1997 Saturn SL Logo
saturn97 Posted on Dec 29, 2008

1997 sL1 Saturn manual transmission hard to change gears

Noticing increased difficulty shifting gears.
Every gear is sticking and almost impossible to shift in.
1st gear seems to be the worst.

  • 3 more comments 
  • bern74 Dec 31, 2008

    I had a similar problem and this morning my clutch stopped working.

    I am pretty sure the transmission is okay but not sure if it is the actual clutch or the hydraulics.......

  • Gaietan Mar 05, 2009

    2000 SL1 - manual transmission has become very difficult to shift into 1 , 2 & 3.... 4 not too bad, 5 ok,,, R ok for now,,, this is when the engine is runing.



    I found that when the engine is not runing, I can shift into gears easily without using the clutch.

  • rjobel Mar 30, 2009

    Same problem in my Saturn. Any ideas how to solve it?

  • Anonymous Apr 29, 2009

    1995 SL1 180k. Have had problem for years getting into 1st, but I just slip it in while rolling, but recently 2nd, 3rd are getting bad. It seems that as the weather gets hotter it gets worse. I'm not sure what to do about it. I assume the tranny has a lot of wear or else the clutch is going.

  • Anonymous May 14, 2009

    i have the same problem on my 97 sl1. i replaced the the slave and master cylinder and it got smoother but think i have air in the lines and those you cant bleed so i just pump the clutch like once or twice before i put in in the sticking gear. first is the worst when completly stopped.

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  • Posted on Jun 29, 2009
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The dipstick is behind the battery, below the master brake cylinder and is not the clutch reservoir. It has a red flip top handle instead of a ring like most dipsticks. It was hard for me to find due to engine grease. I had the same problem and was able to see that I was low on fluid (only a little) and adding fluid helped the problem. Questions? kurt1431 at comcast dot net.

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  • Posted on May 08, 2009
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1. check the clutch fluid level, and that it is clean, and the clutch itsself.
2. check the transmission fluid itsself (yes, there is fluid even though it's a manual)

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