When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Coming home last evening from getting take out, red light ahead, so put gear in neutral and coasting, light changes so I go to put gear in 2nd and gear shift had no resistance and just “rolled” around. Came to a stop and still no way to engage a gear. Cop helped me push into local resturant parking lot where I waited for AAA.
Just put car up on lift bars and pulled leather gear cover up and all looks fine there. Played with the gear lever a bit and now seem to be in gear and only moves forward and back, but won’t change any gear.
Front or rear coupler? Reached up under car and fell slight movement from rear linkage. Ughhhhhh!
Any suggestions on how to try and figure is it front or rear coupler? I see rear has a possibility to be fixed w/o dropping TT.
I've done both on my '84. Its really not a bad job. Honestly, whichever one has failed, just replace both. I replaced my front, only to have the rear give up about a year later. Once both are done the car shifts just like new. Only tricky part on the rear is the 4mm hex nut that locks it in place. They can strip, so be careful loosening it. May require some heat but mine came out without a fuss.
Well, I read a lot on couplers (front and rear) and after playing with it to try and see exactly what is the issue, it seems it's the front coupler that might be out. The gear shift lever moves freely forward and back moving the front linkage but not the back, which leads me to think the front coupler is out/off . There is no leverage against it when you try to pull the shift lever back to either 3rd or 5th. Looks like a bigger job...
Bob,
IIRC, the front coupler can be accessed from underneath by removing the right side small corner heat shield and after removing the screws, sliding the large center heat shield over to the left. Reach up on top of the torque tube and slide the shift arm linkage that goes toward the front off to the right side. You will probably see that the plastic insert is worn out/missing/corroded. Remove the old insert and install a new one and press it in. Again, IIRC, the insert is the same as for the clutch fork in a manual car. Refit the ball coupler with the new insert back onto the shift ball and use a ratchet strap to pull the assembly completely onto the ball socket. Use a large tie wrap or really big hose clamp to prevent the coupler from popping off the ball sometime in the future.
Last edited by soontobered84; 05-12-2018 at 12:27 AM.
Reason: clarifying
John, thanks, I’ll be picking up 3 Ton jack stands so I can get the car up higher on the liftbars. Hope I can get to it without having to drop the exhaust.
Bob,
That last part is pretty important. I had replaced the front ball coupling on the 1980 Euro Jalapeno that I owned and I thought at the time, "What a joke. I see no need whatever to hold that ball cup in place. The factory didn't see fit to do it and with the effort it took to push the new insert onto the ball, it'll never come off".
Well the day the new owner-to-be came by to test drive it, he started it and backed it out of the driveway, and of course, that is the exact time and place the insert came off the ball cup. I was embarrassed and told him what had happened and to come back tomorrow after I had a chance to correct it.
John, thanks, I’ll be picking up 3 Ton jack stands so I can get the car up higher on the liftbars. Hope I can get to it without having to drop the exhaust.
Bob, I strongly suggest you get 6-ton instead of 3-ton jack stands. More stable, and higher lift.
05-10-2018, 10:01 AM
Think either front or rear coupler gone
