Need Some Serious Feedback Please

[jkelley]

Hey guys, I got a 2000 Camaro 3.8L, 5spd. About a year and a half ago, my clutch burnt out so I had a new one installed. Then a little bit after that, I had problems with my gears. I wouldn't be able to shift into first all the time, so I'd have to start in 2nd to move the car up a little, then shift to 1st. Also, the same thing would happen with my reverse gear. Finally, it would no longer shift into reverse at all. I had the car looked at and the mechanic said my synchros in my tranny were done and I'd need a new transmission. So I paid $1200 for a rebuilt used transmission with a one year warranty. Well the problem seemed fixed in the beginning. Within a week to two weeks. The problems had subtly returned. The mechanic said to just drive it around and break it in. So I did for about 10 months and the problem consisted and even got worse. Now, I'm back to square 1 where sometimes I can't shift into 1st, reverse sometimes doesn't shift into gear, and when I go from 4th to 5th my gears grind a little. I had it looked at because it's under warranty, and they said that I now need a clutch kit, resurface my flywheel, and that i need a new clutch master/slave cylinder because my hydraulics are messed up. They said it will cost $1,608.14 to repair and that I need to get it fixed quickly or else it could mess up my synchros in my tranny again. I lost beyond words, this is a lot of money and I feel like I've been just taken advantage of completely. I feel that the clutch could have been installed improperly in the first place and that's why my original transmission started having problems; hence, that's why my "new" used, rebuilt transmission is having the same problems. So my transmission could have been good all along. I decided to get a second opinion at another shop, they wanted to charge $50 for a diagnostic fee (it's an extremely capitalist world in Las Vegas) and I'm working with limited funds. They said they'll take my car for a drive and see if they can figure out and ideal about the problem. They came back and said it's the synchros. He said that the clutch is very strong. If it's the synchros then that should be covered under my warranty at the other shop as of yesterday (it just ended).. but the other shop tells me it's something else so that it's not covered under the warranty. Is there any suggestions that I can get from some of you guys? I'd really appreciate it. Here's links to the diagnosis and the estimate from the first shop so you can read exactly what they said.

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...Car/img004.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...Car/img005.jpg

[techsan23]

Re: Need Some Serious Feedback Please

Problems getting into reverse will never have anything to do with your syncros. If your thrust bearings are shot on the crankshaft; when you push the clutch you may be pushing the crank forward in the block not allowing the pressure plate on the clutch to fully disengage. You can check for play on your harmonic balancer with a prybar maybe. try to move it forward and backward. The next step would be to move to the hydraulics; checking for any kinks or binding in the hoses running to and from the clutch master cylinder. If and when that is ruled out I would replace the master cylinder if it were me. Good luck.