1997 2.4L 5-speed gear grinding

[ReneOC]

I live in Canada... and now that its winter time its obivious that the temperatures here are usually below freezing.. I find that everyday when i drive my car when its cold that my gear grinds from 1st to 2nd gear.. However once the car has warmed up there is no problem.. Is this normal? or is there something that could be looked at? thanks

[Ridenour]

Welcome to the forum. I'm guessing this is a function of several factors: In the winter, with the cooler air, your car is making more power, so your transmission is naturally going to be jerkier / grindier - 1st to 2nd also is usually the hardest shift. Also, when the liquid is cold, it's settled in the bottom & has less viscousity, and is denser - thus it isn't properly dispersed in the transmission until after the vehicle warms up. After the vehicle warms up, the fluid is hot, has a high viscousity, and easily fills the imporant parts of the transmission.

That's my opinion at least - maybe somebody else has some more ideas.

[skibum1111]

I had this problem with my 95, it turned out to be a couple of lighters stuck under the shifter, which caused the cables to be ever so slightly out of whack, it would grind going into second and third.