Shifter issue after clutch install

[AutoEuphoria]

I had my clutch replaced, and now I'm noticing something strange. I'm sure it's in the alignment or adjustment of the shift linkage, but if anyone has any idea of what would be causing this and how I could fix it I would greatly appreciate it.

Shifting into first is easy, but if feels like there is a lot of "wiggle" in the shifter
Shifting from first into second is a little stiff...kind of like it's a little sticky or something. Also, feels like the shifter goes back, but then to the left a little.
Shifting out of second into third...still a little stick out of second but goes into third OK. Little wiggle in third, too. Shifting into fourth...stickier than into second. No real feeling like it's "clicking" into gear. Shifting out of fourth is difficult...very sticky. Into fifth is OK, slight wiggle in the shifter. Into and out of sixth is a little less difficult than into and out of fourth.

So all the "back" gears are hard to get into and out of compared to the "front" gears, which seem a little sloppy. I only had a few minutes before going back to work, but I did try adjusting that spring loaded adjuster under the plastic next to the shifter...made it a little better, but not much. I didn't have a ton of time to play around with it though.

Any ideas on what I could do to get it back to feeling right again? I'd take it back to the shop, but I need my car now and don't want it sitting around while they try to work it into their schedule.

 

[Kain]

Stock shifter? Perhaps the cable that controls forward/backward movement of the shifter is catching on something, is twisted, or the pivot ball needs lubing.

 

[AutoEuphoria]

Yeah, stock shifter. And thanks...I will look at that tonight.

 

[Kain]

Remove your entire center console (takes 10 minutes) and row through the gears. If you have a second person, pop open the hood and have that person watch the other end of the shifter linkage in the engine bay.

 

[AutoEuphoria]

I think I'm going to disconnect the linkage at the transmission and see if it's still sticky. My thinking is they may have twisted it when connecting the press-on fitting from the linkage to the transmission. Thank you for the suggestion - if it helps I'll give you an internet high-five

 

[Kain]

I'll take an e-reach around instead.

 

[spdjnke]

That's odd, I would think the shop would be required to test drive the car after install to make sure everything is good before giving the car back to you, I would take it back asap for them to properly sort the problem out, the longer you wait the better chance they will say it was fine when it left kinda Bullshyt.

 

[AutoEuphoria]

Update:

Was driving down to detroit and gradually lost the ability to shift into 6th. Couldn't get into first either. So I couldn't get into high gear on the freeway and pulled over to the side of the road to see if I could adjust it, found I couldn't fix it then couldn't pull into traffic. Finally got it started in second and limped it to a rest stop. Found out they didn't tighten the bracket under the battery that holds the linkage in place. Waited an hour for someone to bring my tools then spent an hour fixing it.

All working now but damn...shouldn't have to fix my car because the shop missed something so obvious :/

 

[Sport6]

Awesome that you fixed it but sucks it left you stranded...

 

[AutoEuphoria]

Sorry for the double-post, but I wanted to copy/paste what I posted on a local forum about this whole ordeal:

Quick background...my stock clutch was slipping under high load, so I decided I should upgrade to a stronger one. I don't have the time or the tools to do that myself, so I took it to a local shop that specializes in transmissions. We had some work done there before, and they seemed reasonable and did good work.

Dropped the car off Tuesday night, and it took a little longer than they had expected. Ended up picking it up today at lunch. Right away I knew something wasn't right, but I had to get back to work, so I couldn't take the time to really explore or figure out what what going on. Basically, it was really sloppy in the forward gears (1, 3, and 5) and really WAY too tight in the back gears (2, 4, and 6). Made it very difficult to change gears, and just had a really bad feel.

I figured it was just an adjustment...I had something similar happen before when I was doing something with the shift linkage, and a quick adjustment took care of the issue. Unfortunately, that didn't really cure the problem.

I got it to the point where it wasn't GOOD, but it was DRIVABLE. I had to go down to Detroit to pick something up for the weekend, and had to get down there before the store closed. So, I adjusted it as good as I could inside the cabin (there is a small spring-loaded adjustment right next to the shifter under the console plastic) and set off.

Got it into 6th on the freeway, but something still wasn't right. I shifted out of 6th at one point on I-75 (about 40 miles from home) and couldn't get it back into 6th. NOTHING I did would get it to go into gear. Luckily I was really close to an exit, so I got off (cruising at like 55 in 5th) and stopped at the gas station. I picked up a flathead screwdriver to pop the linkage ends off to see if the lines were binding anywhere between the shifter and the transmission...all seemed fine. I then checked the actual transmission...I could manually put it into all 6 gears without issue. So the linkage was moving freely...the transmission shifted fine...

Another quick adjustment inside got it to shift into all 6 gears, and off I went again.

On the entrance ramp...first, second, third, fourth, fifth...NO SIXTH. Couldn't get it into gear at all, so I pulled off to the side of the road. Tried adjusting again, got it to click into 6th. Get ready to pull out into the heavy traffic...NO FIRST

I had to set off in second (not easy with this new clutch) and limped it up into fifth...NO SIXTH AGAIN. Luckily I was really close to a rest stop, so I just limped it in there.

I finally figured adjusting wasn't going to fix the problem. Opened up the hood and after some rooting around found a loose bolt, just hanging out (fully out) on a bracket that wasn't secured. The bracket held the ends of the shift linkage in place. The other bolt was out, too.

Didn't have my tools with me, so I had to call my mom. Spent the next 45 minutes waiting for them to get there...did as much as I could with my flathead screwdriver. Ended up burning the s*** out of my wrist and cut my hand. Sweet.

Tools finally showed up and I spent the next hour fixing the issue. Got the bracket bolted tightly in place, and everything was fine.

Couldn't make it down to Detroit before the shop closed, so I'm going to have to make another trip tomorrow. Had to spend 2 hours fixing a car that I just paid to have worked on.

Anyway, rant over. Just wish more people would take pride in their work and be sure that everything was perfect before giving it back to the customer.

 

[AutoEuphoria]

Database f'up double-post

 

[Speed3Rookie]

what clutch did you go with and how much did it cost to have it replaced?

 

[AutoEuphoria]

ACT with the flywheel. Ken at PG recommended it. Spent $430 in labor to do the work.