Gearbox

[Gray6634]

HI all i am new to the club just joined, i have noticed a prob with my 1990 1.3i cl lately (mk3) The gear change is nice and smooth when just started or when just plodding around town. As soon as i get her up to some speed on the motorway i start getting probs. Its fine cruising along at 70-80 but when i slow down at a slip road or something i find it very hard to get it out of gear also changing gear is a pain till it cools down abit. I have refilled the gearbox oil and it hasnt made a diff i am wondering if the previous owners have neglected checking the gearbox oil and me filling her up now has been too late!! any ideas? ps dont think clutch is too healthy either lots of play in it. How much to replace clutch?

thanks guys

[skypilot30]

i find it very hard to get it out of gear also changing gear is a pain till it cools down abit.

See my post [Polo Coupe J Reg - Shift Rod query?] it may not be appropriate but worth a check !!!

How much to replace clutch?

Somewhere between £150 and £180

[hayesey]

Welcome to the forum!

When you say you refilled the gearbox oil, did you actually drain all the old stuff out & fill it back up with new stuff?

What do you mean when you say there's lot of play in the clutch? It's probably more to do with the clutch cable than the clutch itself, which fortunately is cheap & easy to replace. a clutch will probably cost something like £150-£200 to get replaced.

[Gray6634]

when i say play in the clutch its more in the clutch pedal, i can depress it quite alot before i notice the clutch moving if you get what i mean

thanks

[GroovyCarrot]

The free play in the clutch pedal is easy to get rid of, the cable should have an adjustment nut on the gearbox end of it, just tighten that until the play's gone. Should also help with the gearchanges.
On a not very helpful note, I've got the same problem on my mk2, I've tried replacing the gearbox but it's still there, and all I can think of now is that it might improve when I have the clutch changed which looks like it'll need to be pretty soon.. I'll let you know if that helps.

[Gray6634]

i was thinking that maybe it could be the joint underneatht the car the the gear rod and gear stick both connect to each other, i had it on a ax gt one time i greased it up and the change went really smooth. i was thinking gearbox but now you said you had yours replaced and its the same i am thinking other things. I will be honest and say i only topped up my gear box oil cause i couldnt be bothered to undo the drain nut. So it was prob a waste of time doing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[GroovyCarrot]

Bear in mind that I changed mine because it was a 5 speed and I had a 4 speed, not because it was any newer In fact it had about 40,000 more miles on it than mine, so it may well just be something that happens as the box wears..
Personally I'd drain the gearbox oil, it's been in there for 15 years now and could do with a change really. Not that much of a hassle to drain it either Also, you could get a gearleaver repair kit from GSF which includes a replacement ball and housing for the bottom of the gearlever, and replace the grease in there, does make a bit of a difference to the shift, although it's unlikely to be the cause of the problem. Could also be the gear linkage I guess, although that'd be fairly obvious - feels like it's in neutral whatever gear it's in.

[tainmrk3polo]

after removing the heat shield wrap from the underside of my GT, after baout 10 miles of driving my gear changes went very tight! i thoguht maybe the rods had been knocked or something as i had alot of work done on the underside (not just the heat shield removal) and wasnt sure, took it back to the garage, sprayed penetrating fluid and white grease all along the shaft and et voila, 1000 miles later and its still slick as anything

[Gray6634]

yeah i was gonna try just greasing it all to death and see what happens and defo do a proper oil change on the box. The only thing i need now is to get hold of a 17mm allen key!!! i borrowed one off my mate who is a crane engineer, any ideas where i could buy my own? halfords don`t sell them

[Tahrey1043]

i've had that problem as well --- trotting 40 miles up the M42/A42, 4th gear all the way, 55 to 95mph...... get off at junction twenty-erm, slow down for the lights, go for 2nd or 1st gear....... and have to give it an almighty wrench out of 4th AND into the other gear.

15 seconds later and everything's fine again, and it doesnt do it for the rest of the trip even with some other high speed sections of a few miles each. very wierd.

would it actually be heating up from lack of oil, or something else?

grey, i've had an arse-ache of a time getting hold of the tools to do my box oil with, originally got serious about it about this time last year (never much free time to sort it in, however). My conclusion so far is that it's probably something best done with the box out of the car, but am persevering. A 17mm allen key (which is BIG by the way) will probably both be too "wide" for the available workspace and not give enough leverage, especially after the length of time most Mk3s will have gone without any gearbox attention (those bolts will be sticky as anything). Personally i'm going to try, when i have a moment, my new fairly "low-profile" torque wrench, with a deep 19mm socket and a double-ended 14/17mm (yes, wierd, i know) allen-style hex driver doohickey (it's got a 19mm "collar" on it). Should get a reasonable result, I hope, either that or it's off to halfords/etc for a proper 17mm driver bit that's a bit less bulky than that hybrid solution...

[Gray6634]

tahrey the 17mm allen key i borrowed off my mate worked wonders on the top nut on the bow. it came off with great ease so i would recommend it to be honest. it is tight in there but a few half turns and its loose enough to get it off using your fingers. i want some crystal back lights now or lexus stlye having no luck so far!!!!!!!!!!!!! mk3 coupe

[GroovyCarrot]

I do mine with a socket a mate's dad welded up for me - 17mm bolt welded into an old 1/2" socket. Works a treat if you know anyone handy with a welder..
Seeing as I can get a big old socket and the rachet in there with room to spare, I'm sure it's possible with a normal allen key..

Just one question, when you've been driving a while and the gearchange goes lumpy, does your clutch pedal also feel a bit rough? Mine does that, feels like the cable's frayed or something, but it's not. Just wondering if anyone else got the same..

[Gray6634]

to be honest the clutch always feels abit crap, loads of travel like i said before and it just feels crap. it was slipping the other week but seems to have settled down now. Thing is i only paid 300 quid for the car for a cheap run around so i am not sure hoe far i am going to go to getting her ship shape, its got a nice body though.

[Tahrey1043]

sounds about right slightly worrying (but actually trouble-free) drivetrain in a pretty good shell

the polo clutch takes a couple months to get used to, especially if you've come from another car! (wasn't too bad for me - i'd been off the road for the best part of 2 years)

dont know anyone with a welder and so far havent seen any actual 17mm allen keys, so i'll take my chances with the crazy amalgam!

on a lighter note, my keyboard has just fallen into my computer and i'm typing at a funny angle. let this be a lesson to you - if the sides off and you have it on it's side to do some upgrading, put the keyboard on your lap, even if you are cradling a pint there

[hayesey]

you should be able to buy a 17mm hex key from pretty much any motor factors.