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SGKent 
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 42742
Location: at the beach
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 Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 9:17 am Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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it is not in neutral. You either have a problem in the transmission, or you have a problem in the shift linkage.
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Everpress
Samba Member
Joined: February 14, 2006
Posts: 424
Location: Augusta GA
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 9:32 am Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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I’ll call my engine builder and see what he can do. I didn’t have these problems with my old, old transmission. I had other problems, sure. But I could limp around the neighborhood before and now I can’t get out of the carport.
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1969 Bay Camper - "Lost 'Cause Mk.I"
1904 DP
EMPI 34 PICT 3
2000 MAGNASPARK II Ignition/Distributor
Refurb, not resto (I’m not made of restoration money!)
It's not a perfect loaf, but it's my loaf. |
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SGKent
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 42742
Location: at the beach
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 9:35 am Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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pull the coupler off completely and try to shift it into neutral with a good pair of vice grips.
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"Most people don't know what they're doing, and a lot of them are really good at it." - George Carlin |
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Everpress
Samba Member
Joined: February 14, 2006
Posts: 424
Location: Augusta GA
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 11:53 am Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| SGKent wrote: |
| pull the coupler off completely and try to shift it into neutral with a good pair of vice grips. |
I don't really know what any of the gears feel like from down there, but I can twist and push/pull and it feels like it "finds" areas where you'd have to push/pull to get out of them... like, maybe I'm finding gears?
I did this with vice grips, but I could do it by hand prior to removing the coupler (or in my case, putting the coupler back on).
But, hop in the cab, clutch pedal down, stick in neutral, starts like a dream. Release the clutch (slow or fast) and the engine dies.
If I try to start the engine without the clutch pushed in, I can creep along pretty far. I had to use this method to get the bus on level ground for all the engine removals I have done to check and troubleshoot different things.
_________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1969 Bay Camper - "Lost 'Cause Mk.I"
1904 DP
EMPI 34 PICT 3
2000 MAGNASPARK II Ignition/Distributor
Refurb, not resto (I’m not made of restoration money!)
It's not a perfect loaf, but it's my loaf. |
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SGKent
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 42742
Location: at the beach
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 12:18 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| Everpress wrote: |
| SGKent wrote: |
| pull the coupler off completely and try to shift it into neutral with a good pair of vice grips. |
I don't really know what any of the gears feel like from down there, but I can twist and push/pull and it feels like it "finds" areas where you'd have to push/pull to get out of them... like, maybe I'm finding gears?
I did this with vice grips, but I could do it by hand prior to removing the coupler (or in my case, putting the coupler back on).
But, hop in the cab, clutch pedal down, stick in neutral, starts like a dream. Release the clutch (slow or fast) and the engine dies.
If I try to start the engine without the clutch pushed in, I can creep along pretty far. I had to use this method to get the bus on level ground for all the engine removals I have done to check and troubleshoot different things. |
you'll figure it out. Good luck
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"Most people don't know what they're doing, and a lot of them are really good at it." - George Carlin |
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W1K1
Samba Member
Joined: March 04, 2004
Posts: 5303
Location: Southern AB
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 3:24 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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FYI this is what it looks like inside the nose cone, the hockey stick is just sliding the rods in or out, and neutral is when they are are all even and you can move the hockey stick freely through the gear levers
If you are in neutral, you should get about 1/4 turn on the hockey stick
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1973 super 2110cc
1965 squareback 1500E-sold
1971 bay window westy- EJ2.5 subi swap |
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Everpress
Samba Member
Joined: February 14, 2006
Posts: 424
Location: Augusta GA
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 3:47 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| W1K1 wrote: |
FYI this is what it looks like inside the nose cone, the hockey stick is just sliding the rods in or out, and neutral is when they are are all even and you can move the hockey stick freely through the gear levers
If you are in neutral, you should get about 1/4 turn on the hockey stick
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Thanks for the visual aid! Seriously, thanks.
The guy that sourced the transmission and built my engine wants to rule out that the internals might be "tight" from the rebuild. He also assured me I would not be voiding any warrantees/agreements by inspecting the nose cone.
So first, he wants me to take my 13mm socket for a drive to 1)maybe loosen things up in the transmission and 2)make adjustments to the shifter/reverse lockout plate should I get that far on the journey.
If that doesn't turn out well, I'll limp it home in whatever gear it wants to stay stuck in and work on getting the transmission out to inspect that far.
However it goes, I'll post results.
_________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1969 Bay Camper - "Lost 'Cause Mk.I"
1904 DP
EMPI 34 PICT 3
2000 MAGNASPARK II Ignition/Distributor
Refurb, not resto (I’m not made of restoration money!)
It's not a perfect loaf, but it's my loaf. |
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Wildthings
Samba Member
Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 52450
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| Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2025 4:19 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| When it's in reverse, which direction does the vehicle want to move when you let the clutch out? |
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Everpress
Samba Member
Joined: February 14, 2006
Posts: 424
Location: Augusta GA
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2025 12:33 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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I'm hesitant to say that the issue is solved because I am not 100% sure what the issue is/was.
But I can drive.
I took my engine guy's advice and drove it around the neighborhood. Putting it in reverse to go down my hill of a driveway, it first started rolling forward but with more gas it eventually went in reverse. I was pretty annoyed by this point. When you buy a new something, you expect it to work, right?
Anyway, at the bottom of the hill, in my frustration, I slammed it into where first should be. As I let off the clutch and gave her some gas there was this kind of loud *POP*... and now the bus acts like it has a new transmission. Finally.
So thanks for all your help guys. I'll add to this thread if it binds or whatever it was doing instead of starting a new one. But all the suggestions really helped me get organized in my troubleshooting.
Next up are the issues with the lights... but for now, I celebrate!
_________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1969 Bay Camper - "Lost 'Cause Mk.I"
1904 DP
EMPI 34 PICT 3
2000 MAGNASPARK II Ignition/Distributor
Refurb, not resto (I’m not made of restoration money!)
It's not a perfect loaf, but it's my loaf. |
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70bus
Samba Member
Joined: July 15, 2004
Posts: 1454
Location: P.O.
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2025 12:57 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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Talkng strictly out of my ass, that sounds like the selector forks had gotten womperjawed at some point and they finally snapped back into proper place under load. Could also have been sliders doing same thing?
As for rebuilder saying it was just 'tight,' I don't know that anything, motor, trans, or steering box, should be 'tight' after rebuilding. If it was rebuilt to spec, it will be less sloppy then before, but no VW part I've run across binds when new.
Whether they had something out of alignment or it got that way during install, hopefully it's all sorted now. The trans takes a lot of abuse, so if it drove well after the pop it should be fine. When you drain it after the breakup period, look for gear teeth, just to be sure!
edit- uh, break IN period. Hopefullly trans doesn't make you break up with your bus!
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Craig K
70 Neunsitzer
65 Pritschenwagen
"If Von Dutch was alive, he'd walk in there with a pistol and shoot these people." - Robert Williams
Raul the 65 singlecab
Karl the 70 nine-seater |
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Everpress
Samba Member
Joined: February 14, 2006
Posts: 424
Location: Augusta GA
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2025 1:23 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| 70bus wrote: |
Talkng strictly out of my ass, that sounds like the selector forks had gotten womperjawed at some point...
When you drain it after the breakup period, look for gear teeth, just to be sure!
edit- uh, break IN period. Hopefullly trans doesn't make you break up with your bus! |
Hahaha... you got me at "womperjawed". As far as a breakup... she already took all my money, most of my patience, some real blood, sweat and tears, and tons of time. And she still wants more.
Guess I'm a bus masochist at this point because I can't quit her.
_________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1969 Bay Camper - "Lost 'Cause Mk.I"
1904 DP
EMPI 34 PICT 3
2000 MAGNASPARK II Ignition/Distributor
Refurb, not resto (I’m not made of restoration money!)
It's not a perfect loaf, but it's my loaf. |
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SGKent
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 42742
Location: at the beach
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2025 6:46 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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Very well could have been nothing more than the clutch glued to the flywheel from moisture in the air and the compounds in the disk.
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Wildthings
Samba Member
Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 52450
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| Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2025 8:08 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| Hopefully it was something minor, like a ball point pen that fell into the box and jammed the gears and not something worse like a spare bolt or ball bearing that got dropped and could cause really damage down the road. |
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Abscate
Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2014
Posts: 24024
Location: NYC/Upstate/ROW
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| Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 1:18 am Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| SGKent wrote: |
| Very well could have been nothing more than the clutch glued to the flywheel from moisture in the air and the compounds in the disk. |
^
Transmissions don’t go pop, then suddenly work.
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Everpress
Samba Member
Joined: February 14, 2006
Posts: 424
Location: Augusta GA
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| Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 4:37 am Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| Abscate wrote: |
| Transmissions don’t go pop, then suddenly work. |
This is exactly why I'm hesitant to say the problem is solved. I did take around the block a few times yesterday and besides needing me to adjust the shift plate, it seems to be working pretty well, but yeah... I'm still wary.
_________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1969 Bay Camper - "Lost 'Cause Mk.I"
1904 DP
EMPI 34 PICT 3
2000 MAGNASPARK II Ignition/Distributor
Refurb, not resto (I’m not made of restoration money!)
It's not a perfect loaf, but it's my loaf. |
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| Back to top |
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Wildthings
Samba Member
Joined: March 13, 2005
Posts: 52450
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| Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 6:47 am Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| Everpress wrote: |
| Abscate wrote: |
| Transmissions don’t go pop, then suddenly work. |
This is exactly why I'm hesitant to say the problem is solved. I did take around the block a few times yesterday and besides needing me to adjust the shift plate, it seems to be working pretty well, but yeah... I'm still wary. |
Maybe drain your gear oil out and see what is residing on the magnetic drain plug. You should have almost nothing at this point. Finding foreign objects and/or chunks of gear teeth would be very bad. |
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Abscate
Samba Member
Joined: October 05, 2014
Posts: 24024
Location: NYC/Upstate/ROW
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| Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 7:33 am Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| Abscate wrote: |
| SGKent wrote: |
| Very well could have been nothing more than the clutch glued to the flywheel from moisture in the air and the compounds in the disk. |
^
Transmissions don’t go pop, then suddenly work. |
Clarifier - clutches DO go pop, and suddenly work.
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SGKent
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 42742
Location: at the beach
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| Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 4:31 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| Abscate wrote: |
| Abscate wrote: |
| SGKent wrote: |
| Very well could have been nothing more than the clutch glued to the flywheel from moisture in the air and the compounds in the disk. |
^
Transmissions don’t go pop, then suddenly work. |
Clarifier - clutches DO go pop, and suddenly work. |
I am thinking he did not have the stop plate properly adjusted and that caused the can't find neutral problem, and the clutch disc was glued to the flywheel with exposure to moisture. I could be wrong, but the way the shift detents are made, unless really worn ones were put back in when it was rebuilt, it is near impossible to get it into two gears at once unless it got dropped on the hockey stick in transport. The only thing I can say is that if the OP approaches every problem with his stubbornness to ignore suggestions made by others with a lot more experience with bays, and instead do it his way, owning a bus will be an expensive venture for him. He probably got away lucky this time. I am not attacking him, and glad it worked out, but parts for these are rarer and rarer, and they weren't designed for brute force mechanics. Lots of tolerance built in, but not built for brute force. Bays can and frequently do eat wallets for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I hope the OP is reading this and being thankful he got away with it this time. I am glad it worked out.
The detents are hardened steel pins and ball bearings that drop into a slot when a gear is engaged. Once a pin drops, it blocks any other pins from dropping at the same time. The play is in thousands so there is no wiggle room for two detent pins to drop into a slot at the same time.
Shift rails, only one can be moved at a time by the selector because of the detents that lock them.
detent interlock pin below. They move in a way that only one shift rail like the ones in the photo above can be engaged at a time. This was not discussed during the thread so not to divert from the original problem. I really don't see how it could have been in two gears at once unless the shift forks are bent or damaged, in which case it will be back. He'll never know now what it was and if it will be back bite him some day on a trip away from home. That will be the adventure 
You can get a gear partially engaged, in which case a pair of vice grips on the hockey stick with the coupler off would have freed it and revealed that as an issue.
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Everpress
Samba Member
Joined: February 14, 2006
Posts: 424
Location: Augusta GA
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| Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 5:43 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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| SGKent wrote: |
I am thinking he did not have the stop plate properly adjusted and that caused the can't find neutral problem, and the clutch disc was glued to the flywheel with exposure to moisture. I could be wrong, but the way the shift detents are made, unless really worn ones were put back in when it was rebuilt, it is near impossible to get it into two gears at once unless it got dropped on the hockey stick in transport. The only thing I can say is that if the OP approaches every problem with his stubbornness to ignore suggestions made by others with a lot more experience with bays, and instead do it his way, owning a bus will be an expensive venture for him. He probably got away lucky this time. I am not attacking him, and glad it worked out, but parts for these are rarer and rarer, and they weren't designed for brute force mechanics. Lots of tolerance built in, but not built for brute force. Bays can and frequently do eat wallets for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I hope the OP is reading this and being thankful he got away with it this time. I am glad it worked out.
The detents are hardened steel pins and ball bearings that drop into a slot when a gear is engaged. Once a pin drops, it blocks any other pins from dropping at the same time. The play is in thousands so there is no wiggle room for two detent pins to drop into a slot at the same time.
Shift rails, only one can be moved at a time by the selector because of the detents that lock them.
detent interlock pin below. They move in a way that only one shift rail like the ones in the photo above can be engaged at a time. This was not discussed during the thread so not to divert from the original problem. I really don't see how it could have been in two gears at once unless the shift forks are bent or damaged, in which case it will be back. He'll never know now what it was and if it will be back bite him some day on a trip away from home. That will be the adventure
You can get a gear partially engaged, in which case a pair of vice grips on the hockey stick with the coupler off would have freed it and revealed that as an issue.
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I appreciate your post and agree that there is the possibility that this issue will return. And you are very correct in saying that I have no idea what was causing the issue. I don't think I diagnosed the "two gears at once", but I did latch on because it kind of felt that way. I hate to be considered a person that doesn't listen and learn; it is hard to get help when you can't accept help.
To be fair, there was nothing I was opposed to doing except opening the transmission without knowing if it would void any warrantees. In my original post I mentioned everything I had already done. When someone suggested I do something I had already done, I did it with the understanding that I might have missed something the first (second and third) time around. And I did try the vice grips on the hockey stick (or the shaft that protrudes from the nose); I just stated that from there, prior to trying, I could move the shaft by hand.
My ham-handed approach was... admittedly... less than mature. But it MAY have led to a starting point to make more fine adjustments. Maybe not - maybe (definitely) luck was on my side.
Im not a stubborn @$$, I'm almost likable to some people. Hell, some people more-than-tolerate me even. I freely admit that I either learn something new here everyday or really NEED to learn something here everyday.
Again, and SINCERELY, I want to thank you for all your help, and that goes for everyone that posted here; I, currently, can drive this machine that I have owned for 5 years and have been working on for 2-ish years. This would not be possible without this site and the people that contribute to it.
_________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1969 Bay Camper - "Lost 'Cause Mk.I"
1904 DP
EMPI 34 PICT 3
2000 MAGNASPARK II Ignition/Distributor
Refurb, not resto (I’m not made of restoration money!)
It's not a perfect loaf, but it's my loaf. |
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SGKent
Samba Member
Joined: October 30, 2007
Posts: 42742
Location: at the beach
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| Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 6:09 pm Post subject: Re: Rebuilt transmission; stuck in gear? |
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no problem. Most bay owners will find a solution here from someone because of the collective years of experience on this forum. Been here some 20+ years, have hundreds of thousands of miles on the bays owned, and am still learning from others here. There are a lot of really enjoyable and knowledgeable people here.
Your bus will steal the money from your wallet if you let it. But they can be fun and give many years of experiences when they run right. They are unlike many other cars because of their engineering and their use. A similar equipped vehicle today would cost 4X to 5X what a nice bay is worth. Of course they don't have all the amenities late cars do. It will work out fine.
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