Technical Mk3 Cross suddenly incredibly stiff to come out of 1, 3, 5 gears

[kierant]

Over just a few days of it getting rapidly, progressively worse, I'm having to pull incredibly hard to get the gear lever out of the gear positions that require the lever to be forwards. 2nd, 4th, and reverse are totally unaffected.

It doesn't seem to make any difference what the engine speed is and the clutch seems normal.

There's another thread on the forum that sounds similar but not quite the same issue. That sounded like it might well be corroded cables, although having taken the plastic shroud off to get in there with WD40, I'm not convinced why that wouldn't affect all vertical movement, including into the other gears.

Anyway, WD40 engaged and not really any difference after a day's soak.

I notice there's a bit of an oil leak under the car, and there's no appreciable loss from the engine. Is there a way that low gearbox oil could contribute to this?

Any pointers very welcome, before I splash out on a new set of cables (circa £140 says the other thread) "just in case" it's them!

 

[AndyRKett]

You could pop the cables off the top of the gear box at the gearbox end and move the gear selectors on the box manually by hand and you can also move the gearstick around with them disconnected at the gearbox end. though I think this would just confirm it is still likely to be the cables, and as they corrode the strands of the metal cable inside can break apart and then foul the inside of the cable sheath. Basically WD40 ain't going to fix it.

 

[DaveMcT]

It's most likely the clutch is not releasing properly. Bleeding the hydraulics might help but it could also be a worn out clutch.

The gear shifter shaft (which slides and rotates) is a common cause of oil leaks. Oil down the back of the gearbox will be from that seal. Rusty oil pan is another source. No drips when parked, but oil runs out when the engine is running.

 

[koalar]

It's most likely the clutch is not releasing properly. Bleeding the hydraulics might help but it could also be a worn out clutch.

Highly unlikely

. 2nd, 4th, and reverse are totally unaffected.

Reverse would normally the worse effected

The normal test is to see if there is a difference between engine on and off

 

[koalar]

You could pop the cables off the top of the gear box at the gearbox end and move the gear selectors on the box manually by hand and you can also move the gearstick around with them disconnected at the gearbox end. though I think this would just confirm it is still likely to be the cables,

Not really the mass of the pushes and pulls. Once disconnect faulty cables will feel fine, wd40 dries sticky

and as they corrode the strands of the metal cable inside can break apart and then foul the inside of the cable sheath. Basically WD40 ain't going to fix it.

Correct, light oil or even engine oil will normally get you by until replacement parts arrive, but in my opinion it's normally short term

All you need to do to confirm the cables are the fault it to select a gear it's not coming out of and reach under the ABS and twist the selector lever like this

 

[AndyRKett]

Not really the mass of the pushes and pulls. Once disconnect faulty cables will feel fine

Correct, light oil or even engine oil will normally get you by until replacement parts arrive

Speaking from experiance here on a fiat where the cable had frayed to the extent it broke when I tried to remove it. I can tell you there are circumstances where oil ain't going to fix it.

While I respect your contributions to the forum you do need to stop trying to correct everyone in your posts.

The actual cable can rot right near the end where the cable comes out of the sheath, this means the cable can move in one direction with the rot moving away from the end of the sheath but not the other or with extreme resistance as the rot/rust tries to push out of the end of the cable sheath. Rust expands the metal and pushed the strands of the cable apart.
The cable can also become kinked if someone has ever trapped it or over flexed it when doing other things around the engine bay which causes a weak spot which is also prone to rusting or getting stuck sliding within the sheath. This is all common sense stuff and dose not need correcting. I am happy to be wrong if shown to be wrong but your constant need to correct people can result in people wasting time not trying something that is otherwise pretty simple to rule something out.

If the gear cable is still connected even if you are moving the selector on the top of the box by hand you will still be fighting the force of the resistance in the cable (assuming the cable is the issue) so disconnect the cable. move the selector by hand, then move the gear stick this will quickly and easily confirm if the resistance is in the cables or the gearbox.

 

[koalar]

Speaking from experiance here on a fiat where the cable had frayed to the extent it broke when I tried to remove it. I can tell you there are circumstances where oil ain't going to fix it.

While I respect your contributions to the forum you do need to stop trying to correct everyone in your posts.

The actual cable can rot right near the end where the cable comes out of the sheath, this means the cable can move in one direction with the rot moving away from the end of the sheath but not the other or with extreme resistance as the rot/rust tries to push out of the end of the cable sheath. Rust expands the metal and pushed the strands of the cable apart.
The cable can also become kinked if someone has ever trapped it or over flexed it when doing other things around the engine bay which causes a weak spot which is also prone to rusting or getting stuck sliding within the sheath. This is all common sense stuff and dose not need correcting. I am happy to be wrong if shown to be wrong but your constant need to correct people can result in people wasting time not trying something that is otherwise pretty simple to rule something out.

If the gear cable is still connected even if you are moving the selector on the top of the box by hand you will still be fighting the force of the resistance in the cable (assuming the cable is the issue) so disconnect the cable. move the selector by hand, then move the gear stick this will quickly and easily confirm if the resistance is in the cables or the gearbox.

Sorry if I upset you

Post 4 here 2017

Gear change | FIAT Panda (Mk3)

Active 2011 Hi just wondering about gear change I have just bought my panda active I am finding gear changes to be very clunky is this normal I'm used to smooth change but find I am forcing the gears when changing up or down

www.fiatforum.com

Takes less than a minute and is far easier than removing the battery and tray first

If it's still stiff at the gearbox end yes you will have to try to diagnose the problem further

the cables I have changed would give a false indication of being fine just by removing the cable at the gearbox end first and testing

There is always more than one way to skin a cat, I go for the quickest, easiest free tests first