Jonesybuilt

HI,

I'm looking at purchasing a used '95 4runner with 5spd. It has 146K and the original owner has taken very good care of it.

During my test drive I noticed that when shifting into 3rd or 4th the shifter doesn't travel as far (forward or backward) as it does in 1st and 2nd. I'm pretty sure it should!? Occasionally the shifter would 'pop' into neutral when lifting off the throttle when in third, I'm assuming because the gear hasn't been fully engaged?? All other gears work perfectly as does the clutch. Has anyone else experienced the same thing and/or is this a common problem? Could this be related to the plastic shifter bushings being worn? I'm certain the owner has not replaced them yet. Otherwise the truck feels like the day it was purchased!!

Thanks for the help.

SEAIRESCUE

Shifter bushing would affect 1-2 as well as 3-4. My two thoughts are bad 3-4 syncro assembly. Popping out of gear can be attributed to excess axial shaft clearances or worn brass rings in the syncro assembly. Remember that 3-4 gets a lot of use as you downshift around town but not stopping. Its possible the 3-4 shift rail selector is loose in its detent. I think the top of the transmission can be pulled off in the truck to check for that possibility. I would lower your offer to compensate for the impending transmission work.

My $0.02

Jonesybuilt

Thanks for the speedie reply! Good thought on the lowering the offer. Are there any good shop manuals/tech books on Line for reference?

Thanks.

Jonesybuilt

Followup on my 3rd/4th shifting problem. I decided to check the bushings and found the ring bushing was literally in 100 tiny pieces!! The small bushing that presses on the end of the shifter appeared to be fine. It was quite the pain to get all the tiny pieces out without dropping any into the tranny. A rag stuffed into the shifter hole helped. After replacing both bushings, it now shifts like new. $20 bucks for bushings sure beats a tranny rebuild!!