[girly] Gear crunching - what does it do to the car?

[Emzay]

In the long-run/damage sense I mean. I've had a quick google but all the results are about issues relating to certain cars (mostly shoguns actually ).

See today I accidently crunched the gears going into third - yes, nasty noise etc. Car changed gear fine after that but when I got to college and parked, it stalled in neutral :s. And I noticed it wouldn't really go into neutral it was either halfway to 2nd or halfway to 4th :s - almost as if I'd de-aligned the gearstick :/ (if that makes any sense). So i re-started, reversed it out n lined meself up neatly, but then it sort of did a little stall AGAIN in neutral when I'd stopped.

Now when I came out n drove home it was fine & all the gears seem in the right place etc and I had no issues parking it on the drive.
So I just thought that as a silly girly driver I'd ask you folk, what does gear crunching actually do to the car? I have a vague understanding of gears etc but I'd like a clear version of events. I don't make a habit of this or anything but what damage would a series of gear crunches eventually do?

I don't mean to be dense and I have googled but couldn't find anything, also are there any 'general car knowledge' type sites/books I could check out? Or should I just ask mechanically minded men-folk as and when? . I like to know how what I'm driving works etc.

[Rave]

Crunching gears could result in the teeth on the cogs in the gearbox getting broken off; if that happened I would imagine that the gearbox wouldn't be long for this world, since the cogs would be unbalanced, and the broken off teeth would then proceed about the gearbox mashing up the other gears. Regular crunching could also damage the gearbox bearings I reckon.

To be honest though, you'd be unlucky if a little crunch here and there did long lasting damage, if your car is still working fine I wouldn't worry about it. Did the car jump when it stalled? That would suggest that it had stuck in gear, if it just stalled for no apparent reason it'll be something other than the gearbox. Do make sure that you change gear slowly and deliberatly though, there's no real advantage to slamming gears in and out quickly unless you're on a trackday or something.

[Zak33]

1 INA MILLION CHANCE YOU RUINED ANYTHING..

Bet you're safe as houses

[schmunk]

the broken off teeth would then proceed about the gearbox mashing up the other gears.

I had that happen to my 1st Gen Clio (not my fault, it was 3 years old when we bought it). I lost 5th gear on the motorway...

It cost £1,500 to repair - luckily we had a 3-year extended warranty from the garage, so it was all free. They stopped offering this warranty fairly soon after...

[Tumble]

he's right.. I sometimes get reverse when i change from 5th to 4th too quickly... thing hasn't fallen apart yet.. just wish they'd put reverse in a sensible place..

[Emzay]

1 INA MILLION CHANCE YOU RUINED ANYTHING..

Bet you're safe as houses

Hope so! I didn't half poop me pants when it wouldn't settle in neutral! Was imagining me dad saying 'right thats it your never driving again!!!' etc

Everything seems fine now though

[iMc]

everyone gear crunches once in a while... just one of those things.

[madman045]

Aye, it will be fine, just dont do what I did & miss 5th & try 3rd at 70!

Makes the engine scream its bits off though

[muddyfox470]

yep on the car i share, a peugeot 405, the gearbox aint the nicest, but for a bizarre reason, sometimes when chaning from 4th into 3rd, i.e. push the stick straight up u get a crunching sound, not a very nice sound. however i now believe it is due to me sometimes pushing the stick a bit to fast but i dunno!

1st is hard to get into mind!

but hey its an old car (k reg) worth nothing so see what happens when she dies! (the stereo has stopped working...)

EDIT : I ve had a few threats from me parents about not driving the car again, when i decided to put petrol in the diesel (405) and then while flustered managed to make a bit of a crack in the bumper hitting a concrete bollard! lol. the engine is fine and i love my 405 tis like a TANK! rofl!

[Shad]

however i now believe it is due to me sometimes pushing the stick a bit to fast but i dunno!

Sounds like worn synchro rings, or not getting the clutch down in time. Can happen easily if the bite point is at the floor, though this could also indicate the clutch either needs adjusting and/or it's on the way out. My race car is going to have a dog box so I can just plain forget about the clutch

Like Zak said Emzay, everything is probably fine! The only similar thing I've ever had was when the gear linkage jammed on my 147. I could only more the lever forward into 3rd and that was it

[Emzay]

everyone gear crunches once in a while... just one of those things.

Yeah that's not quite what I was getting at - more the problem afterwards.

Thanks guys, I just like to know how things work etc

[doctor_prox]

What you hear isnt actually the gears crunching, its the selector not sliding into the socket. All of the gears turn together regardless, you just engage the one you want.
Anyway, it does less harm than it sounds but its still not good.

[Tumble]

Yeah that's not quite what I was getting at - more the problem afterwards.

Thanks guys, I just like to know how things work etc

If you REALLY wanna know how stuff works.. go here: http://www.howstuffworks.com/ - you can find out how EVERYTHING works on there. That place showed me how aero engine magnetos work

[Stringent]

Gear crunching + time + keep doing it = Messed up car. What more do you need to know?

[megah0]

fantastic link Tumble

[5lab]

on older cars if you get crunching when downshifting - it might help to double de clutch - it cirtainly does on my old volvo- quick blip and the gear slips straight in