I bought my EVO a couple of months ago used, and ever since the first time I drove it I would always hear and feel my 3rd gear grind a tiny bit when I shifted into it. Like a very distinct metal against metal sound.

This doesnt happen with any other gear, only my 3rd gear. I tried shifting slower and smoother into 3rd gear and it helped a lot, no more sound or grinding. But My other gears I can shift fast into and have no problem, and I feel that I shouldnt HAVE to shift nice and gently into 3rd gear for it not to have this sound!

I brought it to the dealership and had a EVO technician drive it and he said that the sound is normal and its because 3rd gear is the longest gear and the sound is the gears popping into place. But I know FOR A FACT that the sound it makes when I drive it is metal against metal and it is not a correct sound.

I then test drove another EVO at the dealership and this one didnt have the problem.

Anyone have the same issue or know whats wrong with my 3rd gear?? My other gears all work fine and smooth!!

 

Mine did that too. I got a blox weighted shift knob and it made a huge difference.

 

Syncro is probably bad for third

 

This. A good fluid change might band-aid it but the only permanent fix is a rebuild.

Heavy weight shift knobs and short shift kits only wear synchros faster.

 

Continuing to grind into gear will also wear out the synchros. Just saying.

 

Thanks for the imput guys. If I shift slowly into 3rd, it doesn't grind at all.

Should I just keep doing this? or go get the synchros checked out? I know my warranty doesn't cover it

 

If you have the money right now I say go ahead and get it fixed. You'd probably be looking at spending close to 2 grand at the dealer because it's a lot of labor and not many parts. I just got my tranny rebuilt in July by the mitsu dealer and now it's really smooth. If you were going to get it rebuilt I would suggest getting at rebuilt by Jacks transmissions since they upgrade the diff pins and I believe they give you a life time warranty on their work. Might as well upgrade the clutch too. Why won't you be covered under warranty? I see you have a 2014 and it should be covered under the 60k mile drivetrain warranty

 

Yeah, sending it to TRE, Shep, or Jack's is the best way to go over the dealer. They can all make them shift better than stock. Also, they can all sell you a new, new-built, or pre-rebuilt trans and then give you some money for your core if you can't be without a car for an extended period.

 

How much do you think removing the tranny, sending it off to Jacks, replacing clutch and tranny would cost with labor?

My third gear doesn't seem to have a traditional grind, but there is definitely something wrong with it (I can't shift slow into 3rd) and I'm tired of dealing with it...

 

Holy crap I definitely do not have 2 grand to spend right now on rebuilding my transmission, since I just spent over 3 grand in parts for the evo LOL XD. I guess I just have to drive the evo nice and smooth and shift into 3rd gear slowly.

Sigh everything else is perfectly fine with the car, just this annoying 3rd gear. Is there really no way to just replace the single synchro?? you have to rebuild the entire damn thing???

 

That's what I mean just for the third gear synchro and maybe the slider. Just go to the mitsu dealer and get it under warranty, if they don't want to make a fuss about it and tell them you will be contacting corporate.

@Kreeker I was quoted just under $3k for dropping and installing the tranny, getting it shipped out to Jacks, and getting a new Comp Stage 2 clutch at Moore Automtive. I got it done at the mitsu dealer though just because I was pressed for time and they got it done for the same amount in about 3 days.

 

Yea is there a reason there denying warranty on it? It seems your still within the powertrain warranty limit. Also I would try a different fluid it may fix the problem for a long time you would be surprised what a fluid change would do!

 

That's a good amount of money, but to have a transmission that shifts like butter would probably make it worth it...

Is that for the "Performance EVO X (5-Speed)". I notice they specifically mention "Fix for the 3rd gear crunch/grind at low RPM" which is exactly the issue I have with my 9's tranny..

Maybe I should just sell it because there are times I want to drive it through a wall. I don't even like driving it with passengers because it's pretty much impossible to drive it without ripping it.

 

I believe it's a few hundred dollars less for the IX. It definitely is worth it after, trust me. I used to hate driving my X because I hated grinding into gears and not being able to shift fast. I was even considering going to trade it in for bimmer. Now i have all the mechanical issues sorted out and got it tuned. Now I'm making 342/338 and couldn't be happier with my car!