Problem taking car out of reverse - Leon Fr 1.4 18 plate

[Leonfrowner]

Hi All,

This is my first post so be gentle!

I have an 18 plate 1.4 Leon Fr with 10k miles on the clock. For a good few months I've had an issue where the gear stick won't come out of reverse without giving it a good yank. This is an intermittent problem without any real pattern to it. I can go for days or even weeks without this happening & the gears working smoothly & then I can get days where I get lots of issues. I've also had issue with getting it into first gear from a standing start when the gear doesn't quite go into place but goes in when the clutch is raised slightly (this is much more intermittent than the sticky reverse gear issue).

SEAT have had the car back on two occasions: the first time they had it for two days (which involved one of their mechanics taking the car home overnight with them) but couldn't get the car to replicate the fault so I ended up picking it back up. As soon as I took it back home & reversed it onto my drive it wouldn't come back out of reverse! I decided to get video evidence this happening & went back to SEAT the next day & showed them the footage of the problem occurring, They showed the vid to their master technician who immediately said "that's not right" so I ended up booking it back in with them so that they could inspect it further. This time they had the car for a week & a half and ended up removing the gearbox & replacing reverse gear & gear selector.

I've had the car back for less than a week & already I've had a couple of instances of sticky reverse & having the lift the clutch pedal slightly to get it into first, so obviously what the dealer has replaced hasn't solved the problem. Before I take it back again I thought I'd see if any other fellow Leon drivers have experienced anything similar, and if SEAT had resolved it for them properly?

Any advice would be happily received.

 

[Wilkesy]

Tbh reverse to 3rd seem hard to put the car in gears and seem jerky, think a few people are having gear issues so I reckon it’s a known problem.

 

[Leonfrowner]

Tbh reverse to 3rd seem hard to put the car in gears and seem jerky, think a few people are having gear issues so I reckon it’s a known problem.

Thanks for the quick reply. My main issue is getting it out of reverse (it would make more sense to me if it were the other way around, I could blame it on the clutch). I've also never owned a car that goes into 1st gear better when you lift the clutch. It's also wierd that it isn't a constant problem & can be smooth with no issues for long periods. I'm wondering if it's something mechanical at the gear stick end that's got play in it & goes out of line making reverse stick & the first gear shift not go in properly, but surely SEAT would have checked all that out?

 

[Yern]

I only remember this happening years ago was when the clutch wouldn't disengage properly. When you can't get it out of reverse for example, keep the clutch down, knock the engine off and try again. Why this should be intermittent though I'm not sure?

 

[Leonfrowner]

I only remember this happening years ago was when the clutch wouldn't disengage properly. When you can't get it out of reverse for example, keep the clutch down, knock the engine off and try again. Why this should be intermittent though I'm not sure?

Thanks for the reply, it's wierd as the car drives nice and smooth, no clutch slipping or juddering. I would imagine if I had a clutch problem then it would be constant & not intermitant. Is the clutch on a cable or electronic on these?

 

[Yern]

Thanks for the reply, it's wierd as the car drives nice and smooth, no clutch slipping or juddering. I would imagine if I had a clutch problem then it would be constant & not intermitant. Is the clutch on a cable or electronic on these?

I thought the clutch was fluid control? If the cylinder wasn't giving full clearance for example then...again...it wouldn't be intermittent?

 

[Sword]

I have this sometimes first thing in the morning, only ever happens when it's cold.

Not at a stage where its became a problem yet!
Its not something I have seen being a common complaint on Leon's.