Why do you have to wiggle a gear shift when shifting?

Question

why is it necesary to wiggle the gear shifter when shifiting gears on a manual transmission? Is it slack in the shifter assembly? Is it possible to make this completely rigid - -wiggle free if manufactured tightly?

Or is it NOT the wiggling that does anything, it is waiting for the synchro to match the gear speed that does it?

Answer 1

It's not necessary to wiggle the gear shift while shifting. I've never had to wiggle the gear shift in any of the standards I've driven, and I only drive standards. You just engage the clutch, let off the gas and move the gear shift to the apropriate gear.

Answer 2

i do it to confirm that i am in neutral.  

Answer 3

It is not necessary to wiggle the stick between each shift. If the stick bushing is good, the stick should be tight. If it is loose, it is an easy fix, replace the nylon bushing at the tip of the sticK.

There should not be any "wait time" for the synchros if you have a tight transmission.

Answer 4

It sounds more like your clutch might not be completely disengaging.  Make sure you are depressing the clutch pedal all the way, and also make sure you are not forcing it into the wrong gear for the RPM range that the engine is in.

I've had some transmissions that required a little bit of finagling to get them to shift, but my current transportation car ('02 Focus ZX-3, 2.0 Liter DOHC, 5-speed) pops right into every gear like butter.

Maybe take it into a shop and see if they can help you out.

Good luck!!

Answer 5

It isn't.  What makes you think it is?

Answer 6

some vehicles have a  rubber cup that holds the shifter in the position it needs to be in, if this rubber cup wears out it will make it more difficult to line up the shifter, also the shift rails will wear over time and even the shifter itself can become rounded off and make it shift less smoothly.

Answer 7

um what?? i dont  'wiggle' anything when im shifting...i might wiggle it a couple of time when its in nuetral to make sure its in neutral...

or did i just completely misunderstood your question??