c8 not selecting reverse

[citroenhater]

Hi, I have just changed the clutch on a C8 , have put most of it back together , on testing cannot seem to get the car / gearbox into reverse, whenever it appears to be in reverse, the engine stalls when the clutch is released, I have not made any adjustments to the selector cables and all other gears seem ok , just the reverse, any suggestions?

[citroenhater]

can anybody assist? I have now removed the gear linkage cables , and selected reverse by hand , and I am still having the same problem

[Gibbo2286]

Explain further, does the engine stop abruptly when in reverse and lifting the clutch? If so it suggests that the gearbox is locked by engaging two gears at once. I'm not sure how that could happen but,.......................

[BX]

Are all other gears ok? I know you said they were but does the car actually drive. Did you drop or bump the gearbox whilst doing the clutch? I haven't seen it happen on a psa gearbox but on many gearboxes with more than three selector rails the outer ones are not interlocked. If the box is dropped or bumped one selector might engage thus causing two gears to be simultaneously engaged when you engage another gear, in this case reverse. This locks up the box. You need to check further.

[citroenhater]

all other gears are ok in that they can be engaged and driven , the box was not dropped , maybe a bit rough handling when fitting. and yes the gearbox locks as if in forward and reverse gear abruptly stalling the engine , is it worth stripping the box to repair , or will it happen again ? ps on draining the oil from the box the oil was almost black and there was a couple of gramms of swarf on the magnet , will attach a picture later today if i can,

[Peter.N.]

When you selected reverse with the cables detached, did you make sure the gearbox was in neutral before selecting reverse?

Peter

[citroenhater]

yes and I watched / duplicated how the cables/ linkage moved prior to manually putting into reverse .

[RichardW]

Possibly one of the cables has become dislodged from its clamp, or the clamp is in the wrong place, or the ferrule on the cable has slipped in the process of taking it in and out. You would need to watch whilst someone else moves the gear lever to see what it's doing.

[wheeler]

Out of curiosity do the reverse lights come on when you select what you believe to be reverse ?

[citroenhater]

yes the reverse lights come on, the cables are secured in their position. the clamp , from what i can see , only goes in one place , no play in its position.

[Peter.N.]

Mmm, have you tried letting the clutch in a little and trying to engage - so the gearbox is moving.

Peter