DIFFICULT GEAR CHANGES

NZ Truth, Issue 1214, 7 March 1929, Page 18

DIFFICULT GEAR CHANGES

Trouble Is Not Always Due To Faulty Design

If a car of a make which is noted for easy gear-changing displays a regrettable tendency for the gear lever to bind m the gate, there is obviously something wrong somewhere, and the trouble cannot be put down, to faulty design of some of the parts.

IN one case' which came under the ~ notice of • "Truth" every possible thing was tried to remedy the defect, without avail. * „ •But eventually pie selector rods m the gear-box had to be renewed owing to the grooves into Which drop the spring-loaded plungers which prevent the gear lever from flying back into neutral being badly worn, when, to the surprise of the owner, the stiffness m the gear change disappeared.; The old selector rods were examined and it was discovered that both were slightly bent, hence the binding of the gear lever. • However, while it is possible that this may be the trouble m quite a number of cases, difficulty m moving the gear lever may be caused by seyeral other things. ■■'"''','■ For instance, it is possible that the plungers already referred to have been adjusted with too great * a tension of the springs, a matter that is .soon set

right by slacking off the adjusting screws a turn or two. Then wear on the teeth of the gears may prove to be at the bottom of th© trouble; but this, in \ comparison with the ' other possibilities, is not very common.: Cases have been known where maladjustment of the clutch has been the cause of the difficulty. .A - v • / If the driven plate fails to re-. lease properly jt is obvious that it will be drawn round at a fair speed by the driving plate, and the ; resulting drag on the teeth of the gears may make it very difficult to slide them out of mesh. There is really no excuse, for this trouble,' for it. is obvious that if such 'a state of affairs exists \ it will be impossible to mesh the gegirs ■ quietly when starting- from rest: arid ho wise driver will allow his car toVstay m this •■■"'■ ■■.- A , :V;' A