BEfore you jump conclusions Make sure you don't have a bad Clutch!

            Eric                   86-VW4x4
            vw4x4@fyi.net          72-240z
            Pittsburgh, PA USA     1936-Chrysler

On Thu, 27 Nov 1997, Aaron Robinson wrote:

> Well, my '85 transmission is gone. I was on one of my cross-state trips
> home from school last weekend when it happened....
>
> I was climbing a hill out in Eastern Washington, when I had to downshift
> to 3rd. Everything was normal except for the fact that it wouldn't go into
> gear. It felt like something was wrong. I tried to go back into 4th but it
> wouldn't go there either. By this time I was rolling along fairly slow, so
> I tried 2nd...it worked. So I coasted back into a town  a 1/2 mile back
> and
> checked it out.
>
> It shifted into 1st, 2nd and reverse, but was a bit harder to do than
> usual. 3rd and 4th were still impossible. The thing that I noticed most
> was that it felt like it was binding when it was in neutral. I could hear
> sound coming from the transmission when trying to roll it. There was also
> some resistance to moving it in neutral unless the clutch was in. Also
> when trying to move in 1st gear, there was a feeling of binding and then
> it would "break free" and move normally. It also wanted to move when I
> started it in neutral.
>
> What is everybody else's experience with rebuilding vs. finding a used one
> to put in? I'm not sure which route to go with ( I need the least
> expensive one).
>
> What years will fit in my '85?
>
> If anybody knows of an inexpensive on that I could buy, I'd love to hear
> from you! I've found an '85 used one at a junkyard for $450 and another
> for $650.
>
> How hard would they be to install myself?
>
> Any info or personal experiences would be appreciated!
>
> Aaron
>
> '85 vanagon 170,000 miles.
> Wanted: Inexpensive Transmission
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>  Aaron Robinson                    |  E-Mail:  arobinso@wsunix.wsu.edu
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