Hi all, so my 04 6MT has become very difficult to shift very quickly. It started a few days ago being hard to shift into first when I left for work in the morning, but was then was fine once I was under way. Same thing the next day. But then yesterday the difficulty went from bad to worse and then to even worse. Now it's REALLY hard to shift to the point that it is parked at home and effectively undrivable.. Won't go into any gear without some luck and a little manhandling.

What does this sound like? Tranny fluid change? Bad slave cylinder? Bad master cylinder? Low clutch fluid?
Also, what would you recommend trying first (and second, third, etc)?

Car has 45K miles (yes 45K miles. Not 145K)

thanks all,
dan

 

well what have you checked so far?

 

Well, I'm looking for pointers on where to start... what are your suggestions?

 

Two places to start:

1. Check the level of oil (MTF) in your gearbox
2. Check the proper operation of your clutch hydraulics (Master and Slave cylinders)

I'm not saying it is either of those things, but they are good places to start.

 

Does it shift fine when the engine is off?

 

Good call and a great diagnostic element of information to know.

 

If it does not shift fine when off, look at shift linkages and internal issues.
If it is shifts fine when off, start looking at what is controlling clutch engagement since it is likely the clutch is at least partially engaged when it shouldn't be. This is my initial guess on the issue....master/slave cylinder issues.

 

I had this issue on my old TL when one of the clutch pedal bracket snapped and was not allowing the clutch to fully operate.

 

Okay, thanks for the feedback you guys. Here's more information:
-It does shift fine when engine is off. (and again, it's very difficult to shift when car is on)
-Clutch fluid is very dirty but is not low.
-Clutch fluid has never been changed (45K miles, 14 years old)

Thoughts? Should I try changing the tranny fluid first? Or maybe the clutch fluid first?

Also, would I necessarily see low clutch fluid if the master or slave cylinders are bad?

thanks,
dan

 

If you are still asking about changing the tranny fluid, you are not reading what we have posted already. With your last statement regarding it shifts fine when the engine is off, this is a clutch engagement issue. Start there. Get fresh fluid in there, check for leaks, bleed the system, etc.

 

I was having a similar issue with my car. Couldn't shift after the car had been sitting overnight but after that it was fine. If it started suddenly a few days ago it's probably not trans fluid. Check both the master cylinder (up where the clutch pedal mounts) and slave cylinder (front of engine, drivers side, pull back black rubber boot) for leaks. In my case the slave was leaking inside the boot and was so small the clutch fluid level looked normal but it was enough to let air into the clutch system, causing the clutch to not disengage all the way.

Pump the crap out of the clutch pedal (20+ times) before you start the car and see if it will let you shift fine.

 

As others have said, this is a clutch issue, period, full-stop, the end.

Over the years I've seen two causes for this:

1. Clutch linkage (regardless of whether it is mechanical, cable, or hydraulic) is not fully disengaging the pressure plate.
2. The clutch halves disk has separated and is dragging even when the clutch pedal is fully depressed.