Thread: ugh stuck in 3rd gear (5spd LSD) P10 g20

Ok so i was on the highway after work today and exiting the highway i down shifted to 4th then 3rd and clutched in and put it to what i thought was neutral.. well i go to put it in 1st and its like "blocked" feeling and the shifter goes free moving like the linkage broke. so i let the clutch out and its in 3rd gear wtf. So i limped home in 3rd til i got there. Once there i turned it off and it will go 3rd and 4th gear only but refuses to go into any gear when i try to go left or right with my shifter. Well, i went hulk on it cause i got pissed and phycotically moved the shifter left to right fast and hard (LOL). Then it worked, so i drove it around town and it was fine. I got back on the highway and came off out of 5th gear and went right to neutral. Well it happened AGAIN what appereared to be 1st was actually 3rd gear so again i limped home looking like a straight idiot starting from stop lights in 3rd burning the hell out of my clutch . *sigh

So i guess im off to go jack it up and check out the linkage and go from there... is this a common issue? first i thought i broke a shift fork but i was not abusing the trans and it was a simple downshift from 5th gear that causes it to lock in 3-4 only, then after going nutso on the shifter with the car off it worked fine? like wtf???

**edit** I forgot lastnight when i was on the highway my speedo went to 0 then to 80 (was going 60) then back to 0 until i hit a big bump then it was back to normal.

First welcome to the forum and the wonderfull world of fwd sr20 trans. Sounds like some linkage issues. I have personaly seen one of the fingers break off a shift fork. To start with what year is your car and that can give us an idea of what trans is in it. For the Most part the fwd lsd trans is the same 91-99 then its complete different 2000-2002 .

heh thanks. The car is specifically a 95 infiniti G20. just jacked it up about to check out the linkage from shifter to trans then disconnect and see what i feel doing it by hand under there as well as check out the clutch cable i guess though i would assume thats fine with the issues.

**edit** on a side note i swear that i got almost "locked" into 2nd gear like 4 times lastweek but i thought i was imagining the feeling it was really strange. its almost like the linkage either has play cause it feels sloppy or something let loose in teh trans and its just been casually coasting along until i jar it where it shouldnt be. i didnt want to get in depth but i may have to. Havent changed the fluid sense ive owned the car as i just got it a few weeks ago but i dred seeing grey fluid come out lol. will update with what i find

sounds like a spring poped out of the clutch, if the car come out of gear while the car is off its definatly rhew culprit...

alright heres what i found...

The clutch cable is in good shape and proper tension etc works fine. The Car will go to neutral, 3rd 4th 5th and reverse with the car off or on and it can do so without a hiccup. It however will not go into 1st or 2nd gear no matter what i do. Tried putting it in 3rd and rolling it fwd a bit to maybe align something and sat under the car doing anything i could but the linkage where it connects on the trans itself is preventing me from going "left" or into the horizontal position to make it go to 1st or 2nd gear its like hitting a wall when i try with a maybe 1/4" of dead play (no resistance) where as going "right" where 5th and reverse are clearly make resistance on the linkage when i put it there. When i wiggle it its not loose the linkage itself is fine and tight its something in the trans preventing it from going there.

it also looks like this fellow had the same issue as i have right now.. but i see no resolution here for him. http://www.sr20-forum.com/general-sr20/58121-recent-clutch-job-now-shifter-wont-move-into-position-1st-2nd.html

also i edited the bottom of OG post

sounds like something in the trans broke and is keeping the selector from moving..

yea it has to be either a shift fork or a piece of something broke off and lodged itself in there or a foreign object of some sort because i kid you not this trans has been flawless until now, no grinds, no hard shifts, no nothing, smooth as butter until the lastweeks 2nd gear feeling and now this crap

if i were you and if you have the funds which i dont know your money flow but id go with a p11 trans.
I love mine and havent had any complaints.
plus i like a unsprung clutch better than a sprung clutch.
my sentra was doing this after i chipped some teeth off 3rd gear, wld go to 3rd 4th 5th and r but not 1 or 2? it also worked for about a week before the metal made its way down to 1 and 2 gears so thats why i think....
its got to be some metal blocking you from entering those gears, youve broke something in the trans or its been broke and it worked till just now and that metal finally made its way to the 1 and 2 gears blocking them. Cause i drove mine for about 700 miles after i broke 3rd gear.
that would be my guess man.
how many miles have you drive the car?

let me know what you find out man!