Hello all. I had "Mrs. Jones" off the jackstands for the first time today
since my wheel fell off -- and after completing the installation of new
carpet to go with the new seats. It was about 60 degrees outside and sunny.
Not content to take a mere test drive around the block, I decided to wheel
over to the DMV and get this thing registered and pick up my "1967 MK3"
personalized plates. I have the paperwork, but the DMV won't give me the
registration until they see the car.
Well, the DMV was closed, and it's a good thing anyway, because I have what
I believe is a small problem. I can't get the car to accelerate in first
gear.
Here's the deal: When I purchased the car, the PO told me that he'd put in
a Mk2 gearbox along the way. It's in great shape and shifted very nice, but
he had juryrigged a toggle switch on the dash for the back-up lights --
until another list member GENEROUSLY offered to swap me a Mk3 gearbox top in
an even trade. Wow! That was too great of a deal to pass up. I swapped
the top and had trouble getting it back on, so in order to get past a
problem with the reverse lever getting in the way, I shifted the top (only)
into reverse, lined up the forks (or so I thought) and reassembled. The
STRANGE thing is, every other gear works fine. And it SEEMS like I can
shift into first gear. It feels right. Only, when I lift off the clutch,
the car seems to be "locked" in gear and if I continued to lift the clutch
pedal, I'm sure the engine would stall.
I don't think that there is any damage being done, but obviously, I dropped
the ball somewhere. Can anyone tell me what's happening and how I can
remove and replace the top properly so it doesn't happen again? I was
pretty surprised, because I THOUGHT I'd gotten it right.
The good news is, the engine was running great, the Monza exhaust was loud
and I was a nervous wreck, keeping in mind all the work I've done on this
car without knowing what in the hell I'm doing, ha ha. It was a strange
feeling. Alternately tense, alternately in heaven. And for a few brief
flashes, the feeling of pride that I felt when driving the same year and
model of car when I was 16-18 years old. What a rush.
And the wheels stayed on. So far...
Best wishes,
Jeff in San Diego
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