09 Clubman, about 7 weeks old, manual justaclubman. So couple weeks back I was sitting at a red light in neutral and noticed the lights turning. Shifted to first and I must have not shifted it all the way in. Slowly released the clutch and gave it some gas, there was a "grinding" or "buzzing" sound. Realized the first gear was not totally engaged. Shifted it back into neutral and tried to put it into first. Realized that there's some resistance(actually ALOT). I could not push it in. I let it back into neutral, released clutch and depressed clutch again. It went into first now. My initial thought was maybe the clutch was not depressed all the way? Anyways, didn't think much of it until a few days ago. Same scenario but this time I was very sure the clutch was fully depressed. It shifts into first fine after I release the clutch and re-engage.

What gives? And should I be concerned? Otherwise the vehicle runs fine. I'm not sure if I should bring it in since there's no guarantee that I can repeat the problem at the dealer's(burden of proof seems to be on the owners-I gathered this from the numerous other NAMers posting issues).

 

The root cause of the issue is not engaging first properly - the fact that you have to double-clutch it back in neutral before easily gaining first gear again is as to be expected as your attempted release of the clutch with the first gear only partially engaged has left the transmission "between gears" and you can put things back in a good state be releasing the clutch in neutral before trying again.

A little balkiness in engaging first correctly is sometimes normal, especially if your shifting technique is not crisp. I'd concentrate a little more on making sure you're careful and deliberate with the neutral to first shift and see if the problem reoccurs. If it becomes at all common and you're sure you're using good shifting technique (i.e., clutch ALL the way to the floor and making sure you move the shift lever crisply to the left to find the first gear shift gate), then I'd bring it up with the dealer - your shift linkage may need adjustment or it is remotely possible you have an internal transmission problem.

Not saying this is your problem, but one thing many drivers do which makes shifting more balky is grasping the shift lever in the palm of their hand and "man-handling" it between gears. It works better with the shift lever held lightly in your thumb and first couple fingers and applying smooth but light pressure in either or a fore-aft or left-right direction and letting the the shifter "find its own way" in the shift gates, rather than shoving it diagonally into the gear you want. And be very deliberate in the 1st-2nd shift - speed shifting or forcing this shift will wear out the 2nd gear synchros in short order and you'll grind on this shift until you repair the box.

- Mark

 

I am definitely sure that the latter occurrence was with proper shifting technique. I cannot say for certain about the first since I didn't really take notice-was just trying to get moving since light switched.

Either way I'll take more notice of it. The only other issue(which I don't really think it is) is down shifting to second while speed is still high(about 35mph). There is SOME resistance, albeit not impossible to downshift. I've just made it a habit to wait till the speed drops below 30 before shifting to second. This can be a pain when I'm downshifting to accelerate but I'll definitely try to be more aware.

 

Hang in there, I think you will be okay on this one. There's usually an adjustment period to be become familiarized with how your particular vehicle shifts, then it's just a matter of time before shifting will come naturally. You will breeze through the gears without giving it a second thought.

 

on2wheels: I'm hoping this happens before I do damage to the tranny. ;p

 

Yes, give it some time. It's probably nothing, but there may be a chance you need your shift linkage adjusted. Next time you're in for service, I'd get the complaint on a work order - even if they blow you off and can't find a problem, you have documented the issue as coming up while under warranty. And if you get an experienced tech, he may be able "by feel" to tell if you have a serious problem.

The higher the RPMs, the harder it can be to downshift and the more wear/tear on the box. The 2nd gear syncros are the weakest area of the tranny. For this reason, I don't downshift "through the gears" as I'm coming to a stop - I just leave it in the whatever higher gear it is in and push the clutch in when the engine begins to get close to idle RPM, then put it in neutral as I come to a stop. Matching RPMs during downshifts helps but that requires good heel/toe technique, something I've never developed.

- Mark

 

I agree with Mark.

When you leave the transmission in neutral at a stop several sets of gears are still turning in the transmission. When you push in on the clutch those gears remaining spinning for a while. If you try to shove it in gear right away you are 'forcing' those gears to stop, making that grinding noise.

Better is to push in the clutch and wait a second or two before putting it in gear. That will let those gears come to a stop before trying to shift.

You are doing the same thing when trying to downshift too early, only this time you are trying to speed those gears up. You can also damage your engine if you downshift too early.

I also agree that you should report your difficulty, just in case. Then at least the maint tech can test drive it and see if anything is wrong.

FWIW, if you want to shift like a racer then learn how to do it. It does take a bit of practice and a 'feel' for the transmission, but, it is fun to do. Double clutch, matching revs on power shifts, etc.

Beware, high performance shift techniques can be damaging to your transmission if not done well.

charlie

 

trannys need break-in time as well, I'd give it another 1,000 miles and if it continues tell yr SA.

 

charlie: Downshifting to accelerate isn't "shift like a racer". In fact, it's pretty much basic manual shifting IMO. I always perform rev match for downshifting because of the increased rpm required to smoothly transition so that isn't the issue. Furthermore I don't feel like I'm abusing the tranny, in fact many of my start/stop accelerations are engaged rather slowly.

Regarding spinning the gears, that should not matter when the clutch is fully depressed because it's disengaged from the motor(the spinning gears you mentioned at neutral would not be connected and would not have any relation to shifting). Double clutching is a pretty common practice for me since I use that to rev match.