Downshifting Grinding (3rd to 2nd)
 

Alright,

In every single car I've ever driven that was a stick (from a 91' 1st gen Eclipse to an 88 Chevy work truck, to an 01' Trans-Am), I've NEVER had a problem downshifting from 3rd to 2nd, until this xB... When I first bought the car, it was perfect, no problems, etc - but about a month after owning it - it started griding everytime I tried shifting down into 2nd gear... Doesn't matter what gear I'm coming from, it always grinds into 2nd if I'm downshifting, and I do it any faster than about 10-15 seconds (literally)...

I'm going to take it to my dealership tomorrow and see what they have to say about it... Anyone else had this problem? Is this just another of the xB Tranny issues?

Thanks!

What RPM are you at when you're downshifting? You might have to double-clutch in order to get into second... I can't remember, I'd have to check. Double-clutching has become second nature to me...

you shouldnt have to double clutch in any gear. that is what synchros are for. i admit that i double clutch on downshifts just to make it smoother, but it should never be necessary unless your synchros are bad.

what rpm you are downshifting???

are you slamming the gear?

try to shake the gear while shifting. it will maybe synchro faster...

God, I'm happy I got an AUTO more and more! :P

i always double clutch. it's just faster than waiting for the synchro to sync up the layshaft and the axle. anyway, when you're track racing, u can't just wait for it to go into gear, you make sure it goes in the first time, everytime, otherwise you might be in it for a 1/10th of a second.

For now, try to rev-match when you downshift. Just push in the clutch and blip the throttle to raise it about 750-1k while shifting, then release clutch. Might take a lil practice.
But yeah, definitely take it to the dealer quick to at least document the problem.

It sounds like a bad synchro. Take it to the dealer and tell them to call you when it's fixed. :)

wow. i should have adressed this aswell
in my lava it does that same exact thing and it only used to be at high rpms but now it does it unless im going like 5 miles an hour ya know?....if you find out anything on what it might be let me know cause my lava does it ALL the time

I had this problem too, coming into 2nd gear from 1st or 3rd. Started off just being dificult, then noisy, then damned near impossible. Now I have a new transmission. It seems to be a fairly common problem so far.

I'm taking it in to the dealership tomorrow and will print this out and take it to give them some ideas...

Whenever I double-clutch, it doesn't grind, so it does sound like it's an issue with the synchro...

Lets hope all goes well - I'll be sure to let you guys know...

Thanks for the help!

Hey everyone - just thought I'd let you all know that they're replacing my tranny next wed... I'll be in a rental for a few days, but my baby will come back w/ a whole new tranny! Gotta love cooperative dealerships... No hassle and everything went flawless. Go Toyota Mall of GA!