My gears used to crunch when engaging first gear, and the gearchange action was stiff. Now it's loose and it’s impossible to engage first or second gear at all. What’s wrong with my car?
The mechanic says...
Almost certainly this is a gearbox problem, rather than a clutch-related ailment, which would predominantly be noticeable when engaging first and reverse gears. The fact that the gearchange has freed up, and that you are unable to engage first or second gears at all now indicates trouble either with the gearchange linkage, or with the geartrain mechanism inside the gearbox.
To establish where the fault lies, take the car either to a transmission specialist or a competent mechanic, to find out first whether the problem lies in the external gearchange linkage (so probably easier to rectify), or within the gearbox. In this case, almost certainly the gearbox will need to be removed from the car for a stripdown and examination.
Bear in mind too that if the gears have been crunching for some time, some additional damage may have been caused to the gear teeth; this will need to be assessed when the gearbox is dismantled. Ultimately, and depending on the extent of the damage discovered, it may be more cost-effective to have a complete replacement gearbox installed than to have your own original unit repaired.
