2001 PT Cruiser with a 2.4 L 4 cylinder engine. Has one of the 5 speed PT manual transmissions .
Question: I have a standard, 5-speed transmission and cannot shift into reverse gear; what could be the problem(s)?
Possibilities: Without being able to examine the car myself, I can only make suggestions. The bottom line in any situation like this is that an experienced and honest technician has to look at it. No realistic diagnosis can be made in an email answer any better than a doctor can diagnose why you have a stomach ache over the phone.
Before we determine if it is inside your transmission, lets check some external components and adjustments first:
1. Does the clutch pedal still start to engage at the same pedal height as when it went into reverse? If not, this may be a sign that your clutch may need adjusting or it may need to be replace.
2. Are you at a full stop?
3. Will it go into reverse when the engine is off?
4. It the shifter sloppy and somewhat inaccurate or tight and solid?
5. Is it harder to go into reverse cold? Is your climate cold? Possible wrong viscosicty fluid.
6. Does it grind when attempting to or while it goes into reverse?
Once these questions are answered then we can start to formulate a strategy for repair. Unless you have high mileage or have abused the car, the problem is probably an external issue. This is where a competent transmission shop can be helpful. A trained specialist can locate the problem fast and determine if you have an internal transmission problem or an external problem.
Should the problem be inside the transmission, you will have to make a big decision on what avenue is best to take. Generally speaking, most transmission repair shops are not well setup to fix standard transmissions. Most of them attempt to and many have success, but the price can be astronomical if you need many parts to produce a quality repair.
This is the time to think of a low mileage replacement transmission. For a fraction of what a quality repair will cost you, a low mileage used transmission that has been pre tested can be purchased for a fraction of the cost to make the repairs to your unit and provide real value and confidence. If you can get ahold of a used transmission with in the neighborhood of 40,000 miles on it, you have yourself a bargain.
Providing solid realistic answers to your questions is one of our strong points. Call GotTransmissions.com @ 866-320-1182 for qualified answers to your questions. The goal is to help solve your problem. If that requires a replacement transmission we can help too. Our transmissions for sale far exceed the expectations of our customers, which is why we have been outperforming the competition for years. Enjoy our blog, we may have more valuable and interesting information for you.
