Hello,
I have had an 86 for about 6 years now. When in neutral, my shifter rides against the 4/5 gate. In other words, when I push forward out of neutral it goes into 4th. Is this normal? (I am used to trannys that have springs that must be opposed to exit the 2/3 gate.)

 

What you are experiencing is normal. I can't speak for all 5 speeds but mine does the same as yours. There is a torsion spring in the transmission that will deflect the shift finger (and the shifter itself) to the 4th/5th gear selector fork when the shifter is in the neutral position. I know of no other manual tramsmission that has this same characteristic. Consider it a feature!

 

My 89 S4, 90GT and my 95 GTS all, for lack of another word,, Default to the 2/3 gate.

 

Ted,
An '83 euro-"S" 5 speed that I drove not long ago "defaulted" to the 2nd-3rd gate. While I realize you have the "later" trans with B-W synchros, the transmission in the car I drove had only about 100 miles on it since a TOTAL rebuild, with all new internal small parts.
I'm quite certain that the later-style trans, if in top condition and with proper linkage adjustment, should "default" to the 2nd-3rd gate.

Brad
'78 <a href="http://www.p-caronline.com/directory/showngo/" target="_blank">928 euro</a> 5 speed
928 Owners Club

 

My stick defaults to the 2nd/3rd position.

However this may not be correct as I feel my entire shift pattern is offset to the right as I have to push the stick hard against the right trim to engage 4th/5th while 1st/reverse is well clear of the side. I presume there is some adjustment in the shift linkage to reset this?

DaveW

 

Mine sits in the center of the shift pattern in neutral...

Normy
'85 S2

 

Thanks for all the responses. I am not sure what to conclude since the responses are mixed. Either there are alot of differences between these boxes or there must be something common that is out of adjustment or worn on some. I had my tranny rebuilt locally (questionable skill) because I was unhappy with the second gear shift (I was use to the 944 which shifts like butter) and it had a leak. It shifts better (still not like a 944) and neutral remained in the 4/5 gate. I find it shifts best when I drive the RPM's high. Any other 86 5 speed owners out there care to weigh in?

Ted928

 

Ted-

I too have the 4/5th syndrome. I took a quick check of the manuals and in section 34 pg7 and also on pg 217 it talks about how to adjust this. It sounds as though it should be centered on the 2/3 gates, or just slightly off. There are different direction for adjustment for 86 and on models on Pg 218? This is in volume 2 of the gray manuals. BTW section 34 pg 7 comes where it should, but 34 pg217 comes after section 39. Ahhhh gotta love that German numbering system! What is that, base 9.28? <img src="graemlins/roflmao.gif" border="0" alt="[hiha]" />

Hope this helps. I'll probably do mine when I rebuild my trans - which isn't too far off. <img src="graemlins/crying.gif" border="0" alt="[crying]" />

 

Andrew et. al.,

Thanks for leading me through the manual. The instructions are aimed at performing this adjustment on an open box. Does anyone have experience performing an adjustment on a closed box? I am thinking about making some small adjustment and testing the feel. It doesn't seem like that can cause any harm!?!

 

Welcome Ted.

Looks like the 5-speed folks have you well advised.

 

Hey Andy and others,

Have you tackled this adjustment yet???
Has anyone else performed this adjustment?? Any thoughts as to whether an improvement can be made without openning the box????