On the way home from work on Friday my van suddenly became stuck in third gear. I tried to get it out of third but it would not move. I drove home in third and to my surprise came out of third gear when I had to stop at a light. Later it became stuck in third again and has been there ever since. Searching the archives seems to indicate a new transaxle is in my immediate future. I was hoping that I could get few questions answered about this process. 1) I'm 99% sure I need a new transaxle. I would hate to replace this if it was something simple. Could it be anything else? I have checked the shift linkage and it is not binding anywhere. 2) This is a long shot but is there anyway that I can get it working for a short period of time so I can get it to a repair shop. Add oil? A well placed whack with a hammer? 3) While replacing the transaxle what else should be done? Here is my list. Clutch, rear seal, throw-out bearing. Anything else? CV joints need to be replace and this seems like a good time. 4) Can I do this myself. The procedure looks straight forward but I'm not sure if I have the tools. There are a few things that I'm worried about. How high do you need to raise the van to remove the transaxle. Given a standard floor jack is it possible to lift and position the new transaxle? Any other specialize tools? Any help is appreciated. Thanks, Ron Maxseiner 1985 GL Van 'Stinky Pete' |
Please note - During the past 17 years of operation, several gigabytes of
Vanagon mail messages have been archived. Searching the entire collection
will take up to five minutes to complete. Please be patient!
Return to the archives @ gerry.vanagon.com
The vanagon mailing list archives are copyright (c) 1994-2011, and may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the list administrators. Posting messages to this mailing list grants a license to the mailing list administrators to reproduce the message in a compilation, either printed or electronic. All compilations will be not-for-profit, with any excess proceeds going to the Vanagon mailing list.
Any profits from list compilations go exclusively towards the management and operation of the Vanagon mailing list and vanagon mailing list web site.