# 1993 5 speed won't shift into 5th gear



## rdixiemiller (Mar 6, 2008)

New to the forum, but I've been twisting my own wrenches for years.
I have a 1993 D21 4cyl 5 speed. Had it since 1995, put 250,000 miles on it myself, now sitting on 280k. At 220K, tranny started some brg noise, then suddenly wouldn't go into 5th. Just a nice grinding noise. I found a donor 94 or 95 truck in horrible shape with a rod knock for $300, about 250k, swapped trannies. Now, 60k later, suddenly won't go into 5th, just grinds when you try.
I drive mostly highway, and I don't shift hard. I am assuming this is a relatively common issue, since the chances of 2 trannies failing the same way in the same vehicle are a little slim. 
Shift drum or fork? Possibly a shifter issue? Tranny was quiet, and smooth. One shift it worked, next time it didn't. I still have the original tranny I pulled out, I guess I should tear into it and look. Just seeing if anyone else has ever had this problem.
Looks like a nice forum, lots of good info!


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## lumbee (Mar 20, 2005)

..if its grinding, doesn't sounds like a shift fork problem...sync rings maybe. I think u'r on the right track with tearing into the other one and seeing what the problem is...


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## rdixiemiller (Mar 6, 2008)

I read your teardown post and it helped. I haven't had much luck finding a tranny rebuild section in a manual for this little truck. I'm going to pop the bellhousing off the old one and have a look-see. I am betting the one in the truck has a bad shift drum or synchro. Fixing the tranny will be easier than pulling/replacing it I hope.


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## lumbee (Mar 20, 2005)

...yeah, rebuilding the tranny is more mental strain than physical...not sure which is worse. 5th gear kind of hangs off to the side away from the rest of the chunk, so you shouldn't have to completely disassemble to get to it. Let us know what you find...


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## rdixiemiller (Mar 6, 2008)

OK. Got the original transmission torn down. This tranny made a terrible racket one day on the way home from work in all gears but 4th (direct) about 4 years ago. I figured I had lost the countershaft gears, so I bought a junker truck for $300 and swapped trannies. Since the tranny I swapped in has now decided not to go into 5th (after 60,000 miles), I pulled the original one apart. Turns out all I lost was the front bearing on the countershaft. Everything else looks fine. I good cleaning up and a new set of bearings and seals and it will be good to go. Synchros still look great. The only visible wear is on the reverse gears, a little chewing up of the gear teeth edges from crunch shifting. 
Time to drop $100 into a bearing and seal kit. 
I seem to have read that the oil level is too low in these trannies, so I may drill the case and tap it for another fill plug, a little higher. How much higher should the fill plug be?


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## kylebgt (Jul 10, 2007)

I had the EXACT same prob as you. My truck had 156k miles on it though. Out of the middle of nowhere it started making a grinding noise that would go away whenever I would step on the clutch. Wish I had the tools to do the job my self. It cost me like $850-900:lame: My truck is a 94' 4x4 2.4l 5pd.


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## rdixiemiller (Mar 6, 2008)

Don't feel too bad, you actually paid a fair price. It usually pays 4 hrs to r&r the transmission/transfer case in a 4x4. Then you have to break the T-case loose, tear down the tranny and replace the bearings, then re-assemble. That takes about 4 hrs. So, you pay for 8 hrs shop labor, plus list price on the parts, gear lube to refill the tranny, etc. If the shop did good work, you actually paid a decent price.
30 years ago, I put myself through college working as a mechanic. Back then, our shop labor rate was $18/hr! I got 1/2 of the labor, provided my own tools, paid my own taxes and insurance. I thought I was rich! 
Times have changed!


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## rdixiemiller (Mar 6, 2008)

rdixiemiller said:


> Don't feel too bad, you actually paid a fair price. It usually pays 4 hrs to r&r the transmission/transfer case in a 4x4. Then you have to break the T-case loose, tear down the tranny and replace the bearings, then re-assemble. That takes about 4 hrs. So, you pay for 8 hrs shop labor, plus list price on the parts, gear lube to refill the tranny, etc. If the shop did good work, you actually paid a decent price.
> 30 years ago, I put myself through college working as a mechanic. Back then, our shop labor rate was $18/hr! I got 1/2 of the labor, provided my own tools, paid my own taxes and insurance. I thought I was rich!
> Times have changed!
> As for tools, you can pull the transfer case and drop it before you go after the transmission. Other than a pair of snap ring pliers, some hand tools, and access to a buddy with a cheap hydraulic shop press, no special tools are needed for the job. Maybe get a buddy to help get the transmission lifted up and stabbed back in place, then the t-case. Don't be afraid to tackle a job like this, if you own a brain, you can do it!


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## lumbee (Mar 20, 2005)

...yeah Rdixie, on the fluid level, you can only get about 1.5 qts in it, but it needs 3. I wouldn't go to the trouble of drilling/tapping...just fill it from the shifter once you get it back in the truck...


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## rdixiemiller (Mar 6, 2008)

OK. Last time I changed the tranny I pulled the fill plug and poured lube in through the shifter hole until it ran out the open hole. So, I should put in 6 pints?


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## lumbee (Mar 20, 2005)

...2 pints in a quart? If so, then yeah, 6 pints.


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## motorhead2723 (Mar 22, 2017)

It's crazy, I have a 93 Ranger 4 cylinder 5 speed 2.3L truck. I recently figured out that the Ford and Nissan transmissions are the exact same M5R1 tyranny's. My truck didn't go into 5th or reverse so i took the transmission apart and went to work, after taking out some loose metal i took apart the the gears for 5th and revers and inspected them. There were slight signs of wear but the synchro had issues going into 5th and reverse (since they share the same synchro) i totally replaced it and put it all back together and it ow goes into reverse but stil won't go into 5th.... Any suggestions?


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## vancouverd21 (Oct 5, 2017)

*no longer completes shift into 5th gear*

i've read the posts in this thread a number of times now and i believe my 2.4l '93 d21 with 240km or 150k miles is suffering from the same problem. interestingly, it wouldn't shift into 5th once a month or 2 ago, but next day was fine again. so i waited. sure enough a couple of days ago it stopped going all the way into 5th. it just won't complete the shift, though it will grind if you try to push it. doesn't go if the motor isn't running either, nor if you try to clutchless shift it. however, so far it's fine in 1st through 4th and reverse. near as i can tell, at least one of rdixiemiller's trannies was making a grinding sound while driving unless clutch was pushed in. this corresponds with what my gearhead friend is telling me is symptomatic of bearing issues. the other sounds like it sounded fine, but wouldn't go into 5th. on another note, looking elsewhere online i see that some say overfilling the transmission fluid will cause issues eventually. i am tempted to split the difference. i see these posts are from 2008. any more comments 9 years later?


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