2nd gear

Today was day one of my life with a beck spyder. What a joy! I thought I came across this question in the forum in the past, but I could not find it again. Is shifting to 2nd gear without grinding a common problem? It seems that no matter what I do, I grind the gear a little when either going from 1st to 2nd, or from 3rd to 2nd. I wish I could be more specific, quite frankly, I can't even recall the type of transmission I have other than it is a 4 speed, volkwagen bus (like the porsche 914 engine). thanks!

You are actually nudging reverse gear/synchro when you get the grind going into second.
If you are getting all the other gear fairly easily then there is no problem with shifter adjustment. The shifting in Beck is like a close ratio shifter on a VW type 1 Beetle.
Personally I find that if there is someone in the passenger seat there is a tendancy to pull the leaver too much to the left, slightly touching reverse. The trick is not to pull it over too far when going into second. It has become second nature for me, since I drive my car a lot, however, there are still times whe I have brain fade and 1st and 2nd are a problem.
Some members on this forum will tell you to change the shifter to Brantwood or J-Mar (cable shift), but I feel that this is not necessary.
Just take your time shifting and remember that 2nd is just behind first, straight back... try to shift closer to the 4th side and not toward your leg (which is my problem sometimes). With some practice you should not hit reverse so often.


Have fun,

Heiko

Congrats Chad!

I've been living with my Beck since June. I had exactly the same thing happen to me at first. Heiko is right on in his explaination. You'll get used to it!

Enjoy,

Doug

This is the explaination I have been looking for. I look forward to my next opportunity to 'practice'. Can you all imagine getting your spyder one day, then take off for a vacation without it the next?

It should be pointed out that while a slight grinding may be a common complaint, it isn't normal and over the long haul, it does damage to the synchronizers and gears. Transmissions shouldn't grind.

I have found that with almost any car with a long shift linkage, it helps if at first, you resist the urge to drive hard and shift quickly. Rather, take the time to get the clutch completely released and shift with a smooth, gentle motion so that the linkage "finds" the next gear up or down. A few gentle sessions like this and you will very quickly learn "how your car shifts" and will be able to drive it quickly AND smoothly.

If the gears still grind after you feel comfortable in the car, the linkage needs adustment. That process has been well documented on this site many times (And I'm an expert at not doing it properly).

Finally, and I don't say this to increase you level of concern, in most cars with a manual transmission, the 2nd gear synchronizer is usually the first to go bad. 2nd is the gear that takes the most abuse on hard shifts, both down and up, and sometimes the result is premature failure.

Haven't had that problem with 2nd gear but I usally have to move my leg over to get into reverse.
Mine sometimes makes a scraping noise coming out of 2nd & reverse, like the linkage is rubing on something. Jerry