Gearbox selector problem....

[darkhorse1210]

My RS2 is in the garage at the mo for an MOT and some other bits that need attention.

One of the bigger items is to fix what I consider to be really cruddy gear selection in 1st, 2nd and reverse. My specialist isn't sure what exactly the issue is here, whether it's syncro, linkage problem etc so he is gonna drop the box down and take a look inside. Other gears shift fine.

Has anyone got any useful insight here that could help with the solution?

Cheers

[mcandmar]

I really doubt the issue is inside the box, sounds like linkage wear to me. Start with the plastic ball at the bottom of the lever and work your way forwards eliminating any slop you find. The plastic ball on the lever isnt that expensive to replace, the rest of the linkage is mad money from Audi as its a complete unit. I shimmed most of mine with ss washers which made a huge difference.

[Pirvu Eugen]

I suggest check the clutch first...before destroy the gearbox. Reverse has nothing to do with 1 or 2. And..btw has syncro also.

[Pirvu Eugen]

I really doubt the issue is inside the box, sounds like linkage wear to me. Start with the plastic ball at the bottom of the lever and work your way forwards eliminating any slop you find. The plastic ball on the lever isnt that expensive to replace, the rest of the linkage is mad money from Audi as its a complete unit. I shimmed most of mine with ss washers which made a huge difference.

Indeed...this can be also.... much cheaper than the gearbox...

[irishs2]

Could it not also be this? With this worn like above, I had trouble in the 1,2,R area too.

[mcandmar]

^ thats exactly what i was referring to, first thing to fail.

[re2500]

I replaced the part above on mine recently, made a big difference. About £50 from the dealer afaik.

[darkhorse1210]

Cheers for all the comments.

The aluminium lockring that sits on top of that plastic ball joint did snap off a while back which leads me to think that this is the area to focus on. I guess the fact that this ball has been on there for 157k should indicate that it needs replacing.

Is it the time to replace the plastic ball with a short shift version maybe?

[Error404]

Another vote for the linkage. Replace the joint at the bottom of the gear stick as suggested. The small ball joint at the gearbox end of the linkage is probably worn too, but in my experience it doesn't limit the difficulties to any specific gears to be fair - everything is just loose and horrible!
Unfortunately there is no repair kit for it, whole new linkage for big bucks, or modify it to use a spherical bearing, which is also not cheap!

[darkhorse1210]

Let's see what happens with this one, fortunately diagnosing the problem hasn't taken much time (i.e money) so far.... I spoke to the garage this morning and when they took a look at it yesterday it appears that something had broken within the socket itself so they have ordered replacement bits to fix that.

Once those bits have been fitted if it's still sloppy then the ball joint will have to be replaced later on as suggested here. Unfortunately this wasn't ordered with the other bits so the original will go back on when the parts arrive today.

Ta

[quattrostyle]

I figure my S2 suffers the same problem. Will use this thread to refer to.

[darkhorse1210]

OK, car is back and the difference is just amazing. Without doubt the best money spent on the car in my 4 years of ownership, the parts cost peanuts and time spent to fit not long so not only cheap but a massive positive effect.

The shift is now far more precise and none of that horrible 'baggyness' I used to get, gearchanges are now crisp and no chance of selecting 1st instead of reverse etc.

I would recommend anyone to get this done if they know these parts have never been replaced. Cheers to everyone who posted a response, that was a big help.

[diogocartier]

Could it not also be this? With this worn like above, I had trouble in the 1,2,R area too.

Does somebody knows the PN of this part and how do I get access to it?

rgds!

[macspring]

Does somebody knows the PN of this part and how do I get access to it?

rgds!

Agreed, would someone be able to assist by posting the relevant part number ?

Thanks.

[minim]

Could it be 893711118E ? If you look at this drawing it looks like it. I got a similar problem with mine that 1. and .2 is sometimes hard to get into and I can mix up 1. and reverse without pushing down the shift stick. Should I try replacing the ball?

http://partscats.com/audi/en/?i=cat_vag_models&brand=au&number=1440&set=1441&ein=1994&f=41&hauptgr=1234567890&hg=7&grf=071140141&bf=71140&hgug=711&ug=11&parent_id=144766&detail_id=144803