Gearbox or Clutch ?

[chim_girl]

Bu66er it, the Tuscan is playing up.

With a bit of a crunch it will go into first and second gear, with a bit more of crunch it will go into reverse. Limped back to base, waiting for the RAC to arrive and say they can't do anything and it needs to be towed away.

I have a warranty so I'm hoping I will be able to get the work done and keep all limbs attached.

Anyone any ideas what's wrong?

[tvr totty]

hi, our friend has the new tuscan, same problem - his was 5th really noisy and hard to get in gear. the gearbox has just come out under warranty and is now back from blackpool.

are you covered??

[NCE 61]

I would suspect the clutch possibly the slave cylinder, the T5 gearboxes are usually very good with the exception of 5th gear.

Nick

[whitey]

NCE 61 said:

I would suspect the clutch possibly the slave cylinder, the T5 gearboxes are usually very good with the exception of 5th gear. Nick

my thoughts exactly. Check the level of the clutch/brake reservoir(behind the pedals) and look under the car to see if you have a little puddle of fluid under the gearbox.

cheers
Whitey

[plipton]

NCE 61 said:

I would suspect the clutch possibly the slave cylinder, the T5 gearboxes are usually very good with the exception of 5th gear. Nick

I thought that too - but surely the RAC would have checked?

Some one mentioned a gear stick alignment mod that has been done to a few cars. Could be that I suppose (can't find the post now)

[yohan]

Sounds like clutch slip.

I had the gearstick alignment mod after the gear linkage fell apart. I've also had a gearbox fix after losing 5th. But neither ailment produced any crunching noises.

1st can be a bit stiff and reverse sometimes takes a couple of attempts - but I think they all do that.

[qualityscrew]

Sounds like clutch to me. Had exactly the same on my last Tuscan. Mileage on mine at the time was around 18k.
The good news was my warranty covered it. Hope you're as lucky!

[chim_girl]

whitey said:

NCE 61 said: I would suspect the clutch possibly the slave cylinder, the T5 gearboxes are usually very good with the exception of 5th gear. Nick my thoughts exactly. Check the level of the clutch/brake reservoir(behind the pedals) and look under the car to see if you have a little puddle of fluid under the gearbox. cheers Whitey

Thanks to all who replied, preliminary inspection suggests that it is the clutch reservoir.

[Mrs Fish]

bu66er

They say these things come in three's don't they.

[chim_girl]

Good point!

I've just opened a bottle of fizz to celebrate the fact that I've got my three out of the way now.

[Pies]

Chim_Girl owns a Tusc,Tusc is upset at name,Tusc breaks

[rascal12]

Had a similar problem with mine. But it was none of the above. Something a little simpler. If you look down on the clutch pedal, you will see behind a bar with a ‘U’ type bracket at both ends. One end a metal bracket and the other a plastic nylon type bracket. Both identical in size/shape.

Now what happened on mine was the plastic end decided to slowly split on one side, socking up the movement of the clutch pedal, thus not fully disengaging the clutch plate. Hence the hard gear changes. I’ve now changed mine to the metal type you can see used on the brake pedal at both ends.

For the sake of a 50p bracket I almost lost the front end of my car when sitting at the traffic lights. Clutch down waiting to go.... when the bracket finally decided to break completely, engaging the clutch and launching me into the moving traffic in front.

That woke me up, I can tell u

Anyways, if its as simple as that then cool... but if not your talking mega bucks.

I'll get me coat...

[chim_girl]

Pies said:

Chim_Girl owns a Tusc,Tusc is upset at name,Tusc breaks

You crack me up!

[chim450]

Jo, sorry to hear that your Tuscan is poorly. I had a very similar problem when I first picked up mine. Very stiff into 1st and 5th (ooer!).

I found out that the clutch reservoir was low on fluid, and topped it up. Has been fine ever since.

Hope you sort it out without too much expense.

[chim_girl]

rascal12 said:

when the bracket finally decided to break completely, engaging the clutch and launching me into the moving traffic in front. That woke me up, I can tell u

Blimey! Funnily enough the dealer mentioned that bracket yesterday, they have checked it and it seems to be okay. Worth knowing for the future tho.

Also, is a welcome due? 15 months as a memeber and this is your first post

[chim_girl]

chim450 said:

Jo, sorry to hear that your Tuscan is poorly. I had a very similar problem when I first picked up mine. Very stiff into 1st and 5th (ooer!). I found out that the clutch reservoir was low on fluid, and topped it up. Has been fine ever since. Hope you sort it out without too much expense.

Thanks Neil, diagnosis seems good so far, low fluid in the clutch reservoir. I have a warranty but I'm sure someone will tell me this is wear and tear. Ho-hum! The only major inconvenience is not having it to play with this weekend Going to a Ferrari/TVR meet just isn't going to be the same in a Beemer or a Golf.

[Mrs Fish]

Have you gone to bed yet?

[chim_girl]

Insomnia is pants. On my way to a meeting now. Yawn...

[graham66]

Did you not get the break warning light coming on? The clutch and brake systems share the same reservoir and when my slave cylender went and was leaking fluid, I got the red brake light on the dash but could still get all the gears with no problem??

Worth getting them to check the warning light does actually work for future reference - no clutch is one thing but no brakes

NB - the take off point for the clutch is higher than for the brakes, so if the fluid does start disappearing you lose the clutch long before you lose the brakes....assuming it is leaking out and not pouring out!

Graham

[chim_girl]

Graham, no brake warning light appeared! Apparently it was a 'ickle leak, I probably killed the fluid in the reservoir on sunday. Much hooning was done!