Difficult to engage first and third gear with short shifter

[SteelBlueZR1]

I am new to my 3,500 mile ZR1 and wonder how common it is for the manual transmission gear selector to balk at going into first after stopping, letting clutch out, and then clutch in trying to engage 1st? i also notice it is tough during slower acceleration to get gear selector to go into 3rd gear smoothly?
The car's transmission fluid was just changed with GM Fluid and the fluid in the hydraulic clutch looks clean/clear and full. My ZR1 has a short shifter that may make the problem feel worse, given less leverage. I am able to get into reverse easily and shift smoothly when accelerating more briskly... Is anyone else's ZR1 experiencing this problem?

[sammy]

what shifter do you have ? if its a b and m others have had that problem . i would get ahold of bill boudreau 602 319 6575 . hes the best to help figure it out

[SteelBlueZR1]

what shifter do you have ? if its a b and m others have had that problem . i would get ahold of bill boudreau 602 319 6575 . hes the best to help figure it out

I recently bought the car and am unsure of the brand of short throw shifter, but the car has no reverse lockout and the shift effort is much greater than an OEM shifter. This plus super tight shift pattern points to a B&M shifter from what I've read.
Is it possible to adjust shift engagement?

[QB93Z]

Hi Bert It is possible that the problem is with your clutch and not the shifter. I recommend looking at Bill Boudreau's website, ZR51 Performance:

http://www.zfdoc.com/

Specifically, in the FAQ section there is a discussion of your exact symptoms:

http://www.zfdoc.com/faq.htm

Good luck, let me know if you need any help.

Jim

[GOLDCYLON]

Hi Bert It is possible that the problem is with your clutch and not the shifter. I recommend looking at Bill Boudreau's website, ZR51 Performance:

http://www.zfdoc.com/

Specifically, in the FAQ section there is a discussion of your exact symptoms:

http://www.zfdoc.com/faq.htm

Good luck, let me know if you need any help.

Jim


Concur

[SteelBlueZR1]

UPDATE: Well my hard shift condition is fixed. Shifts smooth as butter now; turns out shoddy short throw shifter install by previous owner was problem. I removed console trim and found gear shift covered in filthy heavy grease... Cleaned all grease; sprayed WD 40 and regreased shift mechanism with synthetic wheel bearing grease. Then I found every nut was loose and tightened. Then realized leather shift boot was bunched up in shifter knob. Then knob loose so put Teflon tape on threads and tightened down firm and reinstalled wedge. Turns out the trans noise and tough shift were caused by these issues. What a difference! Thanks everyone for your help! See Wazoo members at Jims this Sunday.

[VetteMed]

Glad to hear it was a relatively easy fix!

[SteelBlueZR1]

Thanks for the kind words. This experience should remind us to always check out the obvious.