tough shifting manual shifting
 

Only had the car a lil' over a month now, but i notice that sometimes the shifter seems stiff, almost tough to shift. But other days it's smooth, i don't know if it needs to be lubricated, and if so if that is a simple task. I find it wierd, it might be these Canadian winters. They are killer here. Any input would be good. Also, i have plans to remove that UGLY RUBBER BOOT also, has anyone changed it to leather boot, if so let me know what company i should get that will fit it. Thnx.

the rough shifting is a result of the cold. it happens to me also when i first drive the car after i start it up. give it a little time to warm up and it will be much smoother. also, i noticed that it shifts and overall feels better now that the temperature is warmer. also, a good technique to use it to just easily shift, meaning don't force the shift. i've found this to be much better shifting as opposed to shifting the trottle more rough.
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nope it's not the cold
 

I thought that the problem was the cold, but now it's warm and it's still really stiff, it could be that there is no lubricant left. It's tickin me off. It's really stiff, it needs to be pushed into gear, i can't just glide them in like i would like to. Any ideas of what i could lubricate, also how to lubricate and what to lubricate with. I can't take of the rubber boot, i guess i have to remove the whole center console to get at it, but will that be enough to grease up that part. Any ideas would be appreciated it. thnx.

are you sure its a matter of grease, and not your tranny??? maybe your syncros are worn or something. just a thought.

grease or tranny?
 

Well the reason i am posting here is to find out why my shifter might be acting like it is. To be completely honest i have no idea what it could be. What signs would you say make it be my transmission, or syncro mesh? Myself i have a feeling there is something wrong also, not just lubricant. Also if it's the syncro mesh is that expensive?? Thnx

i mean im no expert, but usually you can tell if its your syncros, does it ever grind?? or kinda pop into gear?? i would have a mechanic drive it, and see what he thinks, and yeah the syncros are pretty expensive to fix.

Lubricate the shift lever
 

I am a new member. I was searching the forum to see if anybody had hard shifting problem. I recently fixed my car. It has 100000 miles on it and after several reports to the dealer, my hard shifting problem was conisdered normal. Like cold temp etc. etc..

I decided to check out the problem myself. And what I found was the bottom of the shift lever (under the car) that connects the extension bar has a bushing. I diconnected the extension bar (not the control rod) and found the shift lever was very smooth indicating a good ball joint. But the extension bar bolt was very difficult to loosen. I cleaned the bolt, applied some grease to the bushing that sits at the end of the shift lever. I re attached the shift linkages and found that my shift lever is VERY SMOOTH. I had been driving my car for about 70000 miles with that problem. Looks like my bolt/bushing got siezed long time ago.
But finally it is a night and day difference in effort to change the gears.

Try getting a short shifter, with urethane bushings.. I hear urethane bushings are a great help

Things to try:
1. Remove shift lever from housing and thoroughly grease the pivot.
2. Replace the transmission oil with a synthetic type.
3. As shan said, check the bolt and bushings where the shift lever connects to the change control rod. Make sure the correct torque setting is used for this bolt (12-16 ft/lb; 16-22 N/m). If the bolt is too tight, hard shifting can result.

Urethane bushings will help eliminate excess shifter play and give a more precision feel to your shifts but will not really ease the shifting force required.

Try to use the gear oil with the lowest viscosity, 85W or lower. Don't over exceed the amount, check quantity using the speedo as the measuring stick. The lower the viscosity the smoother. I have blended about a quart of 50W engine oil into the gear box and have noticed noticeable difference. It may seem crazy, maybe it is, BUT it works for me. I used about 75% regular gear oil and the 25% of 50W engine oil.

It has been working good so far and has not broken or made any weird sounds. And if it does I get the trannys very cheap.

The mazda recommended ATF oil(in manual tranny) to get a smoother shifting.
That's what I have and it's smooth as the Redline MTL for 1/3 of the price.

Where do I add tranny fluid?
 

I'm an idiot who accidentally emptied some of my tranny fluid when I meant to drain the oil. So I bought some tranny fluid and I don't know where to put it! I have no manual, and I don't want to put it tin the wrong place and kill my car.

difference
 

Does it happen in all gears?

Its impossible that all synchros go bad at the same time.

Usually is one or two synchros and happens the most when you try to shift at hig revs.

The tranny oil goes in the speedo plug, take it oput and measure it.

By the way, a book would be an awesome idea for an amateur. SOmetimes is good to use common sense and instinct when troubleshooting. It is sometimes even better to buy a book and follow the step by step chapters so to prevent any headaches and save a lot of time and easter egging (random guessing).