Cold, won't shift

But at 40 degrees? Never heard of such a thing. It can drop to 40 in the summer time. Seems like something else going on to me.

 

Hey guys a big thumbs up to those that recommended switching over to Redline MT90 for the manual transmission fluid!

I bought my truck a couple days ago as I mentioned and little did I know it would only shift easily when it was hot. I found out this the next morning when it was about 30 outside . Well yesterday it stopped going into gear altogether unless you rev'd it above 3k and man handled the shifter!

Last night I drained the old transmission fluid and transfer case. I filled them up with Redline MT90 which is synthetic too I might add. I also flushed my clutch master cylinder because that brake fluid was black! And a buddy suggested changing it.

No test drive over night I let it get nice and cold in the 20's over night. This morning I warmed the truck up to operating temp and drove off. It went into every gear slick as snot! I drove the truck to a few stops I had to make some city some highway. I shifted great all day, warm, cold, and hot.

Thanks!

 

It made a huge difference for me.

 

always drive/shift slower to start out with when it's cold out

also don't shifter higher than like 2500/3000 rmp for the first while

much easier on the tranny with the thicker oil

 

Im still having the problem in the mornings. I changed fluid out to Redline MT90. Almost seems worse than before. First and second gear are very hard to get into. Once it warms up(few miles down road) shifts flawlessly. Could it be a fluid level problem? I put the recommended in...

Thanks,
Trask

wow this is an old post! haha. REVIVE.

 

Usually when it's cold I let it "fall" into the gear when shifting, basically equivalent to rev matching. As the RPMs drop between shifts, just give it a little pressure and it'll drop into place when the tranny and engine speed sync up. Plus it's easier on the synchros

 

If your clutch master cylinder as well as slave cylinder fluid is black , its a sign of the internal seals wearing . Brake fluid in the clutch master also oxidizes over time .
Hows that shifter bushing ? A very common problem is the shifter bushing .
Marlin Crawler . Guys are saying this bushing is much stronger than the factory bushing . Also stands to reason that if your changing the bushing , you might as well change the transmission fluid and transfer case if 4X4 . It,s so much easier filling the transmission through the shifter hole and it only uses 2.3 quarts . This is going to save you from trying to use a flimsy pump underneath the truck .
https://www.marlincrawler.com/transmission/shifter-parts/heavy-duty-sockets

 

Thanks, Appreciated. Everything seems clear and in good shape. Ill just make a few slow and easy shifts in the mornings.

 

Do you let the truck warm up at all? or just jump in and go? I found letting it warm up for a few mins on a cold morning helps a great deal. Also just changed to the MT-90, first trip out WHAT a difference already. Going to try to change the front diff today, only thing left on fluids.

 

It is always a good idea to let your truck warm up in the morning regardless. I start mine up about 5 minutes before I leave every morning (or any time I start it after it has been sitting for a long period of time).

 

Yea ive never given myself that time in the morning unless my windows are frozen over. Ill have to make a mental note to give it 5-10 in the winter months

 

I dunno, there's a lot of info from the experts online saying anymore than 30 seconds is a waste. The old days, yeah carbs needed a few minutes to warm up. But with these modern engines it's just not necessary. At least for the longevity or benefit of the engine, the data just doesn't support the 'warming up for a few minutes' argument. Now, if you like your car toasty, more power to you. Go for it. Just isn't necessary for your engine well being. It'll warm up quicker and more efficiently just letting engine warm up as you drive 'mindfully' until operating temp is reached.

 

It isn't to warm the interior up, It's to let the fluids in the transmission and such get a chance to get moving and warm up.

 

In that case, anything more than 30 seconds is unnecessary.

 

I'm not sure if the tranny will warm up if it's just sitting. I always thought you had to get moving to get the gears moving and warm. Unless we are talking about residual heat from the engine or something

 

It does need to be moving to warm up the transmission fluid. It won't pump unless moving, if automatic, or won't splash unless moving, if manual.

 

OK seems I know nothing about the subject so I'll leave you all to argue this amongst yourselves

 

Old post, but at least I'm searching for answers right? Anyway, I am having the same trouble trying to shift into gears on cold days with my truck. Takes a lot of warming up for it to start shifting normally. Going to try and replace the transmission fluid (with synthetic), differentials and transfer case as I suspect it probably has never been done before on this truck. Crossing fingers and hoping it helps. I will update with results. Happy Halloween!

 

This is a strange problem I have ever yet to see even using 85/140 for years in my W-56 transmissions and transfer cases at such warm temperatures when I gets down to zero F for a few days things were a little stiff.

Then my clutch hydraulics and gear oil was fresh and shifter bushings done.

Might be a combination of all 3 making the cool weather shifting harder then normal.

Over the years I have seen a few times so much moisture in gear boxes they froze talk about hard shifting .

 

I bought my truck recently and on the first cold morning it wouldn’t shift either. I finally got it to go and went to work. The guy in my shop changed out my transmission fluid and clutch fluid with regular OEM fluids. Works perfectly now. There’s still some black sediment in my clutch fluid so I plan on using a turkey baster to suck it out from the top where it’s floating around and not let it get so low that it needs to be bled. But otherwise it’s a 1000% difference than initial driving