2nd gear grinding (2009 Mazda5)

[linuxology]

2009 Mazda 5 w 140,000 miles on it. My wife's primary vehicle and now every time she drives it she is grinding second. To the point, that I am going to be looking for something new for her to drive. I want to keep the car though. If I double clutch it seems that I am able to drive it without grinding second the majority of the time. Downshifts can be difficult to pull off at times dependent on terrrain and driving. All other gears switch with no issues. Does this primarily mean the synchro or second gear is busted? The clutch is original as well. The transmission fluid only has ~30,000 miles on it. What would you do if this was your car to attempt repair?

 

[negusm]

It could be a bad synchro. It could be the clutch is out of alignment and 2nd gear is picky about it.

My opinion (and what I practice) is to rarely downshift into 2nd and almost never into first. If it is grinding when upshifting, that's a problem. My dad would complain I was wearing out my brakes when coming to a stop and not downshifting and I would tell him to STFU as brakes are cheap compared to the transmission.

 

[njaremka]

I fit grinds only when changing INTO 2nd gear, then yes it is the syncro. If it grinds while in 2nd gear, then the gear is toast.

Maybe try a gear oil change and see if anything improves?

 

[CTSpeed413]

2009 Mazda 5 w 140,000 miles on it. My wife's primary vehicle and now every time she drives it she is grinding second. To the point, that I am going to be looking for something new for her to drive. I want to keep the car though. If I double clutch it seems that I am able to drive it without grinding second the majority of the time. Downshifts can be difficult to pull off at times dependent on terrrain and driving. All other gears switch with no issues. Does this primarily mean the synchro or second gear is busted? The clutch is original as well. The transmission fluid only has ~30,000 miles on it. What would you do if this was your car to attempt repair?

I have a similar issue with a recently purchased 2010 Mazda 5w 131k on it!
If I just don’t use the clutch, I can speed shift smoothly into second, but if I aggressively get onto it, I either need to back off and let first spin down or double-clutch to avoid a very painful sounding and feeling grind.
As with most Mazdas you can smoothly shift up and down in all gears without the clutch.
Fifth and second though seem to have taken abuse over the years so these are the ones to be careful with. Sigh.
I’m going to start with adjusting the clutch.
It’s very “sensitive” at the moment, where the clutch is REALLY right on the floor, with barely any play.
Not necessarily a bad thing, just not enough room to fully disengage by the time I may want second.