Thoughts on 308 Transmission/Gearbox Rebuild

So I was speaking with James at Norwood's about possibly rebuilding my transmission.

Currently, there's a bad 3rd gear syncro and a tired second syncro. 59k miles on it (verified by records etc).

So it's an expensive job. James himself would do it. He called it a healthy "medium" job, one that I'm not sure I'm up for. Requires a few special tools. Figure $1000 even in labor.

Parts are really expensive; figure like $150 to $250 for syncro rings alone depending on for which gear... Then the dog teeth rings or whatever, and then possibly the syncro hubs.

So that's $1000 in syncros alone. This sounds like a $3k job. Uggh...

Do I really need to do this? Clearly I'm so far into getting this car up to shape (it WAS really good to begin with, seriosuly!) that I'm pretty much obligated to keep it .

If I have to pull then engine, I probably need to rebuilt the whole thing while the engine's out. On the other hand, is there some way I could just get in there and replace the 2nd and 3rd rings with the gearbox still on the car?

I'm just not really sure I'm ready for a whole gearbox rebuild at this point. And I don't feel like driving the thing for another year with the bad 3rd syncro. Right now, I have a mechanic who I can work closely with who will basically work with me (teach me) with pulling the engine--labor costs will be low, but I'd be doing most of the work (valve adjust, hose replacement).

At some point, it's going to have to get pulled again for a top end rebuild (new valves etc.).

Any thoughts on how I should proceed at this point?

--Mike

 

Paul (Newman), thanks a lot for your response--I know you've done this before and your help means a lot.

This is a very new condition. I don't grind the gears--I know the gearbox's limits (even with the bad syncro) and shift within them (double clutching into 3rd on the downshift, not to0 fast into 2nd on the upshift).

So what I'm hearing is, I really don't need to go "too" crazy with this thing replacing everything (just yet). Maybe it makes sense to do just 2nd and 3rd, and wait for the big overhaul when I've got some more mileage on the box.

Paul, is it at *all* possible to do the job you did (2nd and 3rd syncros) with the engine in (albeit more difficult)?

Can you list any special tools you had to use?

--Mike

 

Sure, sure.

You'll know when your syncros are getting tired ("worn") or are completely hosed based on how the car shifts.

Never assume ANYTHING until you've put in a fresh batch of gearbox/transmission fluid in, though.

When you shift into 2nd quickly and it crunches, that's an early sign of wear. The quicker the shift, the more demand placed upon the syncros (they have less time to do their job). You might say the syncro is getting a bit "tired."

This is where my 2nd gear syncro is.

My third gear is toast, i.e. ready for immediate replacemenet. Even shortly after I first got the car, a a 5th to 3rd downshift would crunch. Then 4th to third started to do it. Then I had to be really slow and deliberate with my UPSHIFTS (easier on the syncros--less "matching" for them to do) into third. Currently, an upshift into third takes about three seconds, and a downshift requires a double-clutch (where you "match" the two rotating parts--layshaft and something else, I have to think about it--manually). So third gear syncro is positively worn.

And there you have it. It's no fun to drive w/o a good third gear, takes the fun out of the car (and makes it really slow, since 3 seconds shift time!). So it's time to do something about it...