I seem to grind my gears going from 1st to 2nd about twice a month. Tonight, I had a really NASTY sounding grind.

I know this causes damage. But my question is what are the symptoms of the damage I am causing?

The reason I ask is because if there is substantial damage caused by the grinding, I want it fixed under my warranty. I am at 34,000 miles, so I need to be able to diagnose the damage and tell the dealer what the problem is.

Thanks in advance.

Jeff

 

most dealers will not cover sychro damage under warranty. If the sychro will not mesh the gears repeatedly (ever time) then you might have a claim but the dealer will not be able to replicate the probelm because more than likey you are getting it at redline slamming it into second gear.

 

Have you tried flushing out the transmission fluid? That should help.

When I had my S, I've ground gears quite often when I first got my S back in2002. I suspected I had the infamous transmission problem but in the end, I attributed it to the gates being so tight and myself not being used to it. Towards the end of my ownership (at ~ 48k miles), I rarely ground 1-2 shift even during the most spirited drive. I would say I've ground about 100 times during the 2yrs and 9mo of my ownership...I had no noticable problem.

 

My 01 stock tranny would grind every shift from 1st to 2nd. New fluid or not. They just suck. After about half a year it started grinding from 4th to 5th too. Then when I got the SC it blew to little bits.

 

^
LOL...sorry to hear that, but funny story.

for me, the problem seems that i am not rev-matching enough (letting the rpm's fall enough) before engaging into 2nd.

but since this is a typical problem with s2k's, i figure the dealer might warranty any damage if I complain that the grinding is not user error.

however, I can't notice any damage, although I'm sure damage is done with each grind.

i've changed my fluids 3 times...doesn't solve the problem. I think its a rev-matching problem. the grinds NEVER occur at 9k shifts, always at regular 3-5k shifts.

 

I had 1-2 grind problems also.

Redline 1st shift to 2nd. The problem? I was shifting wayyy too fast.

Slow down a bit and you probably won't grind.

 

There are two things occuring when you grind gears...

1) You're forcing the syncros to work very fast or at least over their capability. I'm not quite sure this causes more syncro wear necessarily but if you've seen how syncros actually work, then it is quite possible. If you have worn syncros, the grinding will occur more and more often until finally you just will have to treat it like a syncroless transmission.

2) You're grinding the engagement teeth together because they are not syncronized. This will result in the transmission slipping out of gear eventually and or more grinding because the teeth have lost their pointed shape and can not engage smoothly.

 

Here ya go, with pictures and everything:
https://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showt...209&hl=woodwork

 

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should i try to get my tranny replaced under warranty, as I am sure there will be damage to the transmission due to the 2nd gear grinding?

 

My car would grind on 1 - 2 shift once in a while, then the tranny drain plug fell out and the tranny died obviously. Went to the dealer, they said the sychros were bad and they would replace under warranty...a full gear set, sychros, bearings, shafts, etc. later and the tranny is smooth as butter $2K in tranny fixes under warranty, plus a new clutch. I would take it to the dealer and see what they say while you still have a warranty.