DAGNABIT ! no reverse 4 speed - is it shifter or transmission? (Page 1/1)
JT CROWNS OCT 05, 01:37 PM
Good Afternoon !

Replaced my clutch slave (bled correctly as directed by These forums).-
Good News - easily drives and shifts forward 1-4 gears- engine ON, engine OFF.
Bad News - Wont go into REVERSE.

Crosses the GATE to the LEFT firmly, but I can't move the shifter forward into REVERSE.

Checked Pennocks on All the SEARCHES for REVERSE, REVERSE LOCK-OUT, 4-speed etc.

The spring-loaded cam in the front of the shifter (reverse lock-out) appears to lift the CAM over the roller as it should.

LUBED w/ spray silicon.

Checked SHIFTER CABLE MOVEMENTS at the tranny -
- all 4 forward gears shifts easily shifted with finger pressure

I never looked to see how the shifter moved into REVERSE when it worked, so I can't recognize anything that looks out of place.

I saw RODNEY's Rebuild kit, but don't know what the problem is to know if that addresses the problem.

So- Undiagnosed Shifter problem -or- Transmission Problem ?
Pennock's family have helped me keep my 4 previous Fieros running since my First NEW 1985 Fiero.
Comming to the well again.

Thanks - Appreciate your wisdom,

Jim from Gaithersburg MD
fieroguru OCT 05, 06:01 PM
Disconnect the cables and shift the transmission into reverse at the transmission.
If it works, it is a shifter/cable issue. If if won't, it is a transmission issue.
buddycraigg OCT 06, 07:50 PM
Did it go in to reverse before you replaced the slave?
Can you shift in to reverse if the engine is off?
Does it grind the gear?

[This message has been edited by buddycraigg (edited 10-06-2023).]

Spoon OCT 06, 08:43 PM
Take another look in the shifter area. some years ago another member had the same issue and ended up selling the car for cheap. New owner found a quarter lodged in the shifter mechanism. Fixed for free and got a 25 cent rebate.

Spoon

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"Kilgore Trout once wrote a short story which was a dialogue between two pieces of yeast. They were discussing the possible purposes of life as they ate sugar and suffocated in their own excrement. Because of their limited intelligence, they never came close to guessing that they were making champagne." - Kurt Vonnegut

JT CROWNS OCT 07, 02:25 PM
[i]"Did it go in to reverse before you replaced the slave?
Can you shift in to reverse if the engine is off?
Does it grind the gear?"[/i]

Prior to slave replacement, all gears shifted smoothly.
No grinding.

Based on previous posts, if I bring the Fiero to a Transmission shop, they will just want to replace the tranny.
82-T/A [At Work] OCT 07, 03:24 PM

quote
Originally posted by JT CROWNS:
Prior to slave replacement, all gears shifted smoothly.
No grinding.



I guarantee to you that this is something easy / simple that's wrong with the car. If everything worked well before the slave replacement, then it's certainly something that got dislodged or messed up.

Question, have you driven the car OTHER than tried to reverse it?

I can't remember the shift pattern, but I had a 1985 Fiero GT 4-Speed (such an awesome car), and one day after coming back from the movies, I could no longer reverse, and I THINK... I think I also could not get into 2nd or 3rd gear. Not sure which gears it was... but one of my forward gears also didn't work.

I just kind of looked around in the engine compartment, and immediately noticed that the metal clip which held one of the shifter cables to the transmission bracket had broken. These eventually fatigue, and they just break.




Anyway, in order to get home, I think I used a bunch of zip ties and whatnot... but you can buy these replacement clips. I just tried looking for them on Rock Auto and couldn't find them. I know they aren't super-rare or anything, I'm probably just not looking in the right place.


Anyway, I GUARANTEE to you that this is the problem. So don't fret... I promise... you can fix this really easily. Just take a look at this bracket HERE...




(Note, I stole both these images)
Patrick OCT 07, 05:05 PM

quote
Originally posted by JT CROWNS:

Prior to slave replacement, all gears shifted smoothly.
No grinding.



You still haven't answered Buddy's very relevant question.


quote
Originally posted by buddycraigg:

Can you shift in to reverse if the engine is off?