John,

I dunno how new you are to Vanagons, so if you already took care of the
basics, ignore this.

Before looking at the tranny or the clutch itself, make sure it's not a
hydraulic problem:

         - Check the brake fluid level (hydraulic clutch shares the brake
reservoir, but clutch will run dry first).
         - Bleed clutch slave cylinder.
         - Check for leaks at clutch master and slave cylinders.

If all of this is in good shape, and you are getting full travel at the
clutch slave when the pedal is depressed, then I'd drain the transmission
and pour in a batch of redline (make sure you can get the filler open
before you open the drain!).

Failing all of that, it's likely to be either the clutch or the
transmission itself... and the *real* labor and expense can begin.

Tim

At 05:48 PM 2/20/2006 -0800, John Lavery wrote:
>Hello all!
>
>My Vanagon is making a grinding noise when shifted from 1st to 2nd
>gear, or sometimes from 2nd to 3rd.  I don't know exactly where the
>grinding is coming from, though I can feel the vibration through the
>shifter.
>
>Any ideas on what's going on? Thanks in advance.
>
>John