Crunching gearbox going from 1st to 2nd

[bakersdelight]

hi all,

As some of you may know, I am in the market for a 9N Polo GTI :-)

Test drove one today, quite liked it, it was in pretty good condition (can't call it a minter though). There are just two things that concerned me a little:

1. the gearbox crunched when shifting quickly from 1st to 2nd (at any RPM, but happened more often at high RPM), it made a grinding noise, it had a 50% chance of happening. But when driving it normally (i.e. shifting like a granny) it did not crunch. Is it normal? I know a lot of 9N GTI's have got crunching gearboxes, should I just live with it or steer clear of this vehicle? Any known remedy for this?

2. sitting inside the car with engine switched on and windows up. I could hear a faint mechanical rotational (i.e. pump) sound, is it normal? I can also hear the steering wheel pump working when steering stationary or at low (<10km/h) speeds, is it normal? Because my current car has electric steering, I haven't driven any hydraulic steering cars for ages, can't remember what it is like, so am not quite sure if it is normal?

Grateful for comments... cheers.... :cookie:

[seangti]

What year model is the car and how many km's? The 06's initially had some gearbox issues with grinding though seemed to be all fixed under warranty. Haven't heard of any issues over the last couple of years so I'd be suggesting the noise relates to mechanical damage rather than easily fixed with an oil change. I can't think of any time I've crunched gears other than the odd brain explosion on my part, so not a normal mechanical nuance of the gearbox.

Best to check out the problems with the polo thread as the gearbox and power steering issues have been detailed which might assist.

[bakersdelight]

What year model is the car and how many km's? The 06's initially had some gearbox issues with grinding though seemed to be all fixed under warranty. Haven't heard of any issues over the last couple of years so I'd be suggesting the noise relates to mechanical damage rather than easily fixed with an oil change. I can't think of any time I've crunched gears other than the odd brain explosion on my part, so not a normal mechanical nuance of the gearbox.

Best to check out the problems with the polo thread as the gearbox and power steering issues have been detailed which might assist.

Its a 2008 model with close to 50,000km

[noone]

Might be worth steering clear? It could be easily helped with a better gearbox oil, but there are plenty of these around, although you may have to travel.

Not the sort of issue you want every time you shift. Where are you located? Maybe we can recommend someone to help you look at it.

[bakersdelight]

Might be worth steering clear? It could be easily helped with a better gearbox oil, but there are plenty of these around, although you may have to travel.

Not the sort of issue you want every time you shift. Where are you located? Maybe we can recommend someone to help you look at it.

thanks... am located in ACT... when I say "shifting quickly", it is like slamming the gear from 1st to 2nd during a launch, how low is the clutch point in the GTI? Could it be that I did not clutch in fully?... but the crunching does not happen when driving in everyday traffic...

[noone]

Sorry mate, no issues here, hard to say if I'm not having a go myself.

All I'd say is have a go in another one, only you can tel, if it's the way you are shifting or that car specifically.

[Jmac]

Slamming it is asking for trouble anyway, they do crunch in this case and is common place and can be helped with good tranny oil ie Redline MTL but seen this before . They take a lot of punishment, but there is a limit too, this is only a call from an internet point of view, best way would be in the car itself.
Good luck with the search , as Noone says there is a few out there now
Cheers
Jmac

[PeterHBne]

Gearbox issues - check the threads. Get it done under warranty.

That noise you talk of when you turn the steering wheel is annoying. Very noticeable at no speed. I've have always had it. A low level 'eeeeeeeeeeeeee' that goes on after you've turned the wheel.

If you are getting a series of 'click click clicks' that's different. Strut top bearings are another common problem. I've had three lots done under warranty.

[csimpson]

Gearbox issues - check the threads. Get it done under warranty.

That noise you talk of when you turn the steering wheel is annoying. Very noticeable at no speed. I've have always had it. A low level 'eeeeeeeeeeeeee' that goes on after you've turned the wheel.

If you are getting a series of 'click click clicks' that's different. Strut top bearings are another common problem. I've had three lots done under warranty.

The eeeeee is normal, yep - it's a bit annoying when you're parking, but other than that it's not really noticeable. Just don't keep it pressed to full lock for more than a second or two, and everything will be fine. Draining and replacing the power steering fluid is a slightly involved job (you've got to rip out the battery and probably the airbox) but it's worth doing for peace of mind around the 100,000KM mark IMO.