Hello everyone,

I'll try to be brief, but I would really like some advice/input!

Two years ago my father purchased a 2002 Boxster S with 30,000 miles on it for my mother to daily drive during the summer. It was Certified Pre-Owned from a Porsche dealer. We (99% my mom) have put 10,000 more miles on it since then. Throughout the first year of ownership I would sometimes experience issues with engaging second gear. This happened very rarely, but the transmission felt like it was in gear then I heard a faint grinding when lifting the clutch. Popping it into neutral then back into gear again would fix the situation. This happened rarely.

When I returned home from college this May and drove the car (we had just taken it out of storage), the problem was greatly exacerbated. The transmission can be shifted into second without a problem the majority of the time, but it takes "technique". When I do it, I put the car in neutral then (with a bit more force than the other gears) slot it into second in two distinct motions (rather than one, fluid motion like with the other gears).

I expressed my concern to my parents (who are famous for deferred maintenance - this car wouldn't be cared for if not for me ) and we brought it in for the spring oil change and an inspection.

The Porsche dealer confirmed my fear that the issue was the somewhat common second gear synchro failure. The Certified Pre-Owned warranty is apparently "Type 1" or "The Old Kind" where it is more limited (what?) and doesn't cover "wear items" like synchros. The best we could do is have the transmission disassembled at our cost and evaluated. If the synchro has been "abused," we must pay to have it fixed. If not, the warranty might cover it. The unfortunate issue is that the CPO warranty was ~10 days expired when we brought it in...

Now I understand where Porsche is coming from on this and I understand that they want to ensure that the car has not been abused. That being said, the car has only been in our possession for 10K miles and driven gently by my mom (who has driven manual transmission equipped cars for 10-15+ years), and sparingly by my father and me.

As the owner of a VW Corrado with failing 3rd and 4th gear synchros (it has 200K miles), I know how to baby a transmission and I know that slamming gears isn't necessary and is, in fact, stupid. I much prefer a fluid and relaxed shifting motion that is less strenuous on the transmission...besides the street isn't a race track.

Now, the question is: could it possibly be anything other than a failing synchro? I know what failing synchros feel like (see above) and this feels nothing like that. There is no grinding at all when slotting into gear no matter how you shift. There is no popping out of gear at any time whatsoever. There is only the issue of the gear failing to completely engage as if the linkage is just slightly out of alignment.

I know that a company, I think GMG Racing, acknowledges the second gear issue and offers a part (some shift detent pin or something) that is apparently not machined deep enough from the factory. Could this be our issue? I just don't understand how the synchro could be going with no grinding at all, ever.

Sorry for the long post. My dad has been dragging his feet for a month over this and I just want to get the problem addressed. My mom currently skips second gear and upshifts from first to third while driving. It works fine, but she shouldn't have to do that. I just want my parents to get this damn thing fixed before the second gear assembly itself has to be replaced. I repeatedly tell my parents that deferred maintenance is no joke and repeatedly get yelled at for it. I've spoken to the dealer about it myself and they confirmed that the longer we wait, the less likely it is that Porsche will give us any sort of "goodwill" coverage.

So again, could it POSSIBLY be anything other than the synchro?

Thank you all very much.

 

There's not really any way around it. You're going to need to get 2nd gear rebuilt.

 

yup, i see a rebuilt tranny in your future. well not the complete transmission, just a few gears.

 

OK. That's what I figured. It's hard to doubt the dealer when they tell you what's going on, but my experience with blown/going synchros has always been that the gears grind when you shift.

I just wish my dad would stop dragging his feet and just do it before either him or my mom hurt second gear any more.

 

This happened to mine. I changed the tranny fluid and it helped A LOT! GOod luck

 

Mine sometimes is a fight getting into fourth but nothing like what you're describing.. I plan on changing the transmission fluid as soon as I get it!

 

This happened in my 02 C2. Had to have 2nd gear replaced. $4400 including a new clutch

 

Now, the question is: could it possibly be anything other than a failing synchro? I know what failing synchros feel like (see above) and this feels nothing like that. There is no grinding at all when slotting into gear no matter how you shift.

To reactivate an old post, I just solved this problem on my car. 2000 Boxster S with 52,000 miles. It acted exactly like wiggle_puppy's car. I installed the Gbox detent and the car shifts great. I must have caught mine early before any internal damage was done. The repair took about 1 and 1/2 hours, but I could do it again in 20 minutes.

The main reason I tried the Gbox solution was the fact that I had a 930 with failing syncros and this transmission did not feel the same at all. I don't know why it works, it may not work on your car, but I do know "I was blind but now I can see", I guess that's "shift into second".

 

Good to know. I also have a 2000 986 S with 52,000 miles on it and I don't have any issues with shifting, but if I do I will look at this Gbox detent (assuming similar symptoms). Thanks for the post.