Transmission Linkage Issues?, What's the current thinking on "renewing" linkage? Options

[earossi]

As noted earlier, I have just taken delivery of my first 914 which has had both the engine and transmission "rebuilt". Unfortunately, I do NOT have the build history on either component. The engine seems to run very well. The transmission is another story. Shifting is very vague and it is HARD to shift the car. I have been able to work the tranny through all 5 gears, and there are no bearing noises or evidence of bad synchs. But, the linkage appears to be f****ed up pretty poorly. It takes a lot of force to move the shifter forward or rearward. And, hitting the correct gears is a bit of a hit or miss.

I have been able to research the Pelican site where there is a writeup by Wayne Dempsy on reworking the linkage and doing some adjustments. But, I wonder what else is out there. On this forum, I have seen references to some linkage articles in the archives, but have not been able to find much using the Search function.

There are also several sources for replacement bushings, bearings, and hardware. But, what is the "hot ticket" to get the tranny to shift smoothly and with some ease?

Though this is my first 914, my first Porsche was a 66 911 with a 901 tranny in it and I can remember it being a joy to shift. You could not speed shift the car, but it was very easy to shift. And, I am wondering if I can get the 914 side shift tranny to behave as did my 911?

I can source hardware from Patrick MS, Tangerine Racing, Pelican, and Porsche......but, what should I replace and with whose part to get this tranny so that it is easily shifted?

Right now, the car is a true PITA to drive simply because of the linkage or perhaps something internal to the tranny. Iwould like to work through a proper diagnosis and adjustment of the linkage first, to see if that fixes my problems. I kind of feel that the issue is linkage related, at this point.

So, I would appreciate some direction from this forum.

[Dave_Darling]

The bushing "super kit" from Pelican ought to go quite a way toward improving the shifting in your car.

Correcting some of the other issues that may have developed in the linkage will help more. Those "other issues" are primarily wear of metal parts that hold the bushings or that bear on the bushings. The side-shift console can wear on the hole where the castle bushing goes, and that will make for extra slop. The plate under the gear shift lever can wear, and that will make for extra slop. Even the rear shift rod, where it goes through the castle bushing in the side shift console, can wear down over the years.

For more precision, the Rennshift gear shift lever from JWest Engineering (I think Pelican carries them as well?) takes all the slop out of the gear shift lever itself; in combination with the linkage improvements above it makes the whole thing much better.

Tangerine Racing (Racer Chris on here) makes a kit that extends the rear shift rod and puts a second support on the rear of the side shift console. I think JWest made such a kit, and there may have been others over the years. There are also kits that replace the firewall bushing with a bearing. Those evidently all make some improvements, supporting and locating the linkage even more precisely.

But I'd start with new bushings and set screws and an inspection of where the parts all slide against each other.

--DD

[ablesnead]

A rennshifter will change your entire driving experience for the better

[Cap'n Krusty]

As noted earlier, I have just taken delivery of my first 914 which has had both the engine and transmission "rebuilt". Unfortunately, I do NOT have the build history on either component. The engine seems to run very well. The transmission is another story. Shifting is very vague and it is HARD to shift the car. I have been able to work the tranny through all 5 gears, and there are no bearing noises or evidence of bad synchs. But, the linkage appears to be f****ed up pretty poorly. It takes a lot of force to move the shifter forward or rearward. And, hitting the correct gears is a bit of a hit or miss.

I have been able to research the Pelican site where there is a writeup by Wayne Dempsy on reworking the linkage and doing some adjustments. But, I wonder what else is out there. On this forum, I have seen references to some linkage articles in the archives, but have not been able to find much using the Search function.

There are also several sources for replacement bushings, bearings, and hardware. But, what is the "hot ticket" to get the tranny to shift smoothly and with some ease?

Though this is my first 914, my first Porsche was a 66 911 with a 901 tranny in it and I can remember it being a joy to shift. You could not speed shift the car, but it was very easy to shift. And, I am wondering if I can get the 914 side shift tranny to behave as did my 911?

I can source hardware from Patrick MS, Tangerine Racing, Pelican, and Porsche......but, what should I replace and with whose part to get this tranny so that it is easily shifted?

Right now, the car is a true PITA to drive simply because of the linkage or perhaps something internal to the tranny. Iwould like to work through a proper diagnosis and adjustment of the linkage first, to see if that fixes my problems. I kind of feel that the issue is linkage related, at this point.

So, I would appreciate some direction from this forum.

If you were to tell us what year your car is, we might be better able to assist you. Difficulty in moving the shift lever fore and aft could be bad motor mounts (or even the wrong cross bar) or the rods dragging against something along their path. Pictures are always helpful in situations such as this.

The Cap'n

[earossi]

As noted earlier, I have just taken delivery of my first 914 which has had both the engine and transmission "rebuilt". Unfortunately, I do NOT have the build history on either component. The engine seems to run very well. The transmission is another story. Shifting is very vague and it is HARD to shift the car. I have been able to work the tranny through all 5 gears, and there are no bearing noises or evidence of bad synchs. But, the linkage appears to be f****ed up pretty poorly. It takes a lot of force to move the shifter forward or rearward. And, hitting the correct gears is a bit of a hit or miss.

I have been able to research the Pelican site where there is a writeup by Wayne Dempsy on reworking the linkage and doing some adjustments. But, I wonder what else is out there. On this forum, I have seen references to some linkage articles in the archives, but have not been able to find much using the Search function.

There are also several sources for replacement bushings, bearings, and hardware. But, what is the "hot ticket" to get the tranny to shift smoothly and with some ease?

Though this is my first 914, my first Porsche was a 66 911 with a 901 tranny in it and I can remember it being a joy to shift. You could not speed shift the car, but it was very easy to shift. And, I am wondering if I can get the 914 side shift tranny to behave as did my 911?

I can source hardware from Patrick MS, Tangerine Racing, Pelican, and Porsche......but, what should I replace and with whose part to get this tranny so that it is easily shifted?

Right now, the car is a true PITA to drive simply because of the linkage or perhaps something internal to the tranny. Iwould like to work through a proper diagnosis and adjustment of the linkage first, to see if that fixes my problems. I kind of feel that the issue is linkage related, at this point.

So, I would appreciate some direction from this forum.

If you were to tell us what year your car is, we might be better able to assist you. Difficulty in moving the shift lever fore and aft could be bad motor mounts (or even the wrong cross bar) or the rods dragging against something along their path. Pictures are always helpful in situations such as this.

The Cap'n

Cap'n,

Sorry about that. Don't have any pictures yet, but the car is a 76 fitted with the 2.0 motor and the 901 tranny, which is a side shifter.

[Cap'n Krusty]

As noted earlier, I have just taken delivery of my first 914 which has had both the engine and transmission "rebuilt". Unfortunately, I do NOT have the build history on either component. The engine seems to run very well. The transmission is another story. Shifting is very vague and it is HARD to shift the car. I have been able to work the tranny through all 5 gears, and there are no bearing noises or evidence of bad synchs. But, the linkage appears to be f****ed up pretty poorly. It takes a lot of force to move the shifter forward or rearward. And, hitting the correct gears is a bit of a hit or miss.

I have been able to research the Pelican site where there is a writeup by Wayne Dempsy on reworking the linkage and doing some adjustments. But, I wonder what else is out there. On this forum, I have seen references to some linkage articles in the archives, but have not been able to find much using the Search function.

There are also several sources for replacement bushings, bearings, and hardware. But, what is the "hot ticket" to get the tranny to shift smoothly and with some ease?

Though this is my first 914, my first Porsche was a 66 911 with a 901 tranny in it and I can remember it being a joy to shift. You could not speed shift the car, but it was very easy to shift. And, I am wondering if I can get the 914 side shift tranny to behave as did my 911?

I can source hardware from Patrick MS, Tangerine Racing, Pelican, and Porsche......but, what should I replace and with whose part to get this tranny so that it is easily shifted?

Right now, the car is a true PITA to drive simply because of the linkage or perhaps something internal to the tranny. Iwould like to work through a proper diagnosis and adjustment of the linkage first, to see if that fixes my problems. I kind of feel that the issue is linkage related, at this point.

So, I would appreciate some direction from this forum.

If you were to tell us what year your car is, we might be better able to assist you. Difficulty in moving the shift lever fore and aft could be bad motor mounts (or even the wrong cross bar) or the rods dragging against something along their path. Pictures are always helpful in situations such as this.

The Cap'n

Cap'n,

Sorry about that. Don't have any pictures yet, but the car is a 76 fitted with the 2.0 motor and the 901 tranny, which is a side shifter.

Does the shift rod easily clear the loop in the engine mount crossbar? Are the two rubber engine mounts intact and in good condition?

The Cap'n

[914werke]

Gotta agree with the Cap'n here (amazing!)
Need pics.
There are a host of things that can impede proper operation including worn parts, obstructions or mismatched parts.
There is no telling what PO's have done in 30 yrs of its existence.
As your car is late does it still have the late exhaust, cooling tin intact?

[rgalla9146]

Just took delivery ? newly rebuilt ?......checked gear lube level ?

[earossi]

Good questions. Yes, I just took delivery and am just starting to "sort" through the car. The engine and transmission were both "rebuilt", but with no documentation, I don't have specifics.

As noted earlier, my first Porsche, a 1966 911 had a 901 tranny, and I remember how nice the shifting was. Yes, it was a little vague. And, you could not power shift the tranny without "nicking" 2nd gear, but my memories are good ones of that car and its transmission.

My "new" 914's tranny is not very enjoyable at this time. I did drive it some today and since last posting, and the shifter just seems very stiff, requiring a lot of force to move through the gears. And, I was having some problems "finding" 3rd or 2nd on a down shift. Took several tries before I could find the gears. There is no unusual noise coming from the tranny. No indication of bad synchros. It just appears as though the shift linkage is not only vague, but that there is slop in it. I can shift through the gears one time, but the very next time I run up through the gears, it appears they are not "exactly" in the same place they were on the last series of upshifts.

I've attached some photos I took of the linkage that can be seen from below the car.

Starting at the firewall, when I peel back the bellows dust shield, I set that the firewall bushing appears to be bronze or brass. Definitely not plastic. Then, as you will note in the pictures, the rear shift rod is perfectly centered in the clearance hole in the engine support cross member.

I could not tell much from looking at the ball and socket shift collar at the rear of the transmission. There is a plastic dust cover over that hook up. I was not able to peel back the carpeting in the cabin to gain access to the shifter.

So, what would be your suggestions? It could be that I just need to put some miles on the car to loosen up the linkage. But, the vagueness and slop, I am afraid would still be there.

[Larmo63]

At least everything looks nice and clean. Is this the car that came from Utah? Ask the guy who built it maybe? I used the Tangerine firewall bushing, it helped immensely. It sounds as if it could be in the shifter?

[Dave_Darling]

I don't see the castle bushing on the side-shift console, no do I see an image of the firewall bushing. So I can't toss an opinion about what the material of the latter is, nor the condition of the former.

My recommendation is unchanged: Go through the linkage and put new bushings in it. (And new cone set-screws.) The Super Bushing Kit that Pelican sells is a pretty decent set of stuff for this.

Slop will not get better on its own. It can only get worse. The stiffness may get better, but if so that is a separate issue from the linkage. Fix the linkage, put new bushings in.

It may never shift as well as your old 911 did, though.

--DD

[earossi]

I don't see the castle bushing on the side-shift console, no do I see an image of the firewall bushing. So I can't toss an opinion about what the material of the latter is, nor the condition of the former.

My recommendation is unchanged: Go through the linkage and put new bushings in it. (And new cone set-screws.) The Super Bushing Kit that Pelican sells is a pretty decent set of stuff for this.

Slop will not get better on its own. It can only get worse. The stiffness may get better, but if so that is a separate issue from the linkage. Fix the linkage, put new bushings in.

It may never shift as well as your old 911 did, though.

--DD

Dave,

I appreciate your response. But, I have to admit total ignorance of some of the terminology. I took pictures of the installation, attempting to capture everything; and, apparently did not get a thing referred to as a "castle fitting" or the shift "console". Perhaps you can give me some other verbiage that would allow me to find the "castle" fitting. I get it about the "console" though.

As far as the firewall bushing, I noted that in my text. It is not a polymer. It is metallic and gold in color. So, my guess is that the bush is brass or bronze.

And, lastly, I have not gone into the shifter in the cabin yet. That will be my next move, once I renew things at the transmission end of things.

The transmission has fluid in it. Not sure what it is. But, I will dump it and put in something like Mobil 1 Synthetic which should improve shifting noticeably.

[Elliot Cannon]

I have the shifter from JWest and it helps a whole lot. The easiest and certainly the cheapest thing to do is replace ALL the bushings in the linkage. You can find all the parts you need in an illustrated parts breakdown in the Haynes manual if you have one. If you don't have a Haynes manual, you should get one. You can go here to find a lot of the stuff you might want. http://www.tangerineracing.com/index.htm This is also a good source. http://www.pelicanparts.com/Porsche/index-SC.htm

[Zimms]

Pelican has a great article for checking the bushings and cone screws the first time.

Pelican shifting improvements

When mine was running, I struggled in first , only to find out that it was so sloppy, I was actually in third. Ordering the parts and going through this was cheap and easy with big improvements for me. My bushings were shot or gone.

[Porschef]

No Mobil 1. You will be berated by his Krustiness, and subsequently to a lesser extent by the Evil Dr. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy11.gif)

GL-5. Do what the manual says, or face the consequences. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ar15.gif)

[earossi]

No Mobil 1. You will be berated by his Krustiness, and subsequently to a lesser extent by the Evil Dr. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy11.gif)

GL-5. Do what the manual says, or face the consequences. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ar15.gif)

Thanks for the heads-up Porschef!

[Dave_Darling]

"castle fitting" or the shift "console".

In reverse order:

- The "side shift console" is the thingie that hangs off the side of the transmission that the rear shift rod goes into. That's where the coupler that has the socket bushing in it lives; the console usually has a black plastic cover over it.

- The "castle bushing" goes in the hole through the side shift console, and the rear shift rod goes through this bushing into the middle of the console, where the aforementioned coupler slides onto it. I call it a "castle" one because the slots in it (to help it compress a bit and go partway through the hole in the console) look a little like a medieval castle's tower, if you squint hard and use your imagination.

--DD

[johnhora]

here is where Dave was talking about....looks like maybe no bushing.....makes it very sloppy shifting....

[Chris H.]

Ernie,

Sorry I haven't been able to stop by yet. I'm not a transmission expert but this definitely sounds like an issue with the linkage. It's unlikely the transmission itself. Your 914 should shift just about as well as the 911 you had. Since you have two pretty important issues that need to be resolved (steering coupler) I might recommend calling Brad Mayeur's shop 914 Limited down in Peoria.

Brad has a WEBSITE NOW!

He's one of the most respected 914 gurus in the country. He can send a flatbed up to get the car fairly reasonably if you don't have a way to get it there (DO NOT DRIVE IT THERE, it's too far with your trans/steering issues). Unless you know the trans/linkage/bushing placements inside and out it's pretty hard to troubleshoot.

[ChrisFoley]

here is where Dave was talking about....looks like maybe no bushing.....

If you look closely, the bushing appears to be in place.
However, they usually float around in the hole, causing further wear to the aluminum, and increased slop in the linkage.
When we install a new one we usually epoxy it in place so it can't move around.

One of the biggest improvements you can make without much expense is to replace the firewall bushing with my spherical bearing.