Stiff Gear Changes

[Affix]

Hey Guys,

Noticed on my 2006 Fiesta after about 15 miles my gears become very difficult to change.

Has anyone else experienced this issue?

Is there an easy / cheap way to fix it?

Cheers

[nelo]

here I go again, iv written this twice then *ucked it up so here is the short version.

Two problems cause this stiff gear change.

1: the most common fault............ on the gear box underneath where the gear shift cables go into the gear box ( actually a plastic box sat on the gear box with a snap on cover ) you will find a metal arm that swings back an forth as you change gears.(the cables are attached either end of this arm) the arm sits on a steel post and has plastic or bronze bushes in it and as the engine hots up over time the bushes dry out and the post expands causing the stiff gear change after 30 odd mins of driving or so.

you need to take the arm off and ever ever so slightly widen the bush then grease with a high melt grease or even copper slip epically if its the bronze bush but either will do. you can find instructions in a Haynes car manual of how to take the cables off etc. you will find a very good video on youtube showing this exact problem and cure, it shows you where the cover is and how to get to it etc. just type fiesta stiff gears.

A quick temporarily fix is to use a small paint brush or similar and dab some clean engine oil over the top of the pivot point and the two fixings where the cables attach to the arm just to lubricate it but don't drown the parts in oil. this will work better if you can get somebody to move the gear stick through the gears ................ WITH THE ENGINE TURNED OFF!!!!!!!!!!!

2: the other fault is under the gear stick where the gear change cables attach to a plastic block they dry out and need a bit of lubrication, this can be grease or a bit of oil/3-1 type but NOT penetration/WD40 oil as this will crack the type of plastic over time.

https://youtu.be/0c2tb6_bYWU I think the ( 0 ) is a zero and not the lower case letter o

[Garryboy1888]

As the above point 1.

I have just bought 2006 1.6 tdci. I bought it from Buxton and drove it 250 miles back to Ayrshire Scotland. As the drive progressed I found it increasingly difficult to change gear. In the end when I pulled off the motorway I need to 2 hands to get it out of 5th gear.

I was fearing the worst. But a quick google revealed the very common problem of the pivot arm on the gearbox seizing as the gearbox heated up.

I removed the pivot arm following a video on YouTube and reamed out some of the plastic which was swelling with the heat. I then cleaned the pivot mount and lubed up and I have no problems since.

Free fix !

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Iestyn]

Does anyone know how much a fix would cost? Looking at buying a 2006 fiesta that has a gear selector issue but I've been told its only a small job.

[clarkey1984]

I did it about 3 weeks ago and had it sorted in an hour or so, although this was with the use of a garage type ramp / post lift that we have at work.

The hardest bit by far is physically getting the metal arm off the pin, I found the open end of a 27mm spanner and smacks with the biggest lump hammer there is got the job done in the end, it takes some moving though so get swinging, or a big torso'd assistant lol.

This was the video guide I used, it really isn't that bad to do at all, the only thing the video doesnt show is how to get that lower black cube shaped part apart from the arm, but it's very much self-explanatory once you get into it.

 

 

 

[Iestyn]

1 hour ago, clarkey1984 said:

I did it about 3 weeks ago and had it sorted in an hour or so, although this was with the use of a garage type ramp / post lift that we have at work.

The hardest bit by far is physically getting the metal arm off the pin, I found the open end of a 27mm spanner and smacks with the biggest lump hammer there is got the job done in the end, it takes some moving though so get swinging, or a big torso'd assistant lol.

This was the video guide I used, it really isn't that bad to do at all, the only thing the video doesnt show is how to get that lower black cube shaped part apart from the arm, but it's very much self-explanatory once you get into it.

 

 

 

How much would this cost to get it done in a garage?

Also, what is the worst case scenario? Just don't want to spend money on the car and then find out it needs a lot more spent on repairs? 

[clarkey1984]

19 hours ago, Iestyn said:

How much would this cost to get it done in a garage?

Also, what is the worst case scenario? Just don't want to spend money on the car and then find out it needs a lot more spent on repairs? 

No doubt a garage would have a little more finesse than me beating a combination spanner with a massive club hammer, there's probably a special puller of some sort for just this type of job, I wouldn't expect it to take any more than a couple of hours, although it's quite a specific task, in that unless you've read up on it or done the job before then chances are they might not know what you mean, all depends if it's a garage you know and trust I guess.

[Reedymc]

I've found a fix for mine. I thought cables was worn or the Bush's on the ends of the cable, but I replaced them to no avail.

I reset neutral cable as that's the only one with adjustment, still to no avail. 

 

Noticed there was play on the selector mechanism in the gear lever side where the neutral cable connects the bit that's spring loaded had alot of movement before it engaged left (to push the rod forward). 

I had since made this secure and it seemed to of solved the problem so far.