Will not downshift into third

nero6

Member
Aug 30, 2007
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I have an 87 GT with a short shifter in it and for some reason it will not downshift into third. There are no issues upshifting from 2nd to 3rd but I can't downshift from 5th or 4th. If I hold the clutch in and down shift from 4th to second and back into third it shifts smooth into third with no issues. Aslo, once I slow down to about 10km an hour it will pop into third without any issues. Could the transmission have been set up this way on purpose? to prevent an accidental 4th to third shift? The reason I ask as the gut I bought it from had plans on taking it to the dragstrip on a regular basis. Any way this can be adjusted?
 
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Sounds like the blocker ring for 3rd gear is wearing out. it can't slow down 3rd gear fast enough to match RPM on a downshift. You may need a rebuild to fix this.


You could try different fluids. Conventional fluids are less slick and might allow the gear to grab better and downshift
 
Syncros or clutch cable needs to be adjusted. Adjust the cable first, it's free and easy... if that doesn't fix it, then it's time to rebuild the tranny with some fresh syncros. Good luck.
 
Well, without buying aftermarket peices, grab the clutch pedal and pull up hard. Then press the pedal to the floor all the way. If you hear a click, a little bit of slack was taken up.

There are also clutch quadrant adjusters that take up some slack.

The clutch cable is known to stretch. If it's original, you may want to consider an new OEM clutch cable. Don't go aftermarket as they stretch easier than OEM
 
Thanks, I will give that a try to start, however I may have figured out the issue. The transmission was rebuilt not too long ago. It was filled with ATF fluid to start but then drained and filled with gear oil I believe, whatever it is it was not ATF fluid. Hopefully the transmission is not completely @#$@ed. Is there an easy way to check that the transmission is a stock T-5?
 
Sometimes after a pass at the track mine won't go into 3rd....then after a few minutes it's fine. The other day i went out and it was HARD to get into 1st/3rd/5th, and then after 10 minutes or so it was fine again. No idea why..