Gearbox Repair - your thoughts?

[mylamb]

I just wanted to ask a few questions regarding the 6 speed gearbox on the BOX.

I have a 2001 S with 56K on it. I noticed grinding on occasion when I selected 2nd. This eventually developed into it popping out of 2nd. I have an aftermarket warranty company (Warranty America) so I took it to my usual shop, Midwest Eurosport for the repair (and clutch since this is the best time to do it.)

Warranty America said that they, like most warranty companies are not covering replacement gearboxes without at least investigating a rebuild (teardown.) Luckily, they agreed to cover replacing 2nd, the necessary hours & R&R (which was a shock because a lot of warranties don't want to cover the investigation of the problem.) All in all, it's about 20-25 hours plus parts - all covered. But now that they put it back together, the shop said they're STILL getting an occasional pop out in 2nd. It's not 100% of the time, more like 20%, but hey 1% is too much. They think it may be the shift linkage causing the problem.

Does this sound like a possibility to you? If they got a brand new 2nd gear and put it back together properly, would a bad shift linkage cause you to pop out? Any thoughts/suggestions from those of you who are transmission savvy would be appreciated. I'm growing frustrated because the repair has taken forever & now it seems like it wasn't done/diagnosed properly.


Thanks!

[Cloudsurfer]

The 2nd gear pop out is somewhat of an known problem with some of these boxes, and I doubt it'd being caused by the linkage. The grind you started experiencing was likely just a worn synro.

There is a company in CO called GBox, and they specialize in Porsche gearboxes. They have a permanent fix for this problem, which they typically do whenever they have one apart for a rebuild. They are likely getting my gearbox soon for a freshening, and while it's there, I'm having an LSD installed.

Was the gearbox fully rebuilt when it was apart? Seems like an AWFUL lot of labor to only fix one gear (and at that, it doesn't like your problem has been fixed). I would speak to the shop that did the work, as its very unlikely that your warranty company is going to pay twice for the labor.

Sorry to hear about your ongoing frustration.

[mylamb]

Yeah, I have heard of GBox - I even recommended them to the shop for advice. But they build race cars for PCA customers and said they would be able to handle it. I have to wait & see what the problem is & I'll post later. It will be hard for me to buy another PCar when this one gets sold. At first they seemed worth the little troubles, now they don't. Something goes wrong with this car almost every 2 months.

[trogdor]

My 2000S developed the same problem you describe and after about a year of dealing with it but getting tired of always expecting it to pop out of second, I took it to the dealer in the last days of CPO warranty. When they disassembled the trans, I got to take a look inside and the second gear synchro was definitely a problem. One of the rings with teeth on it was badly chipped all along about 1/4 of the circumference.

Anyway, they tried repairing it with parts shipped from Germany 3 times. Every time they couldn't get everything working right so finally just installed a new transmission. I don't know if lack of experience was the problem (this was only a couple months after Porsche changed their policy on replacing all engines and trans with major internal repairs required) or just difficulty getting the right tools or whatever to get all tolerences correct.

Not sure this helps but good luck.

[mylamb]

Yeah - I'm thinking that at this point... NEW TRANS.


But who will pay? Warranty? Shop? Definitely not me - they're about $7500!!
It's not under CPO so I'm sure the shop & the warranty are going to continue to go back & forth on trying to fix it. I doubt either will agree to pay for a new one, but we'll see...

I'll post again, along with a scan of the bill so forum members can see what was involved once I get the car back.

[mylamb]

So get this...

They had to take the gearbox BACK OFF & open it up again, only to find that the 2nd gear was a faulty gear from Porsche! Nuts. So it's being shipped back & returned for a good one. They said, initially, it looked fine & they never assumed that it would have been improperly cut coming from the manufacturer, but upon careful inspection, they could tell that it was. The angle of the cut on one side was wrong & it kept popping out. I'll post the bill when I get it back after Thanksgiving.

Car's been in the shop so long, I think I forgot how to drive a stick...

[mylamb]

So I have posted this subject a couple of times, but now that I finally have my vehicle back, I can fill you in on all the details.

I had the dreaded 2nd gear pop out & had to have the gearbox worked on. Now that 986's are out of their original warranty (unless you have a CPO) it seems that aftermarket warranty co.'s will make you FIX, as opposed to replace your gearbox. I have Warranty America, and they are subpar, in my opinion, as they force a shop to go with Motors or AllData for the required # of hours. They won't honor Porsche's #'s & won't honor Chilton or Mitchell.

My shop needed about 22 hours for R&R and the rebuild. That doesn't sound unreasonable, but the warranty co said it only takes 12.7 hrs, according to Motors or AllData. You can guess who had to pay the additional 9.3... I had a few other repairs to be done, that the warranty company wouldn't pick up, like the CV boots, and the leak in the spark plug tube. They were considered wear & tear. They also wouldn't pay for the synchros - considered wear & tear. They did, however pick up the necessary gears & the 12.7 hours, which came to just over $2300. Naturally I had to spring for the clutch & flywheel, but because the warranty company was being so difficult, my shop comped me the additional 3 hrs needed to do the clutch & flywheel.

When the first got the approval to do the repair, Porsche actually sent them parts that wouldn't work. When the shop called Porsche to describe the problem, they were told "oh, we have a new fix for that, we'll send an extra sleeve that we're using now on gearbox rebuilds." So the shop had to R&R the tranny TWICE, but couldn't bill the 2nd one because it wasn't MY fault, and Porsche wouldn't pay them to do it. They said it was a unique circumstance, and since they're not a P Dealer, and I'm not the original owner, there would be no reimbursement. How's THAT for getting screwed??? So it took a while but at least, I didn't have to pay for the second R&R.

In all, the warranty company paid $2300+ and the balance was mine. At least the transmission works perfectly now, and I have a new clutch & flywheel. I'll try and post the bill so you can see what it's like to get your tranny rebuilt. The shop gave me the old 2nd gear, shims & synchros, so I could at least see that, yes, it was damaged. I suspect the 1st owner did most of that, because I have been driving sticks for 14 yrs, and never had a gear or clutch problem.


Just thought I'd share the experience.

[Fastback]

Is this gearbox 2nd gear pop out only effecting 6 speed manuals or is this happening on 5 speed manuals as well? Is the grinding feeling coming from the stick? Looking at buying a boxster soon so I wanna make sure I look for this issue.

[mylamb]

Originally Posted by Fastback

Is this gearbox 2nd gear pop out only effecting 6 speed manuals or is this happening on 5 speed manuals as well? Is the grinding feeling coming from the stick? Looking at buying a boxster soon so I wanna make sure I look for this issue.

Fastback -

From what I've read & heard, it's a problem with the 6 speed manual on Boxster S' from 2000-2004 & 911's from 98ish - 2004. I believe they use the same transmission. 5 speeds are supposedly more robust, and I have not heard of problems with the tips.

There are a lot of options - a remanufactured tranny from Vertex Auto is around $2700 + whatever your shop charges to remove your old one & put in the new one. it still sounds like $4000+ for this option, depending on who does the work. I believe some forum members have had a gearbox replaced for only their deductible; which was what I was hoping for - just depends on your shop & your warranty.