[McLaren Rulez]

It's often said that the Polo has one of the best gearboxes in the business. However, I'm not able to master it so this is as much a driver technique question as it is a technical question. I struggle to shift smoothly into first, second and fifth gears - specifically, the shifting action of my left hand is not as seamless as it should be.

Let's say I want to engage first gear from neutral.

1) I move the gear lever left. This part is fine.
2) I now move the lever forward.

As I do step 2, the lever gives me two distinct clunks instead of just one. I checked some YouTube videos and this effect is extremely clear in the following video at 3:30 (he is engaging fifth).

https://youtu.be/PJSyvYPai68?t=209

It is also present in a few other videos so I'm sure it's not just my car. What's going on here? Why doesn't the gearbox go smoothly into the fifth gear gate? Why does it have this "in between" point on its way to fifth? The same effect exists when one tries to shift into first or second too. I should add that there are times when I manage to slot smoothly, but I can't do it every time. I usually feel that in between clunk!

Because of this issue, I am unable to shift smoothly and it is particularly annoying in situations where I want a quick getaway but it takes me an age to slot from first into second. Any advice on how to tame this tricky gearbox?

[dhanushs]

You need to go to the workshop and take a look at the selector cable/mechanism and adjust/replace it.

[SH1N1G4MI]

Yeah, the shifter is a bit finicky. Do you have the diesel or the petrol. Both have different gear boxes with the petrol having the smoother one.

Getting into 5th is a bit tricky at first but once you get the hang of it, it shouldn't be any more difficult than 3-4 . What you have to do is; you're in 4th - push the gear lever with relatively firm force at a 60° angle(upwards and to the right togather) in one fluid movement. Don't try and go into neutral, its a single movement from 4th to 5th. The gate into 5th is not right angled from neutral , its curved upward like a parabola so even if you're going from 4-neutral-5th like the guy in the video(a highly inefficient method if I'm honest) pushing up at a 45° angle, after you've pushed it all the way right to the entrance of the gate to 5th, is your best bet.


From neutral to 1st :- don't jam it into first straight away from neutral when you're at a stand still. When you're stopped the part of the gearbox attached to the wheel is stopped while the part attached to the flywheel is spinning at idle engine speed. You try bringing those two into mesh at such different speeds and even with the synchros working overtime, you're gonna have some drama. So give it like 4-5 seconds after you've pushed in the clutch to slot it into 1st.

And if you're trying to get into first while on the move (a difficult task on any manual gearbox) try and double clutch, otherwise you're gonna feel the gear stick jump around in your hand when you push it in and the synchros are gonna make a blood curdling melody.

As for 1 to 2 , the synchros take their sweet time, just rev the engine higher before shifting so that you get more time while the rev falls and try to match your clutch engagement to when the engine rpm falls to near what you get when you're in 2nd gear.

Btw, how many miles has your car run? It may just be a case of worn synchros and damaged linkages.

[tharian]

Originally Posted by SH1N1G4MI

Getting into 5th is a bit tricky at first but once you get the hang of it, it shouldn't be any more difficult than 3-4 . What you have to do is; you're in 4th - give it a bit of pull to the right in 4th and push the gear lever with relatively firm force at a 60° angle(upwards and to the right togather) in one fluid movement. Don't try and go into neutral, its a single movement from 4th to 5th. The gate into 5th is not right angled from neutral , its curved upward like a parabola so even if you're going from 4-neutral-5th like the guy in the video( a highly inefficient method if I'm honest), pushing up at a 45° angle, after you've pushed it all the way right to the entrance of the gate to 5th, is your best bet.


From neutral to 1st :- don't jam it into first straight away from neutral when you're at a stand still. When you're stopped the part of the gearbox attached to the wheel is stopped while the part attached to the flywheel is spinning at idle engine speed. You try binging those two into mesh at such different speeds and even with the synchros working overtime , you're gonna have some drama. So give it like 4-5 seconds after you've pushed in the clutch to slot it into 1st.

And if you're trying to get into first while on the move(a difficult task on any manual gearbox) try and double clutch, otherwise you're gonna feel the gear stick jump around in your hand when you push it in and the synchros are gonna make a blood curdling melody.

As for 1 to 2 , the synchros take their sweet time, just rev the engine higher before shifting so that you get more time while the rev falls and try to match your clutch engagement to when the engine rpm falls to near what you get when you're in 2nd gear.

Btw, how many miles has your car run? It may just be a case of worn synchros and damaged linkages.

I don't think all this is required to be done for a simple shift on a modern car. If I remember right, the OP's car is a petrol Polo and there is one in my family too around the same age and the shift is one of the smoothest I have experienced.

In this case, I would suggest checking the linkages and cable like Dhanushs mentioned.

[scorpian]

There are two things that i can think of 1)Its a inherent design and if so should be the same on all the cars as yours, or 2) its something to do with the shifter mechanism/cables.

May i suggest you try lubing the mechanism under the gear stick and if possible try and lubricate the cables etc. I use a chain lubricant for the purpose as i am able to get more of the liquid inside with the pressure of the can and it creates a nice lubricating film as well.

I think after lubricating the system you may be able to further narrow down the issue and tackle it from there on.

[Darkman]

It is not a fault. In my polo tdi, the shifts to 1st and 2nd are bit tricky. There is a resistance point before the gear lever slots in correctly.If I shift lazily or try to be too smooth with shifts, chances are that the lever gets stuck at this point. However, after using the car for a few hundred kilometers, I mastered the shifts and use a mild force while slotting to 1st and 2nd.
3rd and 4th are really smooth shifting and requires just a dab on the lever. 5th gear is reasonably smooth as well. And IIRC, I've never experienced such issues when with a petrol polo.

[McLaren Rulez]

Thank you guys for the replies - very useful points. It is a Polo 1.2 MPi in question and it's almost four years old and has run around 23k km. At least I know one thing - this is not how it should be. I will get the linkage checked but my gut tells me that this is not the issue because

1) It's been that way since day 1.
2) Other cars (e.g. the one in the video) exhibit the same behaviour.
3) I'm not a very experienced driver (5-10k km is my lifetime total, of which maybe 4k is on the Polo).

More likely than the machine, the fault probably lies in how I shift.

Originally Posted by Darkman

It is not a fault. In my polo tdi, the shifts to 1st and 2nd are bit tricky. There is a resistance point before the gear lever slots in correctly.If I shift lazily or try to be too smooth with shifts, chances are that the lever gets stuck at this point. However, after using the car for a few hundred kilometers, I mastered the shifts and use a mild force while slotting to 1st and 2nd.
3rd and 4th are really smooth shifting and requires just a dab on the lever. 5th gear is reasonably smooth as well. And IIRC, I've never experienced such issues when with a petrol polo.

You've described pretty much exactly what I'm facing, except I haven't mastered the shifts yet and mine is a petrol. Do you know what exactly you do differently now than before that helped you overcome the issue?

Originally Posted by SH1N1G4MI

Getting into 5th is a bit tricky at first but once you get the hang of it, it shouldn't be any more difficult than 3-4 . What you have to do is; you're in 4th - push the gear lever with relatively firm force at a 60° angle(upwards and to the right togather) in one fluid movement. Don't try and go into neutral, its a single movement from 4th to 5th. The gate into 5th is not right angled from neutral , its curved upward like a parabola so even if you're going from 4-neutral-5th like the guy in the video(a highly inefficient method if I'm honest) pushing up at a 45° angle, after you've pushed it all the way right to the entrance of the gate to 5th, is your best bet.
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Good advice. In fact, 5th poses a much smaller problem for me compared to 1st and second. The video happened to illustrate my problem well but I face that resistance point in between when I shift into first and second.

Originally Posted by scorpian

May i suggest you try lubing the mechanism under the gear stick and if possible try and lube the cables etc. I use a chain lube for the purpose as i am able to get more of the liquid inside with the pressure of the can and it creates a nice lubricating film as well.

Yes, will get it done at the next service, just to be sure but like I said, it's far more likely that it's me.

[SH1N1G4MI]

You'll also want to get the clutch looked at as clutch drag, where the clutch doesn't fully disengage, can cause shifts to be difficult.

[Turbohead]

Originally Posted by McLaren Rulez

As I do step 2, the lever gives me two distinct clunks instead of just one. I checked some YouTube videos and this effect is extremely clear in the following video at 3:30 (he is engaging fifth).

It is also present in a few other videos so I'm sure it's not just my car. What's going on here? Why doesn't the gearbox go smoothly into the fifth gear gate? Why does it have this "in between" point on its way to fifth? The same effect exists when one tries to shift into first or second too. I should add that there are times when I manage to get it in smoothly in one shot but I can't do it every time. I usually feel that in between clunk!

Because of this issue, I am unable to shift smoothly and it is particularly annoying in situations where I want a quick getaway but it takes me an age to slot from first into second. Any advice on how to tame this tricky gearbox?

Hey!
The above issue/feature is present in our Vento TDI. I also drive a Grand i10 regularly. So I believe I can explain what's going on.

What is this 'in between' point?
This 'in between' point is nothing but the point of resistance before the gear is actually engaged. I believe this gearbox was designed with this resistance. I've checked out a 6-speed Skoda Yeti and that too has a similar feature for 1,2,5 and 6 gears. 3 and 4 is straightforward and doesn't really require it.

How does this feature come into play?

Using this type of gearbox requires you to use a bit more effort to smoothly slot the gears. When you use a bit more effort, this resistance will make you feel that you've actually engaged the gear. This feel is absolutely confidence inspiring during a spirited run because you know you've engaged the gear properly.

On the other hand, the i10 doesn't have this resistance and immediately engages the gear. While the action is butter smooth, it isn't that confidence inspiring because you can't 'feel' the gears engage.

The video you've posted is actually a good way to shift gears! You can do that if you wish.



But if you feel that you need way too much effort, you may have to get the gear cables, linkages checked.

[Darkman]

Originally Posted by McLaren Rulez

Thank you guys for the replies - very useful points. It is a Polo 1.2 MPi in question and it's almost four years old and has run around 23k km. At least I know one thing - this is not how it should be. I will get the linkage checked but my gut tells me that this is not the issue because

1) It's been that way since day 1.
2) Other cars (e.g. the one in the video) exhibit the same behaviour.
3) I'm not a very experienced driver (5-10k km is my lifetime total, of which maybe 4k is on the Polo).

More likely than the machine, the fault probably lies in how I shift.


You've described pretty much exactly what I'm facing, except I haven't mastered the shifts yet and mine is a petrol. Do you know what exactly you do differently now than before that helped you overcome the issue?


Good advice. In fact, 5th poses a much smaller problem for me compared to 1st and second. The video happened to illustrate my problem well but I face that resistance point in between when I shift into first and second.


Yes, will get it done at the next service, just to be sure but like I said, it's far more likely that it's me.

In case of polo, placing palm on the side of the shifter doesn't work for me when shifting to 1st and 2nd. Instead, I use the meaty part of my palm and wrap my fingers over the top. This helps in feeling even the slightest movement of the shifter. As you drive more, you'll get to know about the gates and throws better and will be able to follow the design. From your comment, I see that you drive your car rarely,around 1 k per year. In my case, the car is a daily driver and has run around 70k kms in 4 years. Maybe this is one reason why I don't feel the issue. Although, I have to admit that I still can't do aggressive downshifts to 2nd and 1st.

Before taking your car to ASC, I suggest you that you test drive another polo 1.2 petrol to confirm the issue. VW ASC can do more harm than good.

[McLaren Rulez]

Originally Posted by Turbohead

Hey!
The above issue/feature is present in our Vento TDI. I also drive a Grand i10 regularly. So I believe I can explain what's going on.
.
.
.
On the other hand, the i10 doesn't have this resistance and immediately engages the gear. While the action is butter smooth, it isn't that confidence inspiring because you can't 'feel' the gears engage.

Interesting! Indeed, other cars don't have this feel. I suppose this is then a feature, not a bug - although it does make me put in more effort to shift

Originally Posted by Darkman

In case of polo, placing palm on the side of the shifter doesn't work for me when shifting to 1st and 2nd. Instead, I use the meaty part of my palm and wrap my fingers over the top. This helps in feeling even the slightest movement of the shifter. As you drive more, you'll get to know about the gates and throws better and will be able to follow the design. From your comment, I see that you drive your car rarely,around 1 k per year. In my case, the car is a daily driver and has run around 70k kms in 4 years. Maybe this is one reason why I don't feel the issue. Although, I have to admit that I still can't do aggressive downshifts to 2nd and 1st.

Thanks for the advice - will try a few variations over the next days and hopefully, I am able to shift a bit quicker.