I dont know if any of you remember but 3k miles ago i had my mazda 5 speed totally rebuilt for a grand (i took it out and brought it to them) and it was at a reputable place too. Since the rebuild it has been back to them TWICE under warranty for shift forks. The last visit they put in a different kind that lasted until...just about two days ago!! Since the rebuild i havent even put on 5k miles and its been eatin through them shift forks.

This past weekend we went to silver lake sand dunes here in michigan, about 4 hour drive north of where we live. First day i had it on the dunes everything went great, 4LO 3rd and 4th gear was kickin *** and i even made it up test hill first try! I could even make my way in 2 wheel without much of a problem. Later that night i was going up hill on my way out, waiting behind a jeep that started to bog down and spin so i went to downshift into 2nd so i could stay back safely, and the shifter just broke. Somthing inside the trans is seriously messed up, i can move the shifter in a complete circle hitting the dash! Could only find 2nd and 3rd luckily with 5 minutes of screwin with it.

Got out of the dunes, aired up, and limped back to the cabin. Now the thought, how in the heck are we gonna get this back home, a 4 hour drive away?? My dad had his truck because we drove seperate so we had to get some kind of trailor to load it on without spending too much money (keeping in mind my tires are 11" wide). Uhauls car trailors were only meant for small cars and were 18" too narrow even if i bought 4 new skinny tires. Uhaul has car dollies which hold the front wheels and measure 72" wide where the tire sits. So we had to find the nearest junk yard, which was an hour away and the worst i have seen, and get two skinny tires that i could swap on.

We get to this junkyard, it has just rained so everything is wet and sandy, they cant find a jack to lend us, and its like 95 out. Dad took his tools out at home because they cant be flying around the back of his truck when we 4wheelin, and my truck (toolbox on it filled with my stuff) was at the cabin out of comminsion. They didnt have any tires/rims with the 5.5" ford truck bolt pattern out so we had to search the yard. We found some decent ones on an 80 somthin 150 that were holding air and it was on somewhat level ground. After searching for 30 minutes we found a stock jack, 4 way, and some blocks and were on our way.

Get back to the cabin, get the junker tires on the front, measure, and its 74" wide. Decide to take the risk and rent the uhaul dolly for 88$ (48 hours) and all that took up our day.

Next day we went to the uhaul store again and they wouldnt rent it to us because its only meant for small cars. We drove 20 minutes down the SAME road and found another uhaul store and told them it was for an escort. Got the dolly back to the cabin and just barely fit the trucks front tires on the crappy little thing. Had to take out the rear driveshaft because it would have screwed stuff up if we didnt.

Ended up driving 60 on the highway all the way home with each tire hanging an inch off the sides. Dad called the transmission shop that did my rebuild on the way home, and after 30 minutes on negotiating with the new manager he worked somthin out. Since we arent under warrenty they wont do anything, but to keep us from filing a complaint hes gonna help us. Said he will call their manual transmission guy in detroit (who they claim to be the BEST) and will find us one for the stores price not the customers price. So we could pay somthing like 600 for a brand new rebuilt one.

The past two hours we got out both driveshafts (rear already out) transfer case, transmission crossmember/mount, and all but 2 bottom bolts on trans (left on to hold it up) and the 2 starter bolts on inspection plate. Our current dillema (as if we havent had enough...) the top 9/16 bolt on the starter (goes through inspection plate) is stripped. That is the only thing holding us up. Can the starter stay on the trans/inspection plate when we drop the trans? Or do we have to get the starter off to drop the trans? I know on automatic trans the starter has to come off before trans can come down but can i do it with my manual?? I am desperate here, what can we do? We need to get this slushbox POS out of my truck asap. Sorry for the length but i cant remember the last time ive had this many emotions goin on at once. School starts in less than a month... i dont have the money and ive got to somehow hitch rides to work. Advice appreciated.

 

You can get a rebuilt mazda on ebay for cheap money man....

 

And thats just what they are... cheap mazdas with cheap crappy aftermarket parts. Talked with the manager from the store that did all the previous work and he agreed to set us up with their best manual transmission guy that has his own shop in detroit. Hes been rebuilding manual transmissions (thats all he does, nothing else) for 35 years and is supposedly the best in michigan. Drove 40 minutes today and took my trans and transfer case to his shop for an inspection. He knew right away what was wrong after popping off the top cover and looking inside. Theres some kind of plates that the other shop didnt have aligned perfectly and that caused the forks to rub constantly and wear out. He also spotted and pointed out some other parts that were cheap aftermarket stuff, and within a couple minutes he pulled out all the exact parts (but from ford motorcompany) out of his inventory and showed me and my dad. Charging us only for parts so even if he did replace everything inside the tranny with brand new ford stuff, it would be less than 250 easy. The guy is really nice and even agreed to replace the gaskets and seals in my Tcase for free. Im just glad i was able to find a cheap fix. Oh for that starter bolt we ended up pounding on a 12mm 6point socket and that took it off.

On edit: (not a sales pitch) i strongly reccommend this guy if anyone needs manual trans work done, after meeting him and seeing his shop and how he works. If anyone is nearby and needs the info PM me.