ok, right now my truck is an 87 runner with a 5sp, and i am having a really hard time shifting it. mainly into first gear, and after a few minutes of driving it, in every gear, ive been double clutchin it, and that has seemed to help out some, but not for first... and that has been slowly not been able to help out like it did... i have also been free floating the gears sometimes and that seems to make it easier. i plan on changing out the shifter seat and socket cuz the shifter is kinda sloppy... so any ideas would be great!!!

 

Hmm... Change the fluid? I changed mine to Royal Purple full synthetic and it helped out a lot, replacing the shifter seat and socket helped out that much more.

 

fluid check/replacement and shifter seat, my runner is due for a new seat bushing too; marlin crawler has some nice looking ones btw....

 

is the clutch fully disengaging? bled the lines lately? is the pedal adjusted correctly?

 

i did a 2/3rd royal purple 1/3rd valvoline store didnt have 3 qts made a night and day difrence was worth every cent (previous fluid was only 500miles old and it was valovline sythetic)

what is the weirdest thing is you say when you have been driveing for longer it seems to get worse it should get better as the fluid loosens up as it gets hot

 

yea, it is weird, something I dnt get... so changing the fluid could help out huh? I'll try that and see how that goes. as for the clutch and all that, everything. seems to be fine... I think I have a bad seal that needs to be replaced on the trans, because I was 3/4 of a quart low in my trans, and gear oil is drippin out of the bellhousing. could that be a part of it?

 

When I first bought my 88 4Runner, I drained and went with Redline MT90 for both the manual tranny and transfer case. When I called Redline, that's what they recommended in the '88. The 5 speed shifted way smoother. Like Junkers said, I've heard Royal Purple is good also but have not used it before. Synthetic costs more, but I believe is worth because it lasts longer and flows better when cold. But you should still change at the factory recommended interval of 30K miles, I believe...because there's no filter in there to remove wear particles. I never had any problem with the Redline in the '88 and still have to put it in my '94. Try summitracing.com for a wide selection of synthetic oils.

And like aa1911 mentioned, the Marlin Crawler nylon shifter seat and socket is well worth the money. I did it to the '88 and it made the stick and shifting tighter. It felt like a brand new transmission. Here is the link to the Marlin Crawler for the seats/sockets: http://www.marlincrawler.com/transmi...ver-ball-seats

Like I've said, I have them in my 88 and I still have to buy them for my 94 as the shifter is very sloppy in my 94. Good luck, bro. Let us know how it goes and what the problem was.

 

Check your clutch pedal bracket for cracks (have someone hold it down while you look; it will be easier to spot if depressed.

Also, highly recommend Redline or Amsoil GL-4 (DO NOT use GL-5 as it will screw up your synchros).

 

redline mt90 gl-4

my tranny shifts perfect.

make sure your master and slave cylinders are in good working order and no leaks. what is the color of the fluid in your clutch reservoir? if it is black then your master cylinder is going bad most likely... black crap usually means wearing wiper seals and o-rings. and make sure it is adjusted properly also.

 

Also check your u-joints to make sure they are not binding/stiff, changed drive shafts out on my 88 and the old joints took some effort to move by hand, new ones where very easy to move by hand.

Made shifting a ton smother/easier.

 

ok, ordered those parts from marlin crawler, and once I get abit more money I'll change the fluid, considering I don't drive much anyway... and I shall check on those parts also!!! thanks everyone for the help so far!!

 

The reason the MT-90 works is that it's a GL-4 fluid. The GL-5 fluids contain extreme pressure additives that cause the synchros to slip, causing the hard shifting. Another option is AMSOIL MTG, also a synthetic GL-4. I have MT-90 in mine right now, and it works great - solved a hard shifting problem like the one you described. BUT, Red Line fluids are polyol esters, which absorb moisture and can turn acidic. The AMSOIL product is a PAO type synthetic, which doesn't absorb moisture. Also, PAOs are the most durable rugged lubricants on the market - it will have a greater service life than anything else you could use, which is why I'm going to switch to it next time.

http://www.amsoil.com/storefront/mtg.aspx

 

okay, my truck developed a new issue... it doesn't want to go into first gear anymore... I have to force it... ideas for that?

 

Hey sb5walker, thanks for the post, as I appreciate the opinions of others. But if the MT90 solved your hard shift problem, why would you switch?

Where did you get the info that Polyol Ester base stocks absorb moisture and can turn acidic? I would just like it explained. Thanks.


Batman, you said that you have a oil seal leak on the transmission. Maybe the tranny oil has contaminated the clutch making shifting harder. Just an idea.

 

I forgot all about this post... I got the new parts from marlin and that has improved the shifting tremendously, I'd advise on doing tht for those who hAve not done so, it is well worth the money, as for the shifting, I found out my clutch pedal was out of adjustment, it is good now, but I still need to replace the seal that is leaking.

 

will the gl-5 permanantly screw up the synchros ? i ordered red line mt90 but i wont get it for a few days.

 

good news

 

Glad those parts and an adjustment fixed it. Those are usually the first two things I check and thats why i mention it with symptoms like yours. DO NOT RUN GL-5. GL-4 is the SAME price. In the same MT-90 weight.

Glad yer truck is working better bud. Now time for that good ole REDLINE MT90 GL4 and you will be shifting like nothin.

Get that fluid in yer tranny. It will love you for it.

 

Like 4x4climber said, Get that fluid in yer tranny. It will love you for it. I have it in my 88. I still need to put some in my 94. That stuff is worth the money. It would last past the 30K mile change interval but with no filtration, the fluid has to be changed to get the wear particles out of the system.

Also like 4x4climber said, DO NOT use a GL-5 gear oil. GL-5's are usually required in hypoid differentials but not in most synchromesh transmissions because the chemicals used to provide the extreme pressure protection can be corrosive to synchronizers, which are commonly made of brass or bronze. Typically, the use of a GL-5 lubricant in a synchromesh tranny will shorten the synchronizer life by one half. The extreme pressure requirements of spur gears and helical gears found in transmission are not nearly as great as found in rear wheel drive differentials. A GL-4 lubricant such as MT-90 provides adequate protection for most manual trannys because 1) MT-90 has the appropriate coefficient of friction for most manual transmission sychronizers and 2) the viscosity characteristics of MT-90 allow proper shifting over the entire temperature range which the tranny will experience.

The shear stability and oxidation stability of MT-90 is excellent and will change little with use.

All this info is from a technical brochure for Redline MTL and MT-90. Being formulated with extremely stable synthetic basestocks, MT-90 will last much longer than conventional petro lubricants. However, Redline does not recommend extended drain intervals for the same reason I listed above.

Sorry to get all technical and long on you guys, but I felt I had to defend Redline because of a prior post in this thread saying Amsoil was better. There are more reasons that it works than just the fact it's a GL-4 oil. I've had great results with MT-90 in tranny and transfer case. I also use their 75W90 GL-5 differential gear oil. I believe in their products. The Marlin Crawler shifter parts also made a huge difference. Made an old transmission feel almost like a new transmission.

Batman, happy to hear you solved your problem. Get the MT-90. You won't regret it. It's expensive so you may want to replace that seal first.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/RED-50304/

 

the fluid is pricey, I'll have to wait till next month for when I have the money to afford that stuff, as for the seal, I am having trouble disconnecting my trans to change it out, I'm thinkin about pullin the motor, it sounds easier to do it that way, but yea, i only drive about 250-350 miles a month.