shift rod clamp bolt 86 jetta

I want to adjust the gear shift on an '86 jetta and the Bently manual says to loosen the shift rod clamp bolt in order to do this. The manual has a picture of the bolt but I can't tell from the picture exactly where it is located. Do I have to go under the car or can I access it from above the engine?

The car has been sitting for a year and now I can't shift into reverse. Also the car has a tough time revving above 2000 rpm when in neutral. Am I looking at bigger problems here than just adjusting the shifting?

Thanks in advance for any assistance.

Reply to
shgroup357
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Reply to
Regal53

Am I able to access the shift rod clamp bolt without putting the car on ramps?

The car was running fine when I stopped driving about a year ago. It has enough oil. What I'm afraid of is that some type of engine seal dried out. I started it a couple of times while it was sitting but probably not enough.

Thanks aga> Yes sir the bolt is under the car by the steering rack. Put new spark plugs

Reply to
shgroup357

Unlikely, unless you can find a "dip" in the yard, or park the car with one wheel up on a curb. The shift rod clamp is right in the middle of the car, behind the engine, down by the exhaust pipe. You'll need to get underneath the car to access it.

If it shifted a year ago, but doesn't now, I wouldn't mess with the shift rod clamp. It can be finicky to adjust and there's no reason it should have changed from a year ago.

I'd check the shift bushings first. They have a tendency to fall apart over time which can make shifting difficult at best. You can buy a whole kit of new bushings for around $10-20 or so, the majority of which can be replaced from the engine compartment. (Though the main bushing for the shift rod is a bit more work from under the car). Do the easy ones first and see if it improves anything.

I also assume you have checked for obstructions like a squirrel, mouse nest, or a stick or something? :)

Check the oil and gas, replace the spark plugs, and put in a new air filter.

I thought I heard something once about spraying some kind of oil into the spark plug holes and let it sit a bit before starting the car up. It's supposed to help if the piston rings have rusted to the cylinder walls. Unfortunately, I have no idea what type of oil is recommended.

The car will probably start and run rough for a bit since the fuel pressures and whatnot have probably bled off. Also, the gas itself may not be in the greatest shape after sitting for a year.

Good luck!

Anthony

Reply to
HerHusband

Maybe not. Try driving the car with either side wheels up on a sidewalk, that maybe enough room. It looks like you need to replace the shifter's bushings, come in a kit, available at eBay for cheap.

Reply to
Regal53

Thanks for the advice. The reason I was thinking of adjusting the shifter is because it doesn't seem to have the "cassette" width clearance suggested in posts on shifter adjustment but it didn't seem to me that this could have gone bad just by sitting.

Any one know how many bushings I can access from the engine compartment without lifting the car up and removing the exhaust down pipe? Are the bushings just the plastic cylinderical objects? My Bentley manual only has one object labeled as a bushing in the shift linkage diagram though several objects are unlabeled.

Thanks again in advance.

Regal53 wrote:

Reply to
shgroup357

Start with the bushings. Cheap and easy to do, and it'll make the shifting tighter even if you have to make adjustments later.

It has been a while since I have changed the bushings, but I think all of them can be changed from above except the big one on the main shift rod. A screwdriver and a pair of pliers are about the only tools you should need. I "think" there's about 6 bushings in the engine compartment, but that's just a guess.

There are hard plastic bushings on the linkage segments that slip through and held with a circlip.

And there are soft rubbery rings that fit over the balls of the ball and socket segments of the linkage.

Then there's a large stiff rubber bushing for the main shift rod.

I think there may be a couple of bushings near the gear shift itself, but I haven't ever bothered with any of those. The few in the engine compartment are usually the first to go due to oil leakage and engine heat.

In any case, the whole assortment is usually available as a complete kit for around $10-20 or so. Mine always come in a little plastic bag.

On your 86 Jetta, you may also have a short plastic linkage segment (about

4" long?), just above the transmission. They seem to get brittle with time too, so the odds are the locking clips will break when you try to remove it to install the new bushings. They usually only cost a dollar or two, so I'd pick up a new one of those while you're at it.

Good luck!

Anthony

Reply to
HerHusband

This depends very heavily on your driving environment. On all my ancient A1s, the boot on the bottom side of the shifter inevitably fell apart due to road slop -- i.e. salt -- on the road. Once that happens, every bit of grime in the world gets into that bushing on the main shift linkage. That can't be this case, of course, since the car's been sitting for a year.

A
Reply to
Andrew Sullivan

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