Sticky shifter in 5speed manual transmission

[taikowaza]

Hi 4runner enthusiasts, I have a 1992 SR5 4x4 4Runner, manual transmission, lifted with fat tires. I love this 4runner and apart from having new brakes and a new front axle put in this year, everything is very great with this beautiful truck. My only question today concerns the transmission. I am having trouble gliding the stick into gear, it requires a little bit of finessing in order to get the gear to engage into 1st and second gear. (3rd and 4th is no problem)
thanks in advance for your advice!
best
TW

 

[fourwd1]

Sounds like normal wear, how many miles?

My 84 w/165K is a b%^ to get into Rev most of the time.

 

[taikowaza]

Thanks for your reply!
You may be right...there are a lot of miles on this baby.
She is almost at 250K miles. The engine has been rebuilt however and she looks to be in fantastic shape, she was a total bargain and I feel really lucky.
(with hitch, roofrack, chains, beautiful interior, engine looks like a million bucks). It is only the stickshift that really requires a special touch, took me a while to learn how to drive correctly without stalling. I am wondering if there is something that I can do to 'lubricate' the stickshift as it were...or if she requires a total new transmission? I would like to avoid this if at all possible...just got a letter saying that I owe more taxes, ouch!
any advice is very appreciated!
Oh yeah, just 2 more small things- the vent fan lever (low-high fan speed) is stuck on the 'high' position, any way to get that moving again?
-the rear (tailgate) window motor is really slow...is that a big job to change out?
That's it! HOpe to hear from more early '90s 4runner owners...in my opinion the design of our 4runner is much nicer than the new ones!
-TW

 

[yotatilla]

As for the tranny, there is a rubber bushing that I read about in a magazine. When it comes to reverse, the toyota tranny has no synchros in reverse, so when you put it into reverse it gets tough. Mine used to do that, until I figured out the trick. Put it into 4th gear and then into reverse, and there is no tightness or grinding. Just slips in and out. In the July issue of 4Wheeler Magazine the transmission bushing is discussed. If you can get a hold of the issure, with the yellow blazer on the cover, it goes over a lot of Toyota things. My transmission is also a little warn, but if you try to put the shifter in 4th before 1st or reverse, it makes everything easier. Good luck, Sam.

 

[HiluxSurfBMX]

Thats good advice! My reverse has always ground while going in but I thought it was the oil that the previous owner had in it. It was as thick as engine oil! :wtf:

 

[Jim_Chow]

Replace the rubber bushing. Mine was pulverised into lots of pieces at 130K mi, difficult shifting into first.

Also, make sure you're using a manual tranny fluid in the tranny and xfer case. Gear oil doesn't work well (too slippery for the synchros to mesh, meaning difficult to shift). A number of users (incl. myself) like the Redline MT-90 or MTL (MT90 is a bit thicker, better for warm weather). I use it since i live in So. AZ, so the extreme conditions break down conventional oils quicker (111F yesterday). I originally ran normal mineral-based manual tranny fluid about 25K mi in mostly mild conditions (pacific northwest, So. CA along the coast), and it looked hosed (cloudy color). I then ran the Redline MT90 for 30K mi, mostly in Tucson, and it still looked good even after 30K mi (will go 40K mi next time). The stick stays a lot cooler, esp. on extended drives. 4Crawler's website has info on fluids.

 

[celica]

To fix your back window problems it is easiest to lube it up with wheel bearing grease every spring (use the lithium) you need to lube it on the main gears. pop off the insde carpet, remove the metal access panel and raise the window with the endgate down. You can do this by tripping the sensor for the door (close the ltaches with a screwdriver. Tyen raise and lower the window as need and use lots of grease to speed it up. It always gets lots of water in there. replacing the rubber weather stipping will help as well.