# hard to shift manual transmission



## lmontes (Sep 5, 2010)

Hi,
First of all I'm fairly :newbie:
Now for the problem at hand, I've got a Nissan Pickup truck 97, 2WD, manual transmission. The gears have always been harder to shift than our other car, also manual, but suddenly it has became really hard to shift. If the car is off it's really easy to shift, but when turning on the motor then it becomes hard, close to impossible, particularly reverse. I would expect that if it was the clutch worn out, it would just slip, but the problem seems to be the opposite. I checked the master cylinder fluid and its up to the max marker, I can see the slave push rod actuating the release lever. My question is how long should be the travel on the slave push rod? The push rod moves probably half an inch, is that enough to disengage the clutch? Does it look like a transmission problem? I've read that it could be a bent fork. What could I do to diagnose this problem?
TIA


----------



## jamucat (May 1, 2008)

When trying to shift with engine running does it grind which would mean the clutch is not fully disengaged. With the engine off can you shift through the gears easily?


----------



## Crf450r420 (Jun 27, 2010)

When I changed my clutch it was because I couldn't shift anymore. When I took it off, I found that driving through flood waters had caused several of the release fingers to break off. So, when I pushed in the clutch everything you could see on the outside worked fine, but the release bearing couldn't completely release the clutch anymore making impossible to shift.


----------



## zanegrey (Dec 5, 2005)

check trans oil...


----------



## lmontes (Sep 5, 2010)

Thanks for your replies,
Zanegrey: I should have mentioned that I did check the transmission oil. It was a bit low so I did add some, but that didn't seem to fix things.
Crf450r420: I thought the pressure from the fingers kept the clutch engaged, but if I understand what you are saying, the pressure releases it. That would fit my problem. I was hoping for a easier fix, but oh well.
Thanks again.


----------



## Crf450r420 (Jun 27, 2010)

Yeah, the release bearing presses on those fingers to disengage the clutch. Not sure how the job is on the 4 cyl. The V6 is pretty easy to get a part, but there is no way to drop the trans and you have to do all the work with the trans just pushed back maybe 5 inches.


----------



## smj999smj (Jan 1, 2006)

I would bleed the clutch hydraulics first and recheck to be sure before removing the trans.


----------



## lmontes (Sep 5, 2010)

Hi again,

So this weekend I started removing the transmission to get to the clutch. I'm at the point where I need to take out the transmission cross-member. But the nuts to remove it from the frame are not coming out. They are not rusty, like the ones on the front exhaust pipe flange, for those some PB-Blaster penetrating oil did the trick with some patience. One of the nuts I think I already did some damage by applying too much force, although I still can grip to it. Any tricks you guys can share?


----------



## Crf450r420 (Jun 27, 2010)

On mine (V6 model) there is a cross member that doesn't come out, so I just moved it back as far as I could. Then in the little room available I changed everything. It was tight, but possible.


----------



## lmontes (Sep 5, 2010)

Thanks for the tip,

I would actually find very difficult to know what I'm looking at if I don't get a good view (since this is my first try at clutch replacement). So I decided to give the nuts another try. I went and bought a set of bolt-grip bolt extractors, and that did the trick!

Thanks for your reply, though!


----------



## roscoewavo (Oct 1, 2010)

I've got a 94 that has always shifted hard for the last 6 years. Especially in the winter on the first shift. Had it gone through by a trans shop and it still shifts hard. I suspect this isn't normal but it doesn't get any worse. As long as it does shift I can live with it. Any opinions on impending doom on this?


----------



## SPEEDO (Jun 9, 2003)

^ if you drain a quart and add a qt of thinner oil it should help your situation.. especially in cold weather


----------



## roscoewavo (Oct 1, 2010)

*Hard shift Hard body*



SPEEDO said:


> ^ if you drain a quart and add a qt of thinner oil it should help your situation.. especially in cold weather


I think I'll give a try. Thnx


----------



## lmontes (Sep 5, 2010)

Hmm... unmounting the transmission is taking a lot longer than I expected. Now I'm trying to get to the two top screws between the bell housing and the engine (one of them is the top starter motor screw) I can see them with a mirror, but I don't know how I'm going to get to them, much less how I'm going to apply any torque on such reduced space. Again, if anybody has any suggestions, I would appreciate it.


----------



## hans747 (Jul 14, 2005)

On the cold mornings, I found that everything runs better if I leave the tranny in neutral and let the engine idle for a 30 secs to a minute. The tranny oil I have turns to pudding in the cold, and it needs to be stirred up a to run well.


----------



## Crf450r420 (Jun 27, 2010)

The trick is to use really long extensions or several. You will need maybe as much as 4 feet long and having several will let you get all the size you will need. It also costs way less. Now with a swivel on the end before the socket, find a length that puts you out in a good working position. It also makes it way easier to have an impact to work with, but the concept still works out.

On the hard to shift post. It depends on what you call hard to shift. If you simply mean it doesn't fall into gear like a loose box. Then that can be normal. Mine is that way and it actually drives my cousin nuts. Makes me laugh at him bitch about it because it's not like the loose box that was in the Nissan he use to have. He hates it. LOL


----------



## 87z24shortbed (Feb 18, 2009)

my 87 shifted hard for about two weeks and the cup that fits in the hole where shifter goes in trans. was deformed for some reason, one day i was going from second to third and it freed up so i thought something broke, the little cup fell out and now shifts easy, fished cup out of trans. with magnet and never had problem with since.a bout taking out trans. you can put jack on tail of trans.and raise it about an inch or so and get a wrench in from top behind head.wish you the best of luck.


----------

