[sorny]

I've got an 87 Daytona Shelby Z that my brother sold to me last year. I did a ton of work and got it running but when I jumped in for my first drive I couldn't get it to go into gear. When I pushed the clutch in and tried to put it in gear (with the engine running) it would just grind. I could turn it off and it would go in any gear just fine. If I left it in a gear and tried to start the car it would pull foward (or backward if in reverse) as the engine cranked. So the transmission was WORKING, kinda. I finally got aggrevated and just jammed it in 5th as hard as I could with the clutch pushed in and the engine running. It made some grinding sounds as it went in then idled in 5th like it was in neutral. I let out the clutch and instead of dying it just idled. I tried to get it out of 5th and it was stuck, hard. I pulled with both hands and couldn't get it out of gear.

What could it be? Tranny? Clutch? Pressure plate? All of it? I am afraid since I jammed it in 5th that I tore out the trans. It's an A520 because the 555 went out and my brother got a good deal on a 520 so went with it instead a few years ago. I appreciate any help very much!

 

[jscott0624]

In my opinion, I would have stopped just before I jammed it into a gear. Will it come out when it is shut off? I see this condition almost everyday at my job. Hopefully you might be able to just pull the transmission out replace the clutch. When I see this problem, its always the clutch. If the transmission does eventually come out, see if the selector shaft moves through all the gears without a great amount of effort. If it does, stick a clutch assembly in it and have fun!:thumb:

 

[tryingbe]

Either way you'll have to pull the transmission. Get started.

 

[Timmay2]

Trans was already torn, you just finished it off.

Chances are youre going to pull it out and take off the cables and the shift selector on top wont move at all.Be lucky it didnt happen while driving, an old one i had actually froze in 5th while driving... had to drive it home in 5th gear ONLY. Talk about a clutch that was smoldering smoke down the road by the time i got home.

 

[sorny]

In my opinion, I would have stopped just before I jammed it into a gear.

I normally leave that part out when I tell people about it because I know it was completely stupid. Normally I am a pretty calm guy and will just walk away when something is aggrevating me but I guess it caught me in a bad mood. Anyways, to answer your question, it will not come out when the car is off either.


I am actually HOPING I can just pull the tranny and find a clutch broken in half or something. I would rather buy a clutch than a whole tranny. When I get the tranny out thouugh, how will I know if it is the clutch or not? I sure would hate to pull it, assume its the clutch and buy one for an A520 and then it still be the tranny. If I gotta replace the tranny I am going to try to get a 555 or 568 while I am at it. Probably have to sell one of my street bikes to finance this haha.

 

[jscott0624]

Since it wont come out when the car is off, most likely you have internal damage. That is of course your shifting linkage is found to be ok. Several things could go go wrong to cause a transmission to stick into gear. If you can find another transmission to put in there, that might be your cheapest solution. To see if the clutch is bad, look at the diaphram spring for the pressure plate. Look at the "fingers" of the spring. Are any of them broken? Are any of them not level with the others? Look at the friction surface. Any cracks? Now onto the friction disc. There is a measurement you can do to determine if the disc is worn. But if you're going to have the trans out, just replace it. Along with your throw-out bearing. Not sure what else to add to this. Good luck!

 

[4Daytonas]

Im guessing you stripped 5th gear and jammed the syncro assembly.you can pull the cover off and repair it without pulling the trans.in fact you can repair all the gears in the trans without removing it from the car.they all come out from the rear.Now back to the cause ,you definitely have a clutch release problem.check cable to see if throw out arm moves .if so then check the adjuster under the dash.If you don't find why the clutch isn't releasing then you will probably have to pull the trans .

 

[sorny]

Thanks guys. Looks like I am pulling it either way I know. Probably plan on buying a trans but will hold off until I get it pulled. I think the problem with the clutch originally was that the car has sat w/o even being started, let alone driven, for about 3 years or so, give or take a year. Clutch may have been frozen up. I checked for the cable to make sure it had enough pull when the pedal was pushed in and it looked like it moved quite a bit.

Would it be more economical or just buy a used trans at $200-300 or try to fix 5th gear?

 

[jim34]

you might have just broken the shift fork on 5th gear but thats not to say you dont have some type of clutch issue also. fifth gear is right behind the steel cover where the oil plug is.

 

[sorny]

you might have just broken the shift fork on 5th gear but thats not to say you dont have some type of clutch issue also. fifth gear is right behind the steel cover where the oil plug is.

Can I still get tranny parts for it if it is just a shift fork or something?

 

[jim34]

Im sure you can find them, theres lots of guys on this site who keep a good supply of parts once you find out whats wrong or the junkyards dont usually charge much for old dodge parts, and your local trans parts supply can probobly help out too but I have no idea if mopar still has anything in stock for the 520-555

 

[Low Impedance]

my A555 did basically this exact same thing

 

[SpeedyEd]

I don't know what happened inside your trans but I think your clutch disc stuck to the flywheel. Moisture will form a rust bond that is strong enough to drive the car with the clutch pedal depressed. You said the car sat for awhile that can do it.
The next time try the old timer trick. Make a clutch pedal depressor (a 2x4 between the steering wheel & the pedal) & leave it in for 3 or 4 days. The disc usually will release by then.
I didn't believe it but it worked on my '77 Ramcharger.
SpeedyEd