3 per second. I also FEEL the clicking through the shifter, if that's any help. I put the car on stands, put it in 6th, pushed the clutch pedal in and turned the back tires, but couldn't hear anything... it needs a load.


What kind of bearing is this?

I've left Richmond *2* emails but haven't heard back from them yet. That's pretty disappointing, seeing that this tranny only has about 10k on it. I'll try and give them a call later.

 

[Ken]

I have a feeling that Richmond is simply going to recommend their (your) local distributor for repairs, wherever you purchased it.

In my case, they recommend Chrisman's California Gear. I don't know who I'll have work on mine whenever I finally get the money. Mine needs a second gear synchronizer - my fault, not Richmond's.

 

[larry bud]

I have a feeling that Richmond is simply going to recommend their (your) local distributor for repairs, wherever you purchased it.

In my case, they recommend Chrisman's California Gear. I don't know who I'll have work on mine whenever I finally get the money. Mine needs a second gear synchronizer - my fault, not Richmond's.

How hard is this to fix by us mere mortals?

 

[Ken]

I've never done any transmission Larry, let alone a ROD 6-speed. Sorry.

 

[larry bud]

I've never done any transmission Larry, let alone a ROD 6-speed. Sorry.

I called Richmond today and the guy said that it sounds like the 6th gear has broken. He said the gear size and pitch are smaller on the OD. He also said they'd cover the repair if it's determined to be a mfg defect, which, at 10k miles, and the fact that I don't abuse this car (I don't race it), I sure think it is.

I've got an RMA and hopefully will be able to pull this out this weekend and send it back.... wish I kept the box!!! I'll let you know what happens when I know.

 

[Ken]

Good luck Larry. Hopefully they'll live up to their reputation as being a reliable and honest company.

 

[larry bud]

I pulled the tranny this weekend (I must be getting good at this, because start to finish it only took 3 hours)... Had to pull apart the interior again to TRY to remove the shifter. This was the only hiccup, and probably added 1/2 hour to the time. The 3 bolts that hold the Long shifter on were frozen... I was actually able to pull the tranny with the shifter still attached, and then was able to remove those 3 bolts once removed.

Before I drained it, I put it into various gears and turned the input shaft by hand. Everything was smooth, but 6th gear, which made a definite whirring sound. My bet is a bearing. I'll ship this off to Richmond in the next couple of days and keep my fingers crossed!

 

[Ken]

Actually Larry, Richmond states to adjust and install the shifter linkage on a bench before installing the transmission, correct.

As for the interior ... Yeah, it can be a pain in the ass to have to remove the console top every time you want to work on the transmission.

For what it's worth; I cut holes in the transmission tunnel right above the bolt heads that hold the torque arm to the transmission tailshaft. It makes it a lot easier to apply torque to the bolts when you have a clear shot to them.

Believe it or not, but racers tape (duct tape) applied over the holes effectively seal them from the elements, as well as any noxious odors.

 

[G Winter]

The racers must have attended the Red Green school of repair.

 

[larry bud]

Believe it or not, but racers tape (duct tape) applied over the holes effectively seal them from the elements, as well as any noxious odors.

I sent the tranny in and it arrived at Richmond last thursday. UPS was a PITA, as one hub wouldn't take my packaging, the woman claiming she's seen used transmission draining "For months" that still had oil in them, and she said she couldn't ship it because it falls under hazardous materials, and I could be fined $50,000 if it leaks... gimme a break. I went to another hub and they took it without a problem. Cost me a couple of days in transit time.

Anyway, Richmond operates in funny ways. They never called me to discuss, but yesterday I got a call from a shipping company to schedule a delivery of a transmission. I'm assuming they fixed it.... I hope... odd.

 

[Ken]

Keep us informed Larry; I'm interested to see how Richmond's service works out.

 

[reidry]

I have a ROD with 9K miles in my '85 and I'm curious how it all goes as well.

Ryan

 

[WhalePirot]

Keep us informed Larry; I'm interested to see how Richmond's service works out.

Ditto. While the 4+3 is working perfectly, I am always planning ahead on the Vette, plus a truck rod project.

 

[larry bud]

Got the tranny today, and will try to install it over the weekend.

They rebuilt it under warranty, and replaced a BUNCH of parts. Looks like the major parts were:
Gear 6th (ROD)
Gear, Mainshaft 6th gear 6-speed

Thanks Richmond!