STUCK IN 3RD, CAN'T SHIFT OUT, NO MATTER WHAT FORCE ON SHIFTER

 

ea81 4spd dr plenty of oil, clutch works

 

what do I do now?

 

4wd hi and low works

Start looking for a 5spd D/R to put in. Sounds like the tranny went south.

I have to concur with Rob. We've had two that did the same thing. I replaced one with a 4 speed and the other with a 5 speed. Nothing you can do that I'm aware of without going into the gearbox.

Try rocking the car back and forth. My Brat sticks in 4th now and then - I have to slip the clutch and get it moving just a bit to get it to come out. Only does it when you are completely stopped, so I have learned to take it out of 4th before stopping.

 

GD

Rick, funny how the 4 speed trannies all seem to do the same thing. Another one of our cars had the exact same symptom. We learned to take it out of 4th before coming to a stop; otherwise it would get stuck.

I "could" stick in my 85 dr from the wagon, or the 82 dr from McBrat's red brat, if I really had to

 

would an ea81 5spd fwd work?

Not sure if an EA81 5 speed would fit, but you'd lose the ability of 4WD; all those trannies were 2WD only.

I've put an EA81 FWD 5 speed into a 4WD body - it goes right in. There's no clearance issues like going the other way, and the stud for the shifter assembly is already present. No problem at all. It will even work with the same clutch, as the splines are the same too. You can just leave the rear end - just unbolt the driveshaft from the diff.

 

GD