Crunching Those Gears? Why It Could Be a Faulty Synchromesh

Automotive Blog

Do you enjoy driving a car with a manual gearbox? Many people love the greater amount of control they seem to have. Yet you may have noticed some issues recently. For example, maybe you're not able to engage gears as smoothly as normal. For some reason, they seem to crunch together when you shift instead of engaging smoothly. What could be the cause of these gearbox issues?

Making Your Life Easier

Many years ago, when a gearbox was a much simpler device, the driver would have to focus on maintaining the correct number of engine revolutions before they could even change gear. They also had to 'double declutch' so that they could achieve the perfect mechanical environment before changing up or down.

Since that time, however, engineers have come up with a solution known as a synchromesh. Usually, this clever device will allow you to execute a perfect change no matter what the speed of the engine or road condition encountered. So if you're having problems engaging gear, the synchromesh unit in your gearbox may be faulty.

How It Works

Essentially, the synchromesh is similar to a secondary clutch and is placed on the main output shaft within the gearbox. It helps to modify the speed at which each gear turns in relation to the main output shaft so that the teeth on each gear will mesh perfectly and without that awful 'crunching' noise.

To be more technical, the synchromesh component has an inner spline that connects with the output shaft and an outer spline that connects with the gear. When you begin the process of changing gears by moving the stick, a special ring begins to attach to the selected gear while the synchromesh clutch slows the gear down to accommodate.

This all happens in a split second so that the two gears are moving in harmony with each other before the actual shift is performed. Without the synchromesh it would take additional time for one gear to slow down sufficiently to meet up with the other and the external cogs would grate together.

Getting Needed Repairs 

Your gearbox is an amazing feat of engineering and something that the average driver takes for granted. However, from time to time internal components are going to wear out and you need to take the vehicle into a mechanic for gearbox repairs so that they can figure out what is wrong and ensure that you can drive your vehicle safely.

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24 July 2018

Automotive Fun and Advice

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