Tremec not going into gear

[Grn92LX]

My tremec will not go into gear with the car running. I tried adjusting it and it doesn't help. I tried a brand new cable and it didn't help either. It seems that the clutch is not disengaging. I try putting it in gear and the car trys to roll a little. If I try starting it up with the trans in gear, the car moves as I crank it.


The set up is a tremec tko with gm syncromesh fluid, mcleod DF clutch disk/fms hd pressure plate modified/blueprinted by promotion, mcleod scattersheild, extended fork, fms quad, cable and firewall adjuster. Absolutely no junk. The trans has appx 2k miles on it and the clutch has about 1000 on it. I put a new clutch in with my new motor. This problem has been happening since a few weeks ago but by playing with the adjustment it worked. Now adjusting it doesn't help. WTF?!

 

[N8Miller]

mikey,
i would just try adj. it again. my t5 used to act like that a bit in traffic (wouldbe stubborn going into gear), but it calmed down after i had it adjusted properly. Do you have pedal covers on your car?

 

[Rick 91GT]

Mike I would also double check the adjustment. Can you see inside the bell opening where the fork is? Is it touching the fingers while the clutch pedal is out?

 

[mgerman93]

Mike, How much freepay is in the cable at the fork?

 

[Grn92LX]

Rick, its tough to get in there to see, but I will try next time I get a chance. So the fork is supposed to touch the press plate fingers?

Mark, I have no idea how much freeplay I have at the cable by the fork. I put a new cable on that I borrowed from my friend. I tried adjusting that again and no dice. Though now when I try to put it in gear the car doesn't move forward like it did with the old cable i had.

I'm considering going to a built auto but I don't have the cash for that and plus my bbk longtubes won't fit. Fu ckin cars!!

 

[Grn92LX]

If I get a new clutch i'm considering a spec 2+ kit. I am also interested in the lightweight option for $79 and the aluminum pressure plate option. What is the difference between the lightweight option and an aluminum pressure plate option?

I like lightweight rotating parts so this should work well especially since I already have an aluminum flywheel.

 

[jrichker]

Cable operated systems are designed so that there is no slack in the cable. There is a considerable amount of preload on the cable. Don't worry about harming the throwout bearing, it was designed to run under continous load.

I like to have the clutch completely disengaged and still have about 1.5” travel left before the pedal hits the floor. If I shift only when the pedal hits the floor, there are several milliseconds that the clutch disk is not being driven by the engine or transmission. In theory, this lets the disk slow down some and makes less work for the synchronizers – keep in mind that this is a theory, but it seems reasonable. This means that I have only about 1” of free play at the top before the pedal starts to disengage the clutch. Keep in mind that these figures are all approximate.

 

[04sleeper]

I would say it is either out of adjustment or you have a bad pressure plate.

 

[N8Miller]

yep, the tremec is broken... ill be up with $300 to pick it up

 

[Grn92LX]

Update: I went outside and had my dad step on the clutch pedal as I got under the car and shined a flashlight in the fork hole. The fork and t/o bearing are doing their job and I can see the t/o bearing push into the pressure plate fingers and I see them push in. Seems to me the clutch is stuck somehow and not disengaging.

I tried starting the car up in reverse and the car flew backwards. I saw a post where a guy had his clutch weld itself to the flywheel and he said try and start it up in gear to break it free.

Do you guys agree that its a clutch problem? What would cause this? This seems to happen when the car sits. This problem started happening a month or so ago and a simple tightening of the cable seemed to fix it.

 

[Grn92LX]

My friend and I pushed the car in the street and I tried starting it up in gear a few times to see if I can unstick the clutch. Didn't help. Looks like the next step is yank the tranny out to see what the deal is.

 

[90mustangGT]

It is obvious the clutch is not disengauging, if the fork is pushing the TOB then yes it is the clutch assembly itself. Tell us what you find.

 

[Hissing Cobra]

I've had problems shifting my Tremec since it was installed 1.5 years ago. It was brand new, along with a brand new Centerforce Dual Friction clutch, and Steeda's 3-piece adjustable cable, quadrant and firewall adjuster.

For some odd reason, it wouldn't shift into 3rd gear at the track. Because of this, I was always running mid 13's @ 108 mph. Playing with the adjustment would sometimes make it good, but more often than not, it would fight me tooth and nail

Three weeks ago, I had my brother come over and we put the cable on the top hook of my quadrant (closest hook to the firewall) and turned the firewall adjuster all the way into the firewall. We then tightened the slack at the fork (we had to add a spacer to the threaded area because we ran out of threads.) We then were able to adjust it at the firewall.

It must have worked, as I went to the track that weekend and banged off three runs in a row (12.64, 12.52, and a 12.42) without missing 3rd gear at all. The car shifts much better than it ever had before.

This worked for me so that's why I'm replying here. It may not work for you, but whatever you do, good luck!

 

[Grn92LX]

I never had any problems shifting this transmission. It went into gear like butter at 6500/6600 rpm. Never had any problems missing a gear or anything like that. This is the only issue I have.

Any last comments before I end up yanking the trans out?

I might make a new post on this, but i'll ask here too. Anyone have any experience with the spec 2+ clutch kit? (not the standard spec 2 kit) I am considering this kit with the $79 lightweight option and maybe the aluminum pressure plate option. Might as well go all-out if i'm gonna do it. Should work well with my aluminum flywheel. This is of course assuming my clutch is dead when I remove it.

 

[EMW150]

Sounds to me like the clutch is only partially disengaging. Try this. With the transmission out, install the fork and throwout brg. through the window in the bell. Remove the pivot ball and install the necessary washers under it to bring the fork as far back as possible in the window of the bell. That will give you alot more travel and should cure it. Reinstall trans. When you adjust the clutch up take out most of the slack with the adjuster on the cable at the trans and then take the rest out with the firewall adjuster. Pull on the cable at the firewall adjuster. You want the thickness of a dime for clearance between the cable stop and firewall adjuster.

 

[tunedin302]

When you put your pivot ball in the bellhousing, do you remember how you determined the adjustment height? Your clutch mechanism, cable, and throw out may be fine but just not functioning correctly if the pivot ball is set to low. Essentially, everything will look like it is engaging but it will not be fully engaging b/c the pivot is incorrect.

 

[BlownFiveLiter]

I'm still thinking the pivot ball needs adjusting, or the bell needs to be indexed to the block. I know I replied to the mirror thread in 94-95 tech originally, but it gets more views over here, so maybe the idea may sound plausible to the greater viewing audience. I hope you get it figured out, my 90 had this issue once, but it turned out to be a bad torque wrench, and severely loose pressure plate bolts. Cost me $250 + a tow to find that out

 

[Grn92LX]

I did the tremec last summer but I had a competent mechanic do it. (too lazy to do it myself) Its been fine ever since up until the past few weeks after its sat for a while the first time I go to drive it it won't go in gear. I would usually make a tiny adjustment and it would work. Now for some reason adjusting doesn't help at all.

 

[Grn92LX]

Its all fixed! I did what ddr1stang suggested in another thread I made. Thanks for all the suggestions guys! I'm happy as hell I don't have to pull this fu ckin tremec out! This is what he said:

So I put it in 5th gear this time,started the car (on jack stands) and bang it broke loose. Why? I have no idea but I'm sure glad I tried it one last time!

 

[Rick 91GT]

Now you need to figure out what caused it....

Seizing had to do a little damage to the disc, etc...