Shifting in Reverse

may just be a case of an adjustment on the shifter rod, try loosening the 2 locknuts and turning the turnbuckle so that it lengthens the rod. do it in small increments 1/4 to 1/2 turn and keep track of how many turns so you can go back if you need to. Also check to make sure all of the u joints are tight, finally, check to make sure where the rod attaches to the input shaft is tight. I had trouble here, the hole on the rod was oversized to the hole on the input shaft and the rod would pivot about 5 degrees before the shaft would turn. I wound up slightly enlargeing both holes and putting a larger diameter bolt in which solved my problem.

Good luck
Gary #06984

If its not the external linkage, it may be internal. In the aluminum shifter box on the side of your ZF, there is a cover which can be removed. The backup light switch is attached there and can be left in place. Inside are several intrictely twisted brass levers that actually do the gear-changing. They are retained on their steel shafts by metric allen setscrews that sometimes loosen. Note- these cannot be tightened by a U.S allen wrench- all you'll do is rip the hex-socket out of the setscrew. Be real sure that ALL the setscrews are as tight as you can get them by hand. One I think is accessed through a hole in the back, plugged by a rubber push-plug. Getting any further inside the ZF requires a ZF overhaul manual (available from all the vendors), lots of experience with trannys and a full set of metric tools. Remember this is a $6000 ssembly you're working on....

200! I had the same problem!!! I found that the (above) mentioned set screws were a LITTLE loose, but after tightening them, getting into reverse was still difficult. I DID find what the exact problem was! Believe it or not! The reverse light SWITCH was screwed ALL the way IN, preventing the shaft from moving far enough to the left. Unscrewing the switch a 'couple' of turns until the shifter "GATES" smoothly was all it took to fix it for good!! That is why there is a JAM nut on the switch, so it may be tightened while not BOTTOMED. Try it! And good luck. Marlin.

I couldn't help but post how I resolved my months of problems shifting in reverse. Kind of stupid, but I believe it was human error. I think I was trying to shift from a forward gear into reverse too quickly in that I was not getting exactly at the very top left corner of the reverse shift gate notch, but instead was too low in the reverse gate and pushing forward too quickly. Now if I take my time and ensure I get to the top left of the reverse gate before pushing forward, it goes in like butter (she said).