Stuck in Gear

[Oregon]

First of all hello again. So down to business. I have a 1989 Ram 50 manual 5sp 2l 2WD. It was loaned out to my dad while he was fixing his silverado and he managed to get it completely stuck in fifth gear. Unfortunately i do not have any more information about it than that at the moment (He was not too clear with the details) but i can list the current state that the truck is in. (Note that i have done none of this work so i will need to check it out to see how it behaves) The shifting lever was removed i am guessing to make sure that nothing broke off, it looks okay to me but i will be uploading pictures for review tomorrow just in case. Also the drive shaft is removed and in the bed because we had to transport it closer so that i can start beating away at it. Tomorrow i am going to start a thorough inspection of how everything feels (Reattach the shift lever and see how it behaves) and pop under to see if anything obvious needs to be readjusted. My guesses are that it might be either the clutch fork or possibly linkage but i wont be able to make the most educated of guesses until i take a look tomorrow. Any hints/tips/suggestions or ideas of what the problem might be would be most helpful.

On a lighter note after i fix this fiasco i have a nice list of stuff i would like to do to this truck. It is going to be turned into my daily driver/play vehicle (Nothing too crazy) and i look forward to using this sites resources pretty heavily.

[Oregon]

Here is a picture of the poor beast, hopefully the before and after photos will be drastically different.http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/flarph/RAMBEFORE.jpg

[abeemanator]

I have a KM 132 Transmission from a 1987 2.0l, My truck was originally an auto, but the standard was switched into it and from the way it looks it probably doesn't have any more than 100,000 miles on it. I also have half a parts truck (The back half is being converted into a trailer) if you needed a parts truck.

Hay Abeenamator. If you are looking to sell parts then make a Donation to the board bsfore trying to list them......

[Oregon]

There is a good amount i could pull from the front half after i get the transmission figured out. Hopefully i don't need to buy a new one but i will let you know if it comes down to it. Really hoping that it is something easy and more importantly cheap given the slow trickle of money nowadays.

[Oregon]

Okay so after messing with the truck here is where i am. Reattached shifting lever and drive shaft. The shifter will move into the positions of all of the gears however it has quite a bit of play. Testing out in "neutral" with the truck running i slowly released the clutch and it is definitely stuck in gear even though the shifter itself moves around (Can hear rpms drop as the engine attempts to take on the load). Since the clutch allows me to remove the pressure and engage i am assuming that it cannot be a clutch issue such as a broken clutch fork. At this point i am assuming that i have to drop the transmission and see if anything glaringly obvious rears its head. Anyone have an idea of what would be wrong with the transmission/experienced this before?

Also on a side note where the shift lever inserts (Into the circle) is that part and the mount for the shifter part of the transmission itself or the truck? Secondly are the bolts that hold the shifter down supposed to screw in flush because mine refused to go in all the way and resulted in me sheering one of them off.

[pennyman1]

It sounds like the shifter fork is jammed - you need to take the tranny apart unless you can drop the pan and pry the fork loose - last one that I knew of that jammed like that the kid grabbed the shifter and slammed it, shattering the main bearings in the tranny. The bolts for the shifter do not screw in flush, and are very easy to shear off - just ask anyone on here who has worked on these trucks. Use lock and flat washers on them to prevent bottoming out the bolts.

[Oregon]

Just had my very well worded verbose response typed up and then hit the wrong button. In summary.

1. Thank you

2. how do i fix me screwing up and sheering the bolt?

3. my truck is super low and requires me to jack it up before the real jack will even fit underneath it, how much clearance do i need to pull the tranny and how may i achieve it?

4. Where and how easy is it to fix/replace shifter forks?

5. Thank you

Just about sums it up

[pennyman1]

To remove the brioken bolt, try using a small drill bit and run it backward to see if you can spin it out. If you can get a set of car ramps, then jack are up the truck and set it on them, you should be able to remove the tranny - 2 sets would be even better. Use pieces of wood, like plywood, stacked in increasing height, to give you the clearance you need for the jack; I have a set of trailer leveling ramps made out of aluminum I use for my lowered truck. The forks require the tranny to come apart for replacement - the parts are available for these trannies, so fixing it isn't impossible, but finding another tranny may be the quicker way to get it back on the road.

[Oregon]

Thanks, not worried about the speed of it. I wont have the money for another 3 weeks or so to do much of anything. I might try putting some plywood under my ramps and see how much clearance i can achieve. Will try to pull the transmission this weekend and take a poke around. Pics to come shortly afterwards of whatever is wrong. REALLY hoping it is just shifter forks. Do you happen to know the model of transmission in my truck BTW so i can try to find parts for it if it is something easily fixed?

[DroppedMitsu]

Km132

[abeemanator]

Yep, same as mine, a KM 132, here is a link to the transmission types, and If you happen to score a 4x4 tranny about the same year, the transfer case pulls off quite easily and you can put the 2wd tail housing on it, or keep it so you have low range for those heavy loads.

[abeemanator]

Oops forgot the link. http://www.autozone.com/autozone/repairguides/Mitsubishi-Pick-ups-and-Montero-1983-1995-Repair-Guide/MANUAL-TRANSMISSION/Identification/_/P-0900c15280054a2e

[abeemanator]

I'm trying to get some little odds and ends together to put on the Sell to Donate. Sorry about that, I sometimes forget that I need to be a donator to sell anything. No I will not sell to donate my tranny, But If you find something small you need, such as Razmear needs just the receiving end of the seat belt, I will sell it for $5 -$15 depending on what it is.

[Fordubishi]

I had a tranny get stuck in N and when I dropped it out it was the finger on the end of the shaft that the shifter moves. in Abeemanator's link they call it a neutral control finger. 3hrs worth of work to replace a $13 part............

[joey_crandall]

my friends ranger got stuck in 3rd, we just pulle the shifter out and put it back in and it was fine.

[abeemanator]

I will sell it for $5 -$15 depending on what it is.
Well, of course in the Sell to Donate section, IWANNA BE A DONATOR!! So then I will be Abeemandonator, LOL, never mind thats too confusing.

[Oregon]

Arghh got rained out this weekend and next weekend i cannot get to the property my truck is on :(
Eventually that transmission will drop... mark my words!

[camoit]

It's also might be that the bolt in one of the shift forks fell out. You can pull the pan and look to see what is going on.

[Oregon]

Okay pulled the pan, going to try and post a video if i can figure it out. Got too lazy to edit some stuff out though so there is a little bit of me having trouble going into neutral. Any insights welcome video should download at the link. http://dl.dropbox.com/u/4035023/2011-12-11_13-25-22_161.mp4

[Oregon]

Also i had some stuff that fell out of the transmission that could only be described as "shrapnel". they didn't fall out the first time i took the pan off but they did after it was pressure washed and moved back into the garage.

[camoit]

That does not sound good.
As for the video the best way is to upload to youtube. It will convert the format to something that the board will be able to use. Then you click the http://www.mightyram50.net/vbulletin/images/skinden/velocity/editor/video.png
Then all you do is put in the URL. Otherwise it would need to be a WMV to be an attachment. mp4 is a phone video, apple format.

[Oregon]

Here is a youtube link if the dropbox download does not work.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0uxGLNl91A&feature=youtu.be

Here are a few pictures that are of where the shifter lever inserts and its cover plate.

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/flarph/2011-12-11_13-30-47_332-1.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/flarph/2011-12-11_13-30-39_504-1.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/flarph/2011-12-11_13-30-31_819.jpg

[Oregon]

Im not seeing anything moving when going left and forward/back. which relates to 5th and reverse?

[camoit]

I could see things moving But it was hard to see if 5th R was moving. I could see 3 4 and 1 2. The part that fell out what do they look like. A round pin? or what. Here is a link that might help.

http://www.mightyram50.net/d-50/Factory_Manual/21_TRANY-AUTO_AND_MANUAL.pdf

On your video you did not have enough of the URL It should have been the hole thing. Like this. I added it into your post.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0uxGLNl91A&feature=youtu.be

[Oregon]

okay thanks for fixing the video.
The pieces that fell out were 4 mangles pieces of metal that look like they used to be flat. i will try to get some picture of them if they did not get thrown out.

[Oregon]

Here are the pictures

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/flarph/2011-12-11_20-18-58_980.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/flarph/2011-12-11_20-18-47_727.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/flarph/2011-12-11_20-18-37_49.jpg

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/flarph/2011-12-11_20-18-26_986.jpg

Turns out there are 5.

[camoit]

3rd picture bottom right is that flat on both sides. Looks like a broken shift fork. Any body else want to name that part?

[Oregon]

It looks like it may have been flat at one time. the metal making up these parts is quite thin, perhaps a sheet or three of parer thick. If that helps at all. Do you happen to have a picture of a shifter fork in non mangled form? i couldn't find one in the manual.

[camoit]

you can look in your trany for the shifter. It's connected to one of the rods. It's a cast part. Just hit the shifter and you will see one move.

[PowerRam348]

i'm thinking shift fork as well. my buddies toyota got stuck in first gear not to long ago while we were playing in the snow. when we pulled it apart, the same thing happened, metal chunks fell out. turned out to be a broken shift fork.

[LSR Mike]

There is a Transmission manual here.

http://www.mightyram50.net/vbulletin/showthread.php/201-Here-are-my-manuals

[Oregon]

Okay finally found the time to work on it again, Sorry about the wait. Tail is pulled, couldn't find anything obviously wrong. Here is a video if you can point out whats not working properly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cbQbk6vkmw&feature=g-upl&context=G2a823d2AUAAAAAAAAAA

[camoit]

You can upload 15 minutes of video on youtube. You scanned over the trans so fast we can't really see any detail. Pan over things slow, real slow. Also the LED flash light makes it hard to see. Can you use a regular quarts halogen drop light? Then turn the output shaft after shifting it into a gear. We need to know what gear makes it lock up. Use the manual listed above to figure out what gear is causing it. When it's in neutral can you hold the output shaft and rotate the input shaft? The only time a trans will lock up like that is if it shifts into 2 gears at once.