Everyone,

I have a quick question on synchros in the M40. I have an M40 out of a 1968 145 in my Volvo and it definitely does not appear to have a synchro on first gear. However a friend of mine has a M41 (later year, not sure which exactly) in his 145 which definitely does have a synchro on 1st. My question is this: which transmissions have synchros on 1st and which do not? Was this a feature they started adding to transmission in later years? Or did only M41 have synchros on first? Or is my tranny just have a bust synchro on 1st? Just a curiosity question. Thanks!

Brian

To change down to first at any speed you need to double shuffle with plenty of revs between clutching.

All M4, M40, M410 and M41 gearboxes have syncros on 1st gear.

Why do you say that your M40 "does not appear" to have a syncro on first gear?

First off, let me just state right now that I am just learning to drive stick so I'm still a bit of a newbie (I know, I know, how couldn't I have learned how to drive stick while learning to drive...I've heard it all). Anyway, the reason I say that it doesn't appear to have a synchro is that, unlike 2nd and 3rd, I cannot downshift into 1st if the car is moving at any appreciable speed. Perhaps mine is simply broken in my transmission? We recently had the transmission out, however, and everything looked really good inside...nothing appeared obviously chewed up or broken.

Brian

First off, good for you for learning to drive a stick. You will find it rewarding, especially in a 140.

Don't attempt to get it into first when moving at an "appreciable speed". The gearbox is just not designed for that. Nothing beats the hell out of a first gear syncro like sliding it into first while still moving. I'm not saying it can't or should never be done, it's just that it's pretty rough on the gearbox. If you're crawling, you may be able to get it in, but if you are moving at more than maybe 5 mph, use second gear. It will never slide into first as easy as the other gears when moving.

140s are geared so low, there's no problem chugging away from a crawl in second. Sometimes from a stop, and pointing downhill, you can skip first altogether.