94 Metro 5 Speed Manual Transmission Rebuild

[DOCTORBILL]

I am starting the disassembly of the '94 Geo Metro 5 Speed Manual Transmission
which I bought at a Pull & Save recently for $55.



See http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...d.php?t=937095
for that part of the story.

For removing the Transmission, you might have a look at
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...d.php?t=907782

My transmission is making bearing noise, so I am rebuilding this
"spare" hoping it is ready as an Organ Transplant for my '93 Metro,
The Phoenix, whose engine I rebuilt a year and a half ago
and posted here on this forum.

Bought the Transparts Warehouse "standard Transmission and transfer case
Overhaul Kit" for $172 (shipping included) on Ebay and have it here.



They actually included a little "treat" - a piece of candy....

What is not in this Kit are "Needle" or "Roller" Bearings !

So when you remove those needle / roller bearings further on, take special care
not to damage them.

I am not sure they can be replaced....(?)

Also purchased the '89 - '97 Geo Metro Exedy Clutch Kit from
theimportexperts.com on Ebay for $109.55 (shipping included).



Both arrived quickly w/o any problems.

I sprayed GUNK on the Transmission and spray cleaned it at a coin operated car
wash - it looks nice and ready for surgery...

I am using the Manual as a guide which is given here:
http://www.teamswift.net/viewtopic.php?p=145642
Each page was copied to my Hard Disk so that I can view them whenever I
need them w/o having to go online.

So far, everything has come apart easily.

Took the Left Steel Cover off and now have the 5th gear off.

Buy a Snap Ring Pliers ! You'll need a Metric Allen Wrench also.

Be ready for the stench of the Transmission Oil...God does it stink !

The fifth gear came off simply by pulling gently.

I'm taking pictures and trying not to F**k this up.

There are so many Photos - This Thread may load very slowly if you have dialup...

I will post this here as I go along - but I am going to take my time and do it
properly - at least for a 66 year old amateur club fingered beer drinking dufus
who can't see well up close any more.

Be patient - this will probably take a month or so.

BTW - once everything has loaded (all photos done) you can save the entire
thread by clicking on FILE | Save Page as... and then pick the place on your Hard Drive.

Look at it later by clicking FILE | Open File and it should display offline.

DoctorBill

............Damn! It is hot down here.........

[DOCTORBILL]

I cleaned out my "work area" in my shop next to our heating oil tank, set up a collapsible table,
covered it with Visqueen, then Newspapers and took some preliminary photos.



The Beer Bottle was used for size reference as I figured most everyone would be familiar with the size -
and besides...it was close at hand.





Am using a couple of diagrams that came from Teamswift to keep me on track.



I most sincerely advise you to print out the diagram below ! This gets very complex...



Here the black "Left Cover" is removed showing the 5th Gear on the end of the Input Shaft and the
the CounterShaft 5th gear.



I am using the words from the diagram ! I wouldn't know the input shaft from
my left ear if the truth were known.





I used a "Snap Ring Pliers" to remove the Snap ring on top of the Fork on the right in the
picture and also the one holding the Input Shaft 5th Gear in place.

The fork shown has a little cover on the back side which requires a Metric Allen Wrench to
unscrew revealing a Ball Bearing "Guide Ball" which can be pulled out with a magnet.

Using a punch, I then knocked out a pin holding the fork from being removed and the fork lifted
off easily along with the 5th Gear "Sleeve and Hub".













What is the yellow paint all about - has this unit been rebuilt or is that from the factory assembly process?

I cleaned all these parts with Deodorized Paint Thinner in a large jar before photographing them.

I also put each part's components into labeled plastic sandwich bags in a box to keep track.

At this point it was made very evident to me that I had better take good pictures of the gears on
the shafts as it would be easy to get confused over which one went where and with which side up?

Someone had suggested putting the gears on a stick in the order they came off to keep track of
the complexity which develops as one disassembles this bugger.

Sounds like a damned good idea!

DoctorBill

PS - I am using a Kodak Easyshare C613 6 MP digital camera on "Portrait Setting" with Flash
and editing the images with Photoshop 5.0 LE and uploading to Alkaspace.com.

[DOCTORBILL]

Having removed the 5th Gear and Fork on the Left Side, I had to grind off the
Counter Shaft nut's "staking" indentation.



It was so well punched in that I couldn't force it back out with my punch.
I was afraid that I would damage the shaft, so I ground it off with a "Moto Tool"
wheel.

I'll have to buy a new nut. They are like the nuts on the end of the axle shafts in front.

Now I am at an impasse....

I cannot figure out a way to hold the Counter Shaft from turning while I twist off
the nut.

I tried putting a rag between the Counter Shaft Gear and the 5th Gear on the
Input Shaft, but the gears just cut the rag up like a pencil sharpener...!

I hope I can finger out what to do and not have to BUY that damned "Special Tool"...



Later.....I just found a post at the bottom of

http://www.teamswift.net/viewtopic.p...710d5e95f5a121

which says, "..... remove the shift selector first. Then you can reach into the case and move all three
shift shafts up or down, locking up the gearbox. That way, the counter-shaft can't turn when
you try to turn the nut.

Guess I will do that....thanks Joe_G.

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

I am following the sequence in the Transmission Rebuild link cited previously.

The next thing to remove was the Left Case "Gear Shift & Select Shaft" case cover plate.
There is a "O" - Ring under it acting as the seal.



Set the shifter to have the shift rod in the middle of the hole (neutral I think).
Take the Yoke Bolt out later.

Then the Gear Fork Shaft Bolts were taken out (use a socket wrench not a phillips head screwdriver!)

The "Bolts" come out then you have to fish out the springs.
NOTE that the center spring is the longest spring....
Use a magnetized screw driver to attract the Steel Balls - Watch It !
They bounce and roll as if alive - they get lost easily !



I took out the four bolts holding the "Gear Shift & Select Assembly" cover on.

Then the "Gear Shift Interlock" bolt below the cover.

The cover was difficult to remove - well glued on! I finally tapped on the two
diagonal back flanges with a rod and hammer to get it separated from the case.
See the second picture below -= flanges on upper right & lower left.

Not wanting to score the seal, I gently pried the cover forward and saw
the guide pins on diagonal corners.

This means it cannot be removed except straight out. I pulled the cover straight out and off.
Now you can take the "Yoke Bolt" out - see beginning of this post.





I got brave and pulled the Shift Rod out after taking the Yoke Bolt out.



Wiped it off, wrapped it in a paper towel and stored it in a drawer.

Here is what the opening looks like inside.



While the Transmission was blocked up, I rotated the Input Shaft by hand and
moved the Gear Selector Tabs up or down with a screw driver until the shafts
locked up.



All the selector tabs were toward the Bell end of the Transmission.

Now I can unscrew the nut on the Counter Shaft end.

I hope I don't strip any gears doing so....

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

Try as I could, I couldn't turn the Counter Shaft End Nut...

So I decided to cut it off using my trusty old 5/8 inch Nut Splitter.

So I cut it as far as I could with the Moto-Tool thin disk cutter and then put the
Nut Splitter to it....

After a little blade action, the recalcitrant nut eased right off with a 16 inch wrench.



I'll buy a new one - I thought....

Chevy has them - but you have to order ten of them !
Napa doesn't sell them....

Schucks (PartsAmerica.com) had some - so I bought one
Mazda M1 Spindle Nut - part No. 615-103.1 for $7.50.
Not the same shape, but I suppose it will do....(?)
You'd think I was buying some part for the Space Shuttle, for God's sake !



After that, I removed the Reverse Shaft Bolt (page 7A-18) and started on the
Left case Plate covering the ends of the shafts.

There are six Phillips head bolts holding that plate down.
Three turned (with difficulty) and three wouldn't budge...Time for POWER !

I found a large Phillips head bit in my Impact Wrench set and it fit into a socket
wrench bit !

Using this



I got them to turn easily !



The plate came off revealing the Shim on the Countershaft end and the large ball
bearing race on the input shaft.



The Input Shaft Sleeve shown above is on the shaft very tight and is right up
against the ball bearing inner race.
I have tried using a sharp wood chizel to ease it up, but is is very tight and I can't get anything under it to pull it off.

I may try some heat (torch - not much!) to get it up.

More to come after I have a big bowl of Chili and a Beer......I'm hungry.

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

Took off the bolts around the case and the two inside the Bell and rapped the
bell in several places with a rubber mallot and it came apart.

Lifted the left case off of the Bell and there it was....


Please excuse the colors in the photo - fluorescent light and high contrast.

NOW THIS THING REALLY STINKS ! Transmission Fluid....makes me sneeze.

Once I get all the parts out of the case, I think I will take both halves back to
the car wash and wash this smelly fluid away...

Time to really study the manual pages because the complication just went up an
order of magnitude (10x).

Transmission Repair Manual --- just thought I'd reference it again...

This calls for a Beer or two and some close studying.

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

Following the manual, (page 7A-18) I removed the reverse gear and it's shaft.





Notice the white plastic washer on the reverse gear shaft....


I then removed the 5th and Reverse Gear Shift Shafts as per the manual.

It took a bit of twisting and gently pulling to get them out as one unit.





So far, the only thing that won't come out easily is the sleeve on the
input shaft end in the photo above.



I removed the two shafts all together by tapping on the Input shaft inside the Bell
with a rubber mallot and they popped out.




DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

The manual says to remove the Countershaft end bearing cap with a "Blind Hole Bearing Puller".



The end bearing cap can be seen above.

I tried to gently pry it out to no avail.....didn't want to damage it or the Aluminum case.

So I broke open the chains around my wallet and purchased a "Blind Hole Bearing Puller"
at Harbor freight for $30 and used one of their 20% off coupons which they
often send you by E-Mail if you subscribe to their mailers. Not bad.....

BTW - what is that little white paint dot on the end of the Bearing Race ?
Has this transmission been rebuilt before this ?



I probably could have rented it for $10 per day, but now it is 'my precious'....another tool in my arsenal.

Later in the day -

So nice....the Blind Hole Bearing Puller is too small to remove the Bearing End Cap !

I suppose there is a "special Large one" just for Transmissions....

I had to "...Improvise, Adapt, Overcome..." as Gunnie Highway would say in "Heartbreak Ridge".

So I tried using a large Drywall Screw and a pair of Wire Crimpers as shown in the following photo.



It actually started working - until it became obvious that the Differential Gear is in the way of the Bearing End Cap
from coming out of its hole. I should have noticed that ahead of time...
A big nail would have worked better - flat head instead of sloped as on the drywall screw.

So I removed the Speedometer Case Assembly next



followed by the Shift Lever.

WARNING ! - when you pull out the Shift Rod, there is a Ball Bearing which comes out !

Do not allow this Ball Bearing to get away from you....It is held in there by the "Gear Shift Shaft Bolt"
seen at the bottom of page 7A - 19 of the Manual.

It will fall out when the Gear Shift Shaft is removed.



Then I removed the Differential Gear.

Just lift the Differential straight out ! - it lifts out easily !



I did not know the Differential lifts out at first, so some of these photos still have it
in the case.

Put the Differential in a wide open vise to keep the sides from turning and use a long wrench to remove the bolts.

Just don't squeeze the gears in the Differential.



Once the Differential gear was out, I pried the Bearing End Cap off using a simple minded Nail Puller
with a Half Inch Nut underneath as a pivot !

The end cap was not in there very hard, it just gets stuck if pried out unevenly...

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

Have had visitors at my house for several days - couldn't get to the Transmission.

In trying to get set up to pull the Gears and Bearings off of the Shafts, I had to
figure out a way to hold the Shafts upright.

I finally figured out a way to hold them w/o damaging them.

We'll see if this works......taking off the Input Shaft "R" Bearing....
This Ball Bearing has the number 6204 on it.



Everything wants to turn while I torque off the Bearing....!



Finally the center bolt started to turn easily as the Bearing "Broke Loose - Let Go" and came off.



The next thing will be to pull off the "5th Gear Spacer" and the "L" Bearing (has the number 6206 on it)
on the other end of the Input Shaft as per page 7A-22 shown beside the Shaft in the picture.

I found that the Gear & Bearing Puller has inadequate length bolts to accommodate
the gears and bearings on this little car's transmission shafts ! WHY ?

So, as Way already said in his thread on rebuilding this transmission,
http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...d.php?t=934930
I had to go out and buy longer bolts....



Note that I bought 5/8 inch Nuts to use as "Spacers" on the 1/2 Bolt.



Whatever the Chinese used for 1/2 inch Bolts in this Puller Kit are not threaded either American or Metric !
No nut at the store would thread onto them....(?)

More to come...onward !

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

Oh boy...things are getting complicated quickly !

I found a way to turn the Gear & Bearing Puller without the whole shooting match
turning with it.

I clamped the top crossbar "Bracket", as it is called in the G&B Puller manual, into my
large Vise.



Then I thought - not everyone has a big vise - so I tried this (below) and it works too !



The wrench has to be turned HARD and then all at once it "cracks" and everything
starts coming off (moving) if you keep turning the wrench.
If you stop for a moment, it clamps up again....

Once the "5th Gear Spacer" and the "L" Bearing on the other end of the Input Shaft
are off, there are many parts to keep track of - I mean the order in which they came off.

I decided a ROPE would keep them in order and allow me to put them in a drawer or box easily.



This is what is left on the Input Shaft - there is now a "Circlip" that has to be removed.



Here is a closeup of said "Circlip" I took with a 3x eyeloup against the camera lens.



The Engineers who developed and continually improve these transmissions are astounding geniuses !

Imagine a Military Helicopter Rotor Transmission or some of the stuff on the Space Shuttle !

More to come....

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

The High Speed Hub & Sleeve came apart and I removed it.

The Circlip was a Bastard to remove...it is not very flexible and was pinched by
the Hub & Sleeve Assembly on half of it's circumference.

Once it was off, I had to flatten it and squeeze it back to round in my vise.
If that got ruined - couldn't be replaced !



Here is the Circlip, High Speed Sleeve, Keys and Springs



This shows how the Keys go back into the Hub & Sleeve Assembly



I pulled the High Speed Hub and Input Shaft 3rd Gear off using the Puller, cleaned
everything off and reassembled the Hub & Sleeve.

The High Speed Sleeve is flat on one side and curved on the other and the ridges
inside are notched where the Keys go.



Neither the Hub nor the Sleeve are symmetrical - one side is different than the other
and they go on one way only...



Below is the Input Shaft 3rd Gear and Synchronizer with the Roller Bearing set inserted - just for the photo -
the roller bearings go on the shaft alone before the gear goes on.

The Roller Bearing Set is a PLASTIC Sleeve that you carefully spread open to remove
from the shaft - if it broke - God Help you....!



Finally, this is the Input Shaft with the above components showing where they go.



I went to talk to a GM Parts Dealer Manager and he was kind enough to look up
the Roller (Needle) Bearings in his Computer.

All the Roller (Needle) Bearings have been discontinued by GM, but the GM parts place can order
them from "Vintage Parts" (?) for you and the Part numbers and current prices are on the diagram below.



I was told that if the Roller (Needle) Bearings are without grooves on them, that they
are still good....

Thank God for these photos because I am already forgetting how things came off.
Some of these things are not symmetrical and have to go back on the shafts in
a particular way !

I hope that I have not misrepresented anything here !

If I have, please PM me and let me know - I will correct any errors ASAP !

I will really have to study all these photos when I reassemble this puzzle.

Tomorrow, if time permits from grading Labs, will have a go at the Counter Shaft...

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

This evening before hitting the sack, I started pulling off the Countershaft "L" Bearing Cone
and 4th Gear using my trusty puller....as per the Manual's instructions.



Man this one does not want to budge !

Have a look at Page 7A - 25 - 1 of the Manual !
Posted here on 2-7-09 at 11:14 pm

It says, "Caution: Use puller and press that will bear 5 ton (11,000 lbs) safely"

Then, further down, "Caution: If compression exceeds 5 ton (11,000 lbs), release compression once,
reset puller support and then continue press work again.

Holy crap ! How would I know how much force I'm using with my socket wrench ?!

I torqued it down and heard a loud SNAP. Don't see anything broken...(?)
Nothing is moving though, like the other shaft's goodies....so I am leaving it torqued under
stress and going to bed.
Maybe it will start moving during the night....lol.

.............well, it wouldn't come off this morning !

I decided to pull off the L Bearing by itself, contrary to the Manual instructions.
Maybe the Bearing was adding too much resistance to the both of them (?)

The L Bearing "Popped" loudly and came off using the Puller inverted with the cup shape up.



Here is the Information on the L Bearing itself:
JAPAN - KOYO - HI-CAP - 32004JR-N - LFT (for what is is worth).

This is how the 4th Gear looks with the L Bearing removed.
Notice the Gear's orientation on the shaft...



Here I am pulling the 4th gear with the puller clamped to my Vise so it won't turn as
I loosen it.
It also "popped" and came off as I turned the wrench continuously so it wouldn't lock up again.

I guess I was right - the Bearing and Gear were "too much" to pull off together !



Here are the 4th Gear and a "3rd & 4th Gear Spacer", the latter which is loose on the shaft.



More to come....

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

Last night I lubed the Main Puller Bolt with "LubriPlate" and tried pulling the Countershaft
3rd and 2nd Gears. BTW - the 2nd Gear spins freely.

No way - again, would not budge....so I left the puller under tension all night.

The next morning, I loosened it and then retightened it until I heard the proverbial "Snap"
and turned the wrench continuously until the gears came off.



After cleaning the gears up with solvent I assembled them in order as they go on
the Countershaft and in the correct orientation.



Now I am back to another one of those damned "Circlips" to remove...hate those buggers!

After screwing around with my Snap Ring pliers, trying to get the damned Circlip out (without any progress),
I had an idea....

I touched the OUTSIDE tips of my Needle Nose Pliers to the grindstone (you could use a file) and then drilled
a small "pit" into the new flat portion (you could probably use a pointed punch!), thus making a "Circlip Remover"... I am a genius...

By spreading the Clip open and pivoting my hand down, the Circlip slipped "out'a da the slot - quicker'n snot"....

The Circlip has sharp points at the end which fit into the pit in my new "remover".



After the "Circlip" was removed, I applied the Bearing Puller to the bottom side of the 1st Gear to remove both the gear
and the "Low Speed Synchronizer Hub and Sleeve".

I started to tighten the pressure bolt with my hand before using the wrench on it and to my surprise,
everything started to come off just by finger turning the main loosening bolt on the Gear Puller.

You might be able to just pull the Low Speed Synchronizer Hub and Sleeve off by hand!

Here is the positioning and orientation of those components on the Countershaft.

Notice that there is a Needle Bearing Set that the 1st Gear rotates on.

Today, I E-Mailed the folks who sell the Transmission Rebuild Kit and asked if they sell the replacement Needle Bearings.

NO ! They do not ! If you damage the Needle Bearings on these shafts, you may be very much S.O.L.

I have doubts that anyone sells them anymore!



Here is my "Hoard on a Cord" of what came off the Countershaft so as to keep it in order.



Lastly, one has to pull off the R Bearing from the right side end of the Countershaft.

I had to run into a problem somewhere.....

My Bearing Puller is not THIN enough to enter the space between the bearing and that integral gear
(part of the shaft) on the end of the countershaft !

I tried, but the puller just ripped the covering off of the bearing rollers and they popped out.

I suppose I've broken this bearing and made it useless (the kit should have the replacement, though !)



I have been trying to get the Bearing Puller to slip into that slot to no avail.



I tried to grasp the Front Lip of the Bearing as shown here



But the Bearing Lip Broke off a portion with a loud Bang !



I am at a loss for a method of pulling this Bearing.

Maybe grind it off with a thin MotoTool diamond wheel ? Break it, as it were, like a nut ?

Any Ideas anyone ? Private Message (PM) me please if you have any ideas.

DoctorBill

PS - If anyone knows where you can get new Needle Bearings for this Transmission,
please PM me with the information and I'll pass it along.

[DOCTORBILL]

I decided to make some cuts in the Bearing and split it off.



Looking on the Internet via Google, I found all sorts of suggestions.

Put several welds on it with an electric Stick welder - makes it expand locally and
it will pop off with a light tap.
If not, you have the weld blob to grab onto with the Puller....(!)

Cut it with a Moto-Tool in two places and hit it with a chisel.

Bash the Bearing hard with a Hammer and it will deform enough to let go.

Made two grooves about 1/4 inch apart then I removed a portion of the R Bearing Race,
heated it up with a blowtorch, banged it with a Hammer, left it under pull tension overnight
and this morning it finally started to move !

It must have become hot where it started to slide because I smelled hot oil when
I was turning the wrench !



I had damaged the Countershaft end very slightly with the Moto-Tool cutter,
but this should not bother anything...



I hope getting the new one on won't be such a bugger as getting it off was !




More to come....

DoctorBill

[DOCTORBILL]

Grasping the large Ball bearing on top of the Differential Final Gear Plate, I lifted
and the entire Differential Assembly just came out of the case !

I wish I had done that before! - would have made taking the Final Gear off easier...

Here are some views of the Differential Assembly and the numbers off of the Ball Bearings (BB) on either end.



The Left Side BB next to the Final Gear Mounting Plate is wobbly, but the right side BB seems tight.

The Rebuild Kit from E-Bay contains Both Differential Ball Bearings (6207 and 6007) so that I can pull both off and replace them.

I removed the Ball Bearing units from the Differential with the Bearing Puller - but ran into a problem.

The center hole is huge and the Bearing Puller has a small conical center "bit"
which works fine for small diameter shafts with small center holes - as before.

The Bit must push against the center Shaft of the Differential - and HARD !
What was I to do ?

I had tried a layer of bigger washers, but they collapse under the high pressure the Bearing Puller applies.

Here is how I solved that problem - Machinists - Don't laugh at me! This worked...
I don't have lots of $$$ for all sorts of tools...these cost $4.15

Various one inch Bolts, Flair Nuts and Washers - the Bolts self center in the washers.
Grind or file the washers to fit inside large bore center holes in Bearings...
Drill a center hole in the tops of the Bolts to accept the conical Bearing Puller bit.





I was told by a Clutch Shop owner that there are no bearings inside of the above Differential...

Here is what the Right Side Case looks like without the Differential Assembly in place.



Notice the clinging black crap coating the case. It comes off by rubbing with Kleenex very easily.

This indicates to me that a good "Flush" of the transmission at, say, 100,000 miles
might do a world of good. Get rid of that black stuff - whatever it is.

It is probably a bit abrasive and might lessen the transmission's life expectancy. (?)

More to come...going to bed!

DoctorBill