2013 Fiesta SE, 1.6 Manual 5 speed, 1st gear problem

[adamsstreet]

I recently purchased the 2013 Fiesta not running, broken timing belt. I have it all put together, water pump and all, and it runs great. Since I had never driven it before, I didn't know about the transmission issue. I can easily shift into all gear besides first. I get a grind noise and no action past that. After many attempts, I did get 1st gear ONE time, have not been able to engage it again. I can take off in 2nd just fine, since I am on flat ground in the middle of Kansas, but 1st will be needed anywhere else with a hill and a stop sign! I have looked at the cables, visually, they appear fine.

Any ideas?

 

[Handy Andy]

Usually in transmission issues I wish I could say - "just do this". But losing 1st gear can mean several things...

Synchronizer - the 1 to 2 gearing "gear" is gone or
Lockout ring - a special ring gear that lets the other half (output side versus input) mesh - using the Synchronizers to do this.

But since it's 1st Gear that one uses a "lockout" that keeps you from going into 1st Gear until you're well under 5MPH (Granny Gear speed) - that is a tough call, if you can't get into the gear ever and at all when you're stopped, then that transmission can't really do you any good - it's more than likely gone because someone jammed it into the gear and the thing got toasted - since you can Run with the rest, that gear is laying in the bottom of the pan and the chips are floating around in the fluid getting pulverized even more until the sandpaper the gear was - plugs up and ruins the rest of the gears in the box.

That one being gone is also the most complex of the transmission gearbox - for it looks at rotational speed and the input and output gear rotation differences a little differently than all those other synchronizer gears.

It's really kind of Kewl - it's a rocker - that levels off when the gears spin so you can engage then drops out to let the mesh work

To take one of these apart, these things are like tanks and onions. You'll need special gear puller tools and a good set of wrenches - you peel them (pull off) layer by layer to find the gear section - and since this is 1st and 2nd gear that means you pull all those higher-end gears off the two shafts (and the counter rotational reverse gear inclusive) to get at the part of the gearbox where these two reside. (By the Clutch, the 5th gear is opposite side on the housing cover)

If you're going to do that - the Labor to have a guy do this is about 2hrs AND if they know how to pull them off - else they can take 8 hours and several paid lunches and if you throw in several cartons of cigarettes' and a 12-pack of a local Brew - you might get them motivated to have it done in two days - if you can get them to order the RIGHT parts needed.

Else just do the overhaul yourself - but get another transmission in the process because you'll need it to make the trips to the parts store to get this rebuild done...

If you can look for Ford Transmissions in YT videos - you should find several Russian/Foreign ones that you can't understand the language - but you can watch how they do it - because I had to let others work on my vehicles when this happens - so it was easier for them to put a known good one in and market-off the old one for a rebuild (Core credit).

There's always Car Rentals - but not all insurances cover that...

 

[scotman]

Twenty years ago I would have said drain the gear oil and look for bits and pieces, then go to a transmission shop.
Today I would just go looking for another transmission and plan on doing a remove & replace along with a new clutch kit and flywheel. The hourly labor rate is so high now that I am not interested in learning that more than a synchro and cog are about to be junk!
The easy availability of low mileage transmissions puts a labor intensive rebuild off my list of desirable ways to go.