downshift........ cant do it!

hello. i have a 89 RS 2.8 v6 manual trans.

when im driving on the roads, or racing around, ill try to downshift from 4th into 3rd or from 5th into 4th, and when i downshift, it will NOT let me get into the lower gear, kinda like its locked. so what i have to do is take it out of 4th wiggle the shifter around put it half way in second, THEN i can get into the 3rd gear. im thinking its some kind of safety switch or something. does anybody have this problem, or know what to do or take off to get rid of this problem!? thanks.

i had that problem once but it fixed itself so i dont know what to tell you... mine didnt wanna downshift from 6th to 5th .... and yeah it was almost as if the reverse lockout was engaged in the gear....

Match the R's...

sleeves or shifter problem.

The F250 that we got has that problem too, I know what you mean but usually if you get down into lower RPMs it then lets you do it, so maybe that's what you gotta do?

when im driving on the roads, or racing around,
well, your first problem is your racing with a 2.8.. :icon16: jk, just messin

whoa whoaa. easy. its got some kick with a few ghetto air induction modifications. and i just got some throttle cleaner from work, the kind u connect to the vacuum line, then it cleans all the carbon. i can feel the difference.

It sounds like the syncros are going bad but i wouldnt know i got an auto.

You can shift a syncro tranny at any speed into any gear. If you get a griding sound thats your problem. If it upshifts just fine and goes into every gear with the engine off than its probably a clutch mechanism problems (bearing, fork, etc; but still there would be some grinding) Other than that some shifting related components inside the tranny might be worn severely. (but it would be pretty strange). Does it pop out off gear by itself sometimes? Still I guess the syncros are pretty worn at this stage, so just try to double shift it like an old military truck. These borg-warner trannies are a german design and should be long-lasting like Getrag trannies. But being built in the North America they crap out pretty fast because of the poor quality.

well, its only got 90k on it. it doesnt pop out of gear or anything like that. i just hate that it doesnt dowhshift.

ps, how many miles should you change the clutch??

depending on abuse. Most do it after 100k miles.