Clutch Release

Dr.Fiero wrote: Ok, no question about it then - you have a bent pedal, no ifs and or buts about it.

So John, do you think Ryan's pedal might be bent?

Yes, a bent pedal could certainly be contributing to Ryan’s problem, but seeing as how his first gear isn’t difficult to get into (not that we’ve been made aware of anyway), I’d be surprised if there weren’t still other issues.

Ryan, just so you know, there’s two types of pedals made of different metals. Aluminum ones which have a tendency to bend, and steel ones which seldom bend. Obviously you’ll want to replace your pedal if it’s bent with a steel one. A quick way to distinguish the two is with a magnet. It'll stick to a steel one and yep, not stick to an aluminum one.

88FormulaFiero wrote: ...when shifting into reverse I have to go into fifth first and then into reverse to prevent it from grinding, would this be caused by stretched shift cables?

Have you tried adjusting the linkages yet? 

Don't worry about whether the cables are "stretched" until you've eliminated some other variables.

It would tell us a lot if you could mention what gears (if any) are difficult to get into when the engine is NOT running.

88FormulaFiero wrote: Edit to add that it runs though the gears very easily while the engine is off, almost no effort required.  Deffinitly easier than with the engine running

I'm no expert, so listen to what everyone else says as well , but that suggests to me that it's more of a clutch issue than a tranny problem.

It's not disengaging properly. Whether it's the pedal or the hydraulics or both or neither is yet to be determined.

However, I'd say the cables/linkage adjustment are probably fine.

Ryan, bring your car to the meeting this Saturday and let a few of us try driving it. Seriously. That'll give us a lot more to go on.