Syntra

I just purchased a 2005 STX with 116k as my first truck and first manual transmission vehicle about a week ago. I've had little trouble learning manual so everything has been fairly smooth up until today.

I was getting on the highway on my way home. First through third went fine, but when I went to shift to fourth something was grinding. I went back into third then tried again successfully. I got off the highway onto some smaller roads where everything went okay. It grinded on third once at some point but went right into gear after a second try. I'm just thinking I'm doing something wrong here but I'm not sure.

Now I'm home and go to park. I stopped the truck and put it in reverse. As I let off the clutch it felt like it wanted to catch but the truck wouldn't move before it would stall. Assuming my reverse was ****ed and Realizing I looked like a jackass parked diagonally across the parking lot, I put it in first and tried pull out and and park normally. Same issue; the clutch would begin to engage and the truck would begin to stall but would not move regardless of how little or much gas I gave it.

After spending some time playing with the shifter it seemed I could shift into all gears smoothly, although first took a little more strength to shift out of. I put it in neutral and went to shut the truck off, but it stalled when I let the clutch out. At that point I kind of guessed that my gears were all mixed up, but had to get out of the middle of the parking lot. I left it in 'neutral' and after a few very rough attempts to get moving, got the truck moved into a parking space.

After parking I played with the shifter again, and now everything shifts in and out smoothly - but now I cannot shift into third, neutral is still a mystery gear, and fourth now acts like neutral. I had the door open and it sounds like everything is shifting fine minus 3rd and 4th, although I'm not sure what the truck will actually try to do if I try to drive it.

Any ideas as to what may be happening? Thanks.

03Mach1

Sounds like you might have broken or seriously bent one of the shift forks in there.

Syntra

After researching a bit about that, I agreed that was likely the problem. I've probably been too hard on the shifter since I didn't know better.
But, on the way to a mechanic it seemed to jarr itself back into place as I was pulling through an intersection. Every gear shifted fine afterwards. I left it at the shop anyways, but they won't be able to look at it until Monday.

Thanks,