R34 Gtr Gearbox Dilemma!

[TOPG34R]

Hey Guys,

I must be fookin unlucky; as I was removing the stock gear shifter out of the gear select arm the rubber bushing at the end got snagged and fell into the gearbox! (Was in the process of changing to a C's short shift kit).

Can someone advise what concerns I should have about this and any home remedies.

*I have peered into the gear casing through the shifter hole and cannot physically see it anywhere, my first thought is that the rubber bush has sunken to the bottom of the oil pit (even though I would have thought it would float on top)

*I then drained the gearbox oil in hope it would flush it out but no rubber bush eventuated - I then placed the oil back in through the gearshifter hole to further try and flush out but no go also. The angle of the car whilst on a jack probably wasnt favourable to it flowing out if even possible.

My concern is whether the rubber bush can get caught in the syncros and cause all sorts of problems. I am hoping it will just sit on the bottom of the gearbox casing and not be collected by any of the mechanics but I really have no idea as I cannot find a 6 speed Getrax gearbox diagram or a picture of an open getrax gearbox casing so I can understand the internal structure and oil channel.

At this stage the shifter works fine through engaging 1st to 6th + reverse however obviously I am yet to test in motion, nor will I til I understand the possible disasters.

Any help would be appreciated.

Cheers

Ben

[TOPG34R]

The part I am referring to is this...

I'm still in shock about this silly incident that has caused me hours of pain + probably more on the horizon!

[260tech]

Bugger.

Think of your gearbox as a hi speed concrete mixer for oil. That foreign body is going to be ground down to about 50 microns in a very short time if in the process it don't cause a catastrophic failure. If it was me that piece has got to be removed before the Getrag spins again. Weigh the cost of a rebuild against the cost of a "box out of car" inspection.

Cheers GW

PS: That bit is nylon, harder than rubber.

Edited February 6, 2010 by 260tech

[TOPG34R]

So you think its highly likely it could be picked up by the synchros; hmmm damn! This one little part is giving me an epic headache thats for sure.

Thanks for the clarity regarding Nylon, not rubber. I am hoping in a Synchro vs Nylon war, Synchro wins! But the R will stay in the garage until I better understand the probability/risk in driving it.

Car will be going to Racepace motorsport in the next two weeks for some work so I will be clarifying with RPM before she moves an inch, but hoping someone can shed some light here before my chat with Chris on Monday.

Cheers

Bugger.

Think of your gearbox as a hi speed concrete mixer for oil. That foreign body is going to be ground down to about 50 microns in a very short time if in the process it don't cause a catastrophic failure. If it was me that piece has got to be removed before the Getrag spins again. Weigh the cost of a rebuild against the cost of a "box out of car" inspection.

Cheers GW

PS: That bit is nylon, harder than rubber.

[teK--]

So you think its highly likely it could be picked up by the synchros; hmmm damn! This one little part is giving me an epic headache thats for sure.

Thanks for the clarity regarding Nylon, not rubber. I am hoping in a Synchro vs Nylon war, Synchro wins! But the R will stay in the garage until I better understand the probability/risk in driving it.

Car will be going to Racepace motorsport in the next two weeks for some work so I will be clarifying with RPM before she moves an inch, but hoping someone can shed some light here before my chat with Chris on Monday.

Cheers

Yo Bro,

http://www.gtr.co.uk/forum/112571-r34-gtr-...ice-manual.html

The Supra gearbox is apparently near identical internally to the R...

http://t24ever.com/docs/fsm/toyota%20v160%...al%20RM351E.pdf

(Page 13 shows a cutaway diagram of the box)

Based on this diagram (much clearer) If you dropped the nylon carrier into the area where the shifter is, it appears to be very isolated from the drivetrain area itself? It may only have a small amount of oil flow into there to lubricate the mechanism, but if the oil feed is small the nylon cup probably wouldn't migrate into the main gearset area. Don't take my word for it though let RPM be the authority

Good luck with it!

EDIT: Another idea I just had, did that area under the shifter where you said there is an immersion of oil, drain away when you removed the main drainplug? Perhaps you can stick a syringe or fluid pump with a long plastic hose extension down there to suck all the oil out. Based on the picture there does not seem to be much in that area. Once the oil is out you should hopefully be able to see the nylon cup then remove it using one of those handy mini claw grabber tools.

[kasanoff]

damn cars!

[TOPG34R]

Thanks for the info boys however I have a VICTORY ON MY HANDS!!!!!

Went to Autobarn today thinking there is no way this fkn nylon bush is gonna beat me and cost me copious of time, torment + money in both labour to resolve and potential tow requirements; so bought a Kinchrome extendable claw with the intention of going fishing for the Nylon Lochness Monshta!

I soon realised that the area within the gear selector access was quite large, and the extendable claw could drop down about 20+ cms if I riggled the rod down into all the various crevices on both the left and right hand side of the gear shaft! After 10 minutes of gently probing around and engaging the claw blindly with no success, I was on the verge of calling it quits when I found another crevice and engaged the claw and finally got a bite!!

As I pulled up the extendable claw, this is what came up....(shitty i-phone pic)

To say I'm stoked is an understatement! Looks like commitment and patience to the cause paid off in the end!!

Thank phuk for that!

Cheers

Ben

[Duncan]

hahah well done!

I lost one from my navara about 50,000klm ago (same shifter setup), and Mark lost the one in his gtr race gearbox 4 years ago now. Absolutely no issue with it getting jammed anywhere in either case.

also....the bush is from r31 skyline/d21 navara and probably a bunch of other cars. It is about $5 from nissan. get yourself a new one if the old one was worn enough to come off!

[Huy]

Haha. Nicely done!

[TOPG34R]

Wow I thought I may have been alone in this situation so it's re-assuring to hear I am not; certainly amazing to hear that its caused no issues in either vehicles over variable years/gearbox setups!

If I saw ur message earlier I probably wouldn't have gone to the trouble I did however now that it's out I'm happy!

I'm only left wondering if re-filling the oil through the gear lever entry point (after draining) has placed the oil back in the gearbox where it should be!?

Thanks for the info & comments Duncan.

Cheers

Ben

hahah well done!

I lost one from my navara about 50,000klm ago (same shifter setup), and Mark lost the one in his gtr race gearbox 4 years ago now. Absolutely no issue with it getting jammed anywhere in either case.

also....the bush is from r31 skyline/d21 navara and probably a bunch of other cars. It is about $5 from nissan. get yourself a new one if the old one was worn enough to come off!

[Duncan]

No it didn't so I'm glad you asked!!!!

the shifter goes to the transfer case, it takes auto trans fluid, and only about 1l. to refill the gearbox you need to use the filler on the side, underneath the car. I understand the 34 gtr box does not take regular gear oil either so check that out first.....

[TOPG34R]

Shite, thanks for the clarity Duncan! I'm glad I thought I'd check prior.

So the transfer case has its own drain plug & filler?

Time to buy a low profile hydraulic jack and source some new transmission fluid and gearbox oil.

Thanks mate

Ben

No it didn't so I'm glad you asked!!!!

the shifter goes to the transfer case, it takes auto trans fluid, and only about 1l. to refill the gearbox you need to use the filler on the side, underneath the car. I understand the 34 gtr box does not take regular gear oil either so check that out first.....

[MrStabby]

These Getrags have non-metal synchros and use synthetic ATF instead of oil. Search here and you'll find the issues been covered a number of times.

[TOPG34R]

Thanks guys, as per RPM's recommendations I have now sourced the Castrol Transmax Z for both the transfer case and gearbox! Thankfully local Bursons had 2 x 4L in stock.

Can someone confirm how many Litres the 34 g/box needs - 4.5L? Did a search but have seen threads which state 4.1, 4.5 and even as little as 2L!

Cheers

Ben

[GDZ-14R]

Can someone confirm how many Litres the 34 g/box needs - 4.5L? Did a search but have seen threads which state 4.1, 4.5 and even as little as 2L!

Cheers

Ben

Hey Ben, from a new container of Transmax Z (the larger 4 or 5ltr??) i filled my box and transfer with a tiny amount to spare.

BTW, let me me know how you find the short shifter. The factory has such a long throw...

[TOPG34R]

Hey GDZ-14R,

That aligns with my recent re-fill of both transfer & gbox; ended up using 1 x 4 litre container and basically having one 4L container spare.

I was under the opinion at the time that the angle of the car on the jacks wasnt allowing a complete re-fill but I did attempt to lower the car into a neutral stance and it only took an extra 100ml without running out of the filler hole.

Mate the new C's shifter is awesome, definetely a 30% reduction in throw and a notchier more precise feel. It also looks purty in comparison to the factory plastic black. I must say the construction of the C's shifter is of better quality and design than the factory.

The only downside to it from my testing thus far is the heat (only slight) you can feel through the reverse trigger mechanism as a result of the entire shifter being metal; where the last reverse trigger was plastic and there was no heat transfer.

The only other trouble you will have is finding one as they are as rare as rocking horse pooh now! Mind you, there are a few alternatives but not sure about the quality.

Good luck with it & thanks for your response.

Cheers

Ben

[GDZ-14R]

That certainly is a good looking bit of kit, and the boot now looks like it is fitting tightly unlike the silly factory fitment. Good job mate!

[Swiper the Fox]

i loose a bush now at every event...they just mince up.

i take 5 spares in the tool kit to race meetings.

straight cut dogboxes and nylon bushes are not a good match.

[Duncan]

paul you need to get a brass or similar equivalent made up. more vibration/noise etc but who cares in race use

having said that some people kill lots of them with dog boxes and others kill none, so no doubt there is a trick to shifting I don't know