Blk003GT

a buddy of mine has an 03 v6 5spd. he said he was driving it and didn't push in the clutch all the way going into 3rd and he said it grinded bad and kinda got stuck?? and then he got it out and now only 1st 2nd 5th and rev. work. you can get it into 3rd and 4th but nothing happends it just revs dosen't engage. i'm thinking 3rd went out and took 4th with it what do you guys think. what tranny does it have? i know the 03 gt has he 3650 but i assume the v6 is different.

thanks

3.0Taurass

I don't see how third going out would effect fourth. Hmmmm

And the v6's have the T5

Blk003GT

i can't think of what else would case that. bending a fork but how would that cause 4th to go out too. i guess i'll empty the tranny fluid for him and see what comes out.

RyansQuick6

He's trashed at least a synchro, if not bent the hell out of 2 forks. He needs to get it rebuilt or replaced soon before it completely lets go.

Blk003GT

i was thinking synchro too but why would 4th go out also.

winner99

Im pretty sure 1-2, 3-4, 5-R, are together hence you kill one the other goes.

RyansQuick6

Fork damage

AmericanPowertrain

Your buddy has a broken shift fork. If it actually comes apart while the car is running down the road then the aluminum will disintegrate and coat the gears, making a rebuild very expensive. Replace the fork and if he has not gotten a firewall stabilizer and new cable linkage yet, have him contact me. Chances are he has a stretched cable or a flexing firewall that caused the clutch to drag and broke the fork.

Blk003GT

what should he do? does he need to have it rebuilt or just replace the fork. i'm not exactly sure what the fork does nor where it is?

AmericanPowertrain

The shift forks are inside the transmission and actuate the gear changes. When a shift fork fails or bends, the gears can no longer be moved in their normal engagement range, which causes all kinds of havoc. Anytime the clutch does not fully disengage when the engine is running, the internals of the transmission do not stop rotating, which means the forks are trying to move gears that are not being fully synchronized, which causes something called "fork drag". This is extremely stressful on the forks and the cheesy roll pins that Ford called for to hold the forks to the shift rails. If a fork actually breaks, where a part comes loose and circulates inside the gear case, the aluminum material can coke up the gears and cause some pretty ruinous conditions.

In short, bending or breaking a fork is no good and should be repaired before it becomes a crisis. Then the proper clutch or clutch actuator (available from American Powertrain can keep the problem from happening again.

I can't stress it enough: An improper cable linkage, a stretched cable, a point load cable adjuster or a thick cushion clutch are all cheap parts that can be replaced to save an expensive transmission from failure! Call us if you suspect you have any of these problems or want help with diagnosis.