Quote:
Originally Posted by Boosted5speed
I was more referring to the feel of actually having 4 noticeable gear shifts  there was only one noticeable shift, with a drop from redline to ~3000 rpm - to me, it felt like it only had 2 gears. |
If it's shifting at the red line you have problems. There is a slight rev between shifts at low speed but not excessive.
Why not salvage the $900 car? The diff in cost is almost equal to a 5 or 6mt tranny. If the axel has slipped out of the front diff it may be no big deal. It's only held in by a clip and can easily fall out if the struts or wheel assemblies were yanked on. The clicking is probably a partial engagement of the gears. If the gears on the end are stripped just get a spline from an old legacy axle. They are the same.