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It sounds as if a shift fork may have been bent or jammed preventing the shift rod from accessing
2.4.and 6th gears, this used to occur on the earlier cars when the linkage or primarily the coupler
was dislodged and it's orientation was lost.
Only thing I could suggest is try and reverse the process you did with the car in first gear and see if
the selector fork can be dislodged , it may need to be dismantled to free it if seriously jammed...Bert
Crazy idea, but sounds like raising the engine and tranny has put strain on the inner parts of the tranny since it was in gear i.e. shift fork engaged when it was raised. You would think the shift rod would give before an internal part, but then some of the gearbox internals are small in comparison, and the shift fork 'fingers' are quite slim. Hope this works out for you.
Seems there are some posts online about an inherent weakness in the cast aluminum shift forks in these boxes. Lots of billet replacements available. I guess it could have bent under strain?
I really just can't picture a way that he could have strained it... In what direction could the shift shaft have been strained?
The front pivots around the tranny mount, and the rear of the engine simply gets lifted into the engine cradle. Nothing is putting axial force on the shift rod.
In addition, putting the engine in first gear forces the shift rod backwards, or towards the rear of the car. Let's say that there was a large movement on the engine+tranny assembly as you jacked from the rear. The assembly would rotate counterclockwise about the front transmission mount. That means the the bottom front edge of the transmission (which is where the shift shaft is located) would be moved backwards, or towards the rear of the car. Movement in this direction would simply pull the tranny out of gear. It would not put strain on the shift shaft, since it's moving AWAY from the constrained shift rod.
If these two events are related (and I'm not sure that they are) I think that the act of lifting your car could've angled the transmission in such a way that a piece of debris rolled in front of a shift fork. Preventing the forward movement of the shaft. If you take a good look under your car, it's so obvious that any proper lifting of the engine just couldn't damage the shift shaft.
Last edited by jstyer; Jul 18, 2015 at 11:52 AM.
Reason: Spelling
When I had this issue on my car the culprit was little tiny bits of debris caught in the rearmost linear bearing which supports the shift rod.
You can try draining your fluid and filtering it through a paint filter, don't use a coffee filter unless you want to wait a week.
As you can see in the pictures there was not a lot of grit in my transmission, just enough to get stuck in the wrong spot.
In the front cover on the passenger side is an eccentric assembly consisting of: 2 nuts with washers, flat plate, eccentric bushing, O-ring, spring and locking bushing. Sorry I took a picture of the assembly but only get a text description of the parts not the actual photo when i load it.
I removed those parts from the front cover so you can see 2 circular reductions in the diameter of the the shift rod where the assembly tensions the shift rod. Are you referring to the debris around these items or does the front cover have to come off. It is difficult to see what you are referencing as the photo is rather dark. I believe what you are describing can only be seen with the front cover removed.
Again I apologize for not being able to insert photos. I was having troubles with viruses so i switched from Microsoft to Apple. It has been trying. I am getting fed up with not being to do things on Apple.
Thanks for the support. Call if that is easier 949 282-3192 C.
Thanks for the photos. Can that bearing be inspected by removing only the front cover? Or does it require more disassembly? I am not sure where that bearing is located and how to get at it.
I noticed you are a little south in Vista. Did you do the grit removal yourself or is there a shop or mechanic that is familiar with this incident down your way?
Other than removing the grit, is there anything else that needs to be done to the transmission to return it to normal operating condition? I talked to a shop that want to do a complete rebuild plus clutch. Do you think that is necessary?
I have the factory service manual set.
It would be great to talk to you further about this strange incident. i would be more than happy to call at your convenience.
The needle point bearings fell out of the basket and into the differential. When I hit a bump one of the bearings got lodged on the shift rod, partially blocking access to 2, 4, 6.
I had to take the transmission out and open it up to dislodge everything.
With the help a friend I tried dropping the rear of the engine by loosening but not removing the engine carrier to motor mount bolts. No change. I also loosened the bolt from the trans tension damper and also the damper to the trans case bolt and tried raising the nose of the trans slightly with a floor jack. No change.
I tried looking at the sides of the trans mount to see what the rubber in the center looked like but there are large washers on both sides blocking the visual inspection. There is no room to replace (press out and in) the mount with trans in the car
I am about out of things to try. Please forward any suggestions. I am facing the reality the trans has to come out to see what is going on inside.
As I read this, things were fine before you jacked up the car and fiddled around and when you lowered the car, things no longer worked. Take the car to a professional mechanic...perhaps even a Porsche Dealer.
The needle point bearings fell out of the basket and into the differential. When I hit a bump one of the bearings got lodged on the shift rod, partially blocking access to 2, 4, 6.
I had to take the transmission out and open it up to dislodge everything.
This sounds like what may have happened. Sorry, but you'll probably end up doing the same thing. What ever you do, DO NOT TAKE YOUR 993 to (virtually) any "Porsche" dealership! Also, be thankful it happened in your garage and not on some road trip. You didn't cause it by jacking up your car. That's just when it occurred.
Last edited by OverBoosted28; Jul 20, 2015 at 12:39 PM.
As I read this, things were fine before you jacked up the car and fiddled around and when you lowered the car, things no longer worked. Take the car to a professional mechanic...perhaps even a Porsche Dealer.
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