transmission stuck in reverse..

[iKhanh]

didn't mean to mislead! just wanna say that what i thought was a stuck in reverse problem was just air in my lines. sorry!



i wanna know who else has had this problem and what their remedy was. i read up on it a bit, but i want to hear people's personal stories about it. i read http://www.miata.net/garage/stuckreverse.html that, watched http://mx5unleashed.com/tech/miata-transmission.html this, and read on some other forums. my main questions are: how difficult is it to get access to that reverse light plug and pry the switch back, how reliable is this fix, and if getting this http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mazda-Miata-MX5-Reverse-Back-up-Switch-5-Speed-/390433657043?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr&hash=item5ae7a8d0d3 switch will be the only thing i need to do in order to get my Miata back into running condition?

i have a slight build thread going on my Tumblr, but i'll copy and paste what i posted last night if that sheds any more light on it for you guys: http://ikhanh.tumblr.com/post/29610082969/so-i-think-i-made-the-miata-out-of-commission-for

[ctrench]

ive delt with this before on a 95... i jacked the driver side of the car up unscrewed the reverse switch on the driver side of the trans, stuck a stubby flathead screwdriver in there and just went to town (prying and pushing on anything the screwdriver touched) about 5 min later, it popped into neutral and it was all good!!

[WASABI]

I didn't have the car stuck in reverse, but more than a few times, my reverse lights, wouldn't go on, so I did this inexpensive fix. It was pretty easy if I remember correctly, as I didn't have any trouble getting the old one out. The only tight spot was hooking up the two wires, but, you don't have to put them on in a specific order, just make sure they are connected. That was a blind connection, as it requires you to reach up and do it by feel. Good luck.

-Cheers,

Jim

[iKhanh]

is it as easy as you guys make it sound? thanks for the thoughts though.

[ctrench]

it truely is as easy as it sounds... the part that takes the longest is jacking the car up and getting the switch off the side of the trans

[3MiataFamily]

yes..it IS that easy...

Buddy did not believe me when he had the problem and i told him the fix...that was 2 years ago

[LOL]

I battled this for a while on my old '90. The new reverse light switch does NOT fix it. I wouldn't waste my money on that. The true fix is tearing the trans apart and replacing some detents in the shift shaft. Your best option is to buy a trans from a newer car. That was my solution.

[Rocketman]

I know it's a different topic but near the subject anyway,
Just attempting to change the transmission/ rear gear fluid on my 91 M was bad enough....
None of the plugs would budge. you could get the drain plug out but the fill plug was
so high up on the driver side trans housing it was near impossible to even get a hand in there.
Rear end fill plug was already rounded from prior attempts at changing it.

I had the car jacked up pretty good and still had the bottom of the car mear inches from my
face while trying to wrench the plug loose. Lost the battle and took it to the shop.
They charged me $70 to replace both trans fluid and rear gear with Red line GL5, 75 W 90
But I got new plugs out of the deal with anti seize on the threads...
Well worth it for me.





I battled this for a while on my old '90. The new reverse light switch does NOT fix it. I wouldn't waste my money on that. The true fix is tearing the trans apart and replacing some detents in the shift shaft. Your best option is to buy a trans from a newer car. That was my solution.

[iKhanh]

so i just tried my hand at fixing this. i don't know if you guys were able to drive it forwards at all like i was, but i was able to put it into 1st, barely lift off the clutch and put it into my garage. clutch is to the floor, and it still wants to move forward. so with my brakes applied so i don't move, the engine stalls out, and i'm able to move the lever out of 1st into Neutral. i didn't try Reverse yet. but i jacked the car up, got that pesky plug out, and was fishing around with my stubby screwdriver to try and move the reverse detent back, but here's the weird thing: it doesn't seem like I need to. probably because my shifter is actually in neutral already. but the thing is is like, earlier when i driving it into my garage, it didn't want to be taken out of 1st gear until it stalled out. should i maybe engage reverse, and then go beneath the transmission and move the detent back?

or is it an entirely different problem now? it seems as though i can drive it fine, but the clutch needs to be inspected or something. i don't know. here's my symptoms. i barely have to, or not even at all, lift my foot off the clutch in order for it to touch the flywheel. it moves even when my clutch pedal is to the floor. i haven't tried shifting it into other gears yet (i.e. 2nd through 5th) but i don't know how i would even be able to if it doesn't want to move out of 1st unless it has stalled. any suggestions or enlightening ideas?

[iKhanh]

I battled this for a while on my old '90. The new reverse light switch does NOT fix it. I wouldn't waste my money on that. The true fix is tearing the trans apart and replacing some detents in the shift shaft. Your best option is to buy a trans from a newer car. That was my solution.

oh yeah. i read about that. do i have to go to the Mazda dealership for that? and do you think it's possible to do it myself? i'm not a super great mechanic, but i'm sure with proper instructions i could get it done.

i don't wanna have to get a newer transmission, but if i do, which ones do you recommend? i think that all the 5spd ones are the same from 90-05, with the exception of the final drive ratio i think.

and could you tell me why the newer reverse light switch plug thing doesn't fix it?

[ctrench]

so i just tried my hand at fixing this. i don't know if you guys were able to drive it forwards at all like i was, but i was able to put it into 1st, barely lift off the clutch and put it into my garage. clutch is to the floor, and it still wants to move forward. so with my brakes applied so i don't move, the engine stalls out, and i'm able to move the lever out of 1st into Neutral. i didn't try Reverse yet. but i jacked the car up, got that pesky plug out, and was fishing around with my stubby screwdriver to try and move the reverse detent back, but here's the weird thing: it doesn't seem like I need to. probably because my shifter is actually in neutral already. but the thing is is like, earlier when i driving it into my garage, it didn't want to be taken out of 1st gear until it stalled out. should i maybe engage reverse, and then go beneath the transmission and move the detent back?

or is it an entirely different problem now? it seems as though i can drive it fine, but the clutch needs to be inspected or something. i don't know. here's my symptoms. i barely have to, or not even at all, lift my foot off the clutch in order for it to touch the flywheel. it moves even when my clutch pedal is to the floor. i haven't tried shifting it into other gears yet (i.e. 2nd through 5th) but i don't know how i would even be able to if it doesn't want to move out of 1st unless it has stalled. any suggestions or enlightening ideas?

now that your saying it goes into first, i think its a different problem... ive only fixed it when it was stuck in reverse, but iirc being stuck in another gear or not coming out of a certain gear is a different story

[iKhanh]

yeah if i'm in 1st, it'll probably want to stay in that gear until i let the engine stall; same with Reverse though. right now my car is jacked up with the lever in Neutral. have any idea what it might be though? i just hope i don't need to replace anything.

[iKhanh]

i just took two videos of what's going on. i guess i kinda jumped the gun thinking it was the "stuck in reverse" issue, though in my defense, sometimes it is. but only maybe because the car is already moving and the gears are meshed together and turning. when the videos finish uploading i'll post them here and kind of try to describe what's going on.

[LOL]

If you want to fix the transmission I would suggest staying away from that, it could end up costing you over $1000. Just buy another transmission. They can be had for under $150, I bought mine from a 1992 for $70. Use any 5 speed as long as its from a '92 and up to be safe.

[iKhanh]

god damn it, i am so sorry guys, i think i jumped the gun. i got so scared that my transmission was stuck in reverse because i read about it a while ago, but wasn't thinking because i was like, in that panic mode. i can't pull the gears out even with the clutch depressed because the gears are meshed and rotating with eachother. all it was is i think i got air in my system some how. so now, i think i'm gonna try bleeding it and what not... or maybe even replacing the whole slave cylinder. never dealt the the clutch systems before so anyone got advice on performing maintenance on it? lol i'm gonna read about it more tonight though. i've only bled brakes once before, but i kinda forget how to do it.. but doesn't sound that much different.. unless i'm totally wrong ha. thanks for all the input guys.

[iRoadster]

Just in case you or anyone else has the stuck in reverse problem.


http://youtu.be/cdgzilEXQL8