Reverse Gear Caterham 6 speed gear box.

[OrangeMax]

Greetings,

I wondering if there is some "Trick" to getting the Caterham 6 speed box out of reverse gear. Here is the situation. I put the car into reverse easy enough, but when I go to select 1st gear, the box seems stuck not in reverse and not in 1st and not really in neutral. If I grab the shifter with both hands I can shake it back into neutral and then I can shift it into first gear.

Is there something I'm not doing correctly? Does the shifter need to be lifted or depressed prior to shifting out of reverse? Is some type of adjustment required?

Thanks for any insight.

Regards,

MAX

[ScottR400D]

Not in my case. Press down to go into reverse and just pull back and the lever will pop up into the gate. 
 

 

[OrangeMax]

Unfortunately, mine is not doing that. When I pull it back, it doesn't pop up. It's not quite in the gear, yet not completely free.

MAX

[John Vine]

Agree with #2.

For starters, try giving your gearstick a thorough clean and re-grease (but don't grease the spherical bearing).  You could also replace the nylon saddle.

Have a look at this Guide.

JV

[OrangeMax]

Greetings John,

Thank you for the Guide. I followed the recommendations, cleaned and greased the shifter. It's working far better now. I'm happy!  

There is one curious item though. When I removed the shifter I noticed that the saddle you referred to (Ford PN 1522783) was missing from my shifter. I'm not sure the saddle would work in my application as the shaft that the saddle fits on is .375 inch in diameter and the fork spacing on the shifter is +.375 inch. (see photo). Did they make a version of this transmission that did not use the saddle?

[John Vine]

Did they make a version of this transmission that did not use the saddle?

I don't know but I very much doubt it.  I'd imagine that the potential for wear would be considerable without a saddle.

This is mine for comparison:

If the dimensions of the fork and selector rod match, it sounds to me as though you might have a non-standard gear lever (shifter).  Do you know where it came from?  Can you post up a photo of it?

JV

[OrangeMax]

It's off the transmission that was supplied with the car. The previous owner, (actually a Caterham dealer) isn't really forthcoming about where the parts for this Caterham originated from.

I'll be taking the shifter out again when the saddle arrives. When that happens, pictures will follow. It will be interesting how all the parts fit up. I agree with you that wear with the current setup will be an issue. I'm curious if you know the outside width of the shifter fork? 

MAX

[John Vine]

I'm curious if you know the outside width of the shifter fork? 

I don't, I'm afraid.  And I'm away from my 7 at the moment, so can't have a look. 

You could try Quaife, who make the Quickshift for CC:

+44 (0)1732 741144
P/N QGE11Z003
info@quaife.co.uk

Or CC Parts Dept.on +44 (0) 1322 625801

JV

[OrangeMax]

Just an update on my curious 6 Speed.  It does use the factory shifter made by Quaif.

The former owner contacted me after reading my questions here on this forum. He informed me he purchased it from Raceline. Apparently Raceline was not clear of its origin to him. He just assumed the oversized shaft was a race modification. According to him, his customers usually require the refit of the saddle every 2 years or so if they track the car because the saddle becomes worn out. He thought the oversized shaft was the way someone created to prevent this failure. He also had trouble with getting the car out of reverse, but never thought to grease it up.

He recommended I contact Road Race Transmissions, as perhaps they could shed some light on its unique reverse feature.

MAX

[7 wonders of the world]

Quickshift is made by Quaife

Uprated sintered saddles (and many other unique 6 speed parts) available for Steve @ SPC / Tracsport

https://www.tracsport.com/