Manual box crunches into 2nd

[Perun]

Hi all,

I noticed an old thread regarding the gearbox crunching during gear shifts. My 77tsi crunches when going into 2nd but only when hot - no issues when cold. VW have looked at it but couldn't replicate it.

I did find an older thread regarding this but there was no resolution to the issue, so I was wondering has anyone had any success in the last 2 years.

[AdamD]

If you don't rush the shift, does it go in smoothly? IE does it only happen if you (fairly rapidly) shift from 1st to 2nd? If you go via neutral, does it help? Does it only happen on the 1st->2nd change, or sometimes on other changes as well? Only at certain road speeds?

It could be any number of things (worn synchros, chipped gear, clutch master cylinder pressure, etc etc). It's fair to say that the problem isn't common.

[Perun]

Quick shift, crunches. Slow shift, shudders at the very least.

Never tried double clutching it.

Only 1 > 2 and 3 > 2, no other gears.

Generally between 1500 and 4000 rpm.

I just wanted to find out if other people had issues with it so I can tell VW what to look at. It's not a huge issue, but the last thing I want is for the 'box to let go at some point and leave me stranded.

[AdamD]

It hasn't been reported before, so I suspect you're not going to have much to go on. Having said that, based on what you're describing, I'd be very surprised if the box leaves you stranded.

[a239947]

Hi all,

I noticed an old thread regarding the gearbox crunching during gear shifts. My 77tsi crunches when going into 2nd but only when hot - no issues when cold. VW have looked at it but couldn't replicate it.

I did find an older thread regarding this but there was no resolution to the issue, so I was wondering has anyone had any success in the last 2 years.

sounds like worn syncros. try to be a little more gentle when putting it in second.

When you put your foot on the clutch the gear in the box spin up and the syncros use cone shaped spurs to align with each other allowing the gears to slide over each other. If you have a bit of an aggressive style with your shifting or get a bit lazy with your clutch you can wear these cone shapes out. They will need a little more time to align correctly before shifting. My car has the same issues after it suffered a clutch failure at the hands of and idiot!
It just means I need to be a little more gentle and let the box do its thing and not rush it.
This is usually a general wear thing to do with your driving style and probably wont be covered by warranty unless its really new.

Also the workshop probably couldn't replicate it because they are looking for it and are doing slow deliberate shifts which stops it from happening. Just be gentle with it and it should be fine. Be aware though, anything like a short shifter will make it feel worse because you have a more solid connection, this is the issue I have now and need to get used to.

I know it doesn't really help your issue but unless some guru has a known cause this is all I can think is causing you issue

[Idle]

Agree with worn synchro on 2nd as the most likely cause — shift slowly or double de-clutch and it won't get any worse.

[Perun]

The car has covered 24,000km over the past 3 years so it's pretty new. It would still crunch even if I shift real slow - no issues going in, just a crunch.

I've been driving manuals all my life and have never had this issue with any of my Fords, even the ones with 100,000km+ on the clock. In addition, I have driven dozens of different cars - some old, some new, some with temperamental gearboxes, and cannot recall this happening with any of them.

It's currently at VW Denlo (they were finally able to replicate the issue after we had a bit of a stern chat) waiting for parts/new gearbox. This is pretty disappointing considering VW is supposed to be a premium brand - you would hope the quality would be at least on par with Korean/Aussie cars, if not quite up to Jap levels. Pretty bitter experience in all honesty and any enthusiasm I had for the brand is pretty much gone.

In the meantime VW ended up getting me a Europcar Golf with DSG and only 21,000km - oh my sweet Lord, what a POS! How do people live with these DSGs?

[tonymy01]

So your clutch was fully disengaging when pressing? This would cause it to crunch a bit also. Anyway, never mind, you are getting a new box and presumably they will adjust or replace the clutch also.