I replaced the bearing on the main shaft this weekend. I removed the main shaft and countershaft as an assembly to check the other bearings. I am not sure if I have the reverse idler gear in correctly. Here is a picture of how I originally assembled it.

http://i420.photobucket.com/al...7.jpg

When I couldn't get into reverse, I opened the transmission back up a flipped the reverse idler gear over and reassembled it. The car will still not go into reverse. Which way does the gear go? One side of the middle section of the gear is longer that the one on the other side. The shorter side is up in the picture referenced above. Here is a close up of the reverse arm

http://i420.photobucket.com/al...8.jpg

Does the arm pull the reverse idler gear up or push it down to go into reverse? If it is assembled like the first picture, the gear cannot push down.

 

its probably not a problem where you are looking . look at the change selector where the shift rod enters the transmission. this can be put back together weird. make sure that is working properly,

 

Can you select all the gears by hand. Just by moving the shifter arm?

 

I have to take the tranny back out of the car again tonight. I believe that I put the reverse idler gear in upside down but it would still work if the arm was moving. I can shift gears 1-5 by hand but cannot shift into reverse by hand. I must have the shift rod nto aligned correctly. I cannot find a good picture of what it should look like.

 

I can shift gears 1-5 on the bench. When I turn the shift rod and try to push it in to go into reverse, I cannot push it in by hand. I can however turn it and tap it into reverse with the heal of my hand. Why is it bound up?

 

did you get all the shims back in?

 

It's harder to get it into reverse by hand then all the other gears.

The wear on the gear shows it's in the right way. From the picture anyways.

 

The only shims I had were on the mainshaft where it goes through teh clutch housing. There was a stainless stell washer ans a pressure washer. Those are installed. I can shift 1-5 no problem on the bench. When I select reverse, I have to hit the shift rod with the heal of my hand repeatedly to get into reverse. Is this just because I don't have the leverage that the shift linkage provides in the car or should it shift similarly into reverse as it does into all other gears while on the bench?

 

i know i just replaced some stuff in my trans and i could go threw all the gears on the bench with little to no problem. and ya say you have the long side of the gear facing down correct?

 

Was the transmission orientated on the bench like it would be in the car? I put it back together and orientated it like it would sit in the car and now I can shift into reverse with the same effort as the other gears.. It appears that the reverse idler gear fork lifts from one side and the gear actually binds on the shaft when the tranny is laying flat on the bench with this design.

 

ya when i did mine it was on its side, i guees your was just bound up huh? ya got it fixed though?

 

I got it. What a pain in the butt. Can the linkage be adjusted? I know it works on the bench so it should just work in the car. I removed the pin that holds the linkage to the shifting shaft on the tranny to disconnect the tranny. In the event that it is locked out in the car, it has to be the linkage.

 

nope not adjustable. to make lif easier i didnt reuse the pin i used a bolt and nut that just fits threw the hole. I been using the bolt and nut for over a year and its never fell off.

 

Thanks for the info. Hopefully the next poor bastard that opens his L3 tranny takes pictures before he tears into it and then verifies the operation of reverse (with the tranny orientated like it is in the car) before he reinstalls it in the car. What a pain in the Butt!!!!!! I screwed around here and there all week trying to figure out why it was so hard to get into reverse with the tranny laying flat perpendicular to how it is installed in the vehicle.