DNMakinson

iTrader: (3)

5 speed. I think that is what Joe has, but I could have made it plain.

kenzo42

iTrader: (6)

Does the 5x bushing make a difference? Reviews seemed bad for the first generation bushing.

sixshooter

iTrader: (12)

My 5 speed was grinding when quickly going into 3rd both upshifting and downshifting. I tried shockproof in it upon recommendation from someone (I would give credit but I don't recall) and it solved the problem immediately.

Cold? What's that?

robertcope

I'm in Texas where it is like 150F on the track surface and my Redline filled transmission (MT-85) seems to shift just fine. How hot does it have to get before it starts shifting like crap?

Stock power levels, though, but I'm not exactly pussyfooting it around.

robert

Mobius

iTrader: (2)

Absolutely agree that you should be able to tell by feel if the shifter is in a gear or not, and that you should feel resistance moving out of and into gear.

The notchiness ... the shift isn't quite right. It starts to snick into gear, then it's as if it starts to grind, the synchro finally synchros, and then it goes into gear. So there's just a catch, or notch, a momentary about-to-grind hesitation when going into gear. Often audible as well as being felt through the shifter. It's an interruption to the snick into gear.

I use Motorcraft and change it once a season. It has made my 6 speed shift better than when I got it, but it's still not perfect. At this point in the cars' life it sees about equal track to street miles. I have driven the car in below freezing temps and had no shifting issues - it might have been a bit stiffer, but still felt fine. (That's what she said)

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

One of the things that I most despised about my '00 Integra (and, to be fair, there weren't many), was the shifter. Even compared to my old VW Beetle it felt amazingly vague, like someone had stuck a ***** into a bucket full of oatmeal, with a few pieces of string connecting it to the syncro forks. You couldn't really tell when it was in gear other than by the fact that you'd hit the stop at the end of the gate.

matthewdesigns

iTrader: (8)

Mitsubishi Diaqueen for the Evo8/9 MR 6 speed trans transformed my '92 5spd from a notchy, stiff disappointment to a smooth-at-any-temp delight. Once I swap in my 6spd I'll be using it again.

SchmoozerJoe

iTrader: (2)

I prefer Motul 75-90 over the FoMoCo stuff. It shifts nicer.

Still waiting to loosen the drain plus and replace the FoMoCo stuff with Amsoil... I still fear stripping the plug, so the FoMoCo stuff stays.

But, seriously, the Motul works way better on the other Miata with 50% more miles and a beat up 2nd gear syncro.

Braineack

iTrader: (62)

have you ever seen how a FWD shifter is connected to the trans?

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

In the case of the aforementioned '00 Integra, it was connected to the transmission via a metal rod with a U-joint at either end, along with a bar similar to the PPF which anchored the shifter base to the transmission near the point at which the selector rod entered it. It was very much like the shifter arrangement on a Beetle / 911, where the bar rotated as the shifter was moved left to right, and slid fore-aft to convey the same motion at the shifter.

Other FWD cars (Toyotas in particular), use two braided metal cables, one which relays the fore-aft motion of the shifter and another which relays the side-to-side motion.

The oatmealness of the Acura's shifter seemed much less to do with any vagueness in the coupling between the shifter and the transmission, and more in that there seemed to be no perceptible gating, and the act of engaging or disengaging a gear was not accompanied by any significant tactile feedback.

Leafy

iTrader: (1)

Based on his description I thin he has.

Braineack

iTrader: (62)

yeah, cause it seemed pretty accurate.

vehicular

iTrader: (3)

I've said in several of these threads that the DSM guys use BG Synchroshift, and it really is magical. It will turn a recalcitrant piece of junk into a useful transimission.

matthewdesigns

iTrader: (8)

We've found that the only good fluid to use in DSM trannies is the Diaqueen I mentioned above, or Redline MT90 if the former is not available. We actually void warranties on our builds if any other fluid is used because of accelerated wear issues.

This DSM info of course has no bearing on whether BG will work well in a Miata trans, but given that both their synchros are unlined bronze the contact will be similar in both, and thus their behavior in a given fluid will as well.

vehicular

iTrader: (3)

I've never used Diaqueen, except in EVOs that require it. I HAVE used BG in several DSMs, and like I said, it turned unshiftable junk into good transmissions.

Diaqueen smells like a rotting corpse, so it's probably good stuff.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

I'll keep that in mind if anyone on DSMTurbo.net ever asks me which transmission lubricant does a good job of un-sticking the 1-2 shift on a DSM.

Mobius

iTrader: (2)

Well, it does seem only appropriate for this forum that a product called "Diaqueen" would make a good tranny lube.

greddygalant

iTrader: (3)

I use the Diaqueen in my daily driver, which is a turbocharged 99 galant with an eclipse 5spd trans. I have tried running all sorts of fluid in it, from straight Redline, to Diaqueen, and also the Scot Grey mix which is : 2x Redline MTL SAE 70w-80 API GL-4 Gear Oil
1x BG SyncroShift Part# 790 since my trans takes 3 quarts of fluid. The Diaqueen is by far the best solution so far with the second choice being the Grey mix.

Ill be performing a 6spd swap into Lazarus soon and Im wondering if I should just run the Diaqueen in that as well since I already have a copious quantity and dont want to deal with the a holes at the ford dealer. Based on the discussion in this thread it seems like the synchros in the transmissions are similar which means it should work quite nicely. I will report back soon with results.

Ive been running Redline in my now dead 5 spd, and when it was cool/warm it was great, but after 10 minutes into a track session the tranny would become a tad notchy which I can assume stemmed from the overheating of the redline fluid. It became worse and worse the more days I did on the same trans fluid. On the other hand the diaqueen in my galant gets changed once a year despite many miles of daily driving and a decent amount of track abuse, and I would say that it shifts better than just about any miata 5/6spd Ive ever driven.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

To expound on my previous, here's a diagram of the shifting linkage on an Integra, which I believe is common to all B-series Hondas:



#12 is the shift linkage itself. #13 is the PPF-like device which anchors to the transmission case at #15, and contains the socket into which the shifter ball sits at the rear. Thus, the spatial relationship between the shifter and transmission is rigidly enforced.

Here's what it looks like IRL, on the transmission side:




And beneath the shifter:







For comparison, here's a diagram of a cable-type shifter:




And now you know what a FWD shift linkage looks like.

matthewdesigns

iTrader: (8)

This. Glad to see there's another heretic here.