Greetings all--

It was a delight to roll the 544 out of the gaping hole in my basement wall and start it up for the first time in over a year. The B18 sprang to life and runs like a champ--at least, it idles and revs without load like a champ.

Unfortunately I can't get the car to shift out of neutral with the engine running. This is the M41 I was having trouble with a month or two ago, but this seems unrelated to the previous problem since the trans. shifts smoothly with the engine shut off.

I'm almost certain it's a clutch linkage problem but there's no visible trouble there, either. I rebuilt the linkage while working over the rest of the car, so all holes are round again and all shafts groove-free. There's a certain amount of slop, but that seems typical with the 544 linkage. No amount of adjustment seems to address the shifting problem.

When I pulled the engine in January to deal with the M41 (dogs had slipped out of third gear detent spring assembly) there were no signs of trouble in the bellhousing. Clutch is a new Sachs. Throwout bearing is new, as is pilot. I'd love to hear any ideas about what might be causing this problem before I dive back in there.

On the bright side the engine purrs, the dual-circuit brake system seems to work and not to leak...just dying to get it on the road. Thanks again to the readers of this board for helping me get to this point.

All best,
Nathan