Help please to diagnose and fix the transmission on my ancient Westwood garden tractor. The gears will no longer change (the gear lever won't move from neutral into any of the five gears). The clutch pulley seems to be OK, but where the clutch cable joins the lever at the transaxle the lever moves its full travel distance, but there seems to be too little resistance to movement. Is there a clutch mechanism inside the transaxle - and, if so, how do I get the transaxle off?

Colin Haynes, Ireland, April 2010

Can anyone advise me if it is oil or grease that's needs to go into the gearbox of my Westwood S1300 as I can select all gears but no movement forward or reverse as I found gearbox empty.
Many thanks

Mains, October 2016

westwood s800 dash mounted gear changer so loose move with a finger can connect to any gear why

nigel, August 2014

Many thanks to Phil and Husqvarna man for their helpful advice. I still can't move the selector, so it seems likely that it's an internal problem in the Peerless Model No. 801030 box. I'm now looking for a source of parts in Ireland.

As Phil warned, the wheels are rusted into place - any tips on getting them off would be much appreciated. There is a keyway - do I have to try to remove the key first?

Colin Haynes, April 2010

Not only is there no syncro, the gears can't be shifted AT ALL whilst any part of the transmission is moving. If you force it to shift, the selector keys (no forks of any kind) will either round out the gear internal splines they are supposed to engage with, or simply disintegrate. Either way, you get no gears, but that would not cause the selector to jam.

Disconnect the linkage and attempt to move the selector lever on the transaxle. It should be possible with hand pressure. If not, there's some sort of internal problem.

Removing the axle isn't too difficult. Before you start, verify that you can get the wheels off. More that a few Westwoods have been scrapped because the rear wheels are rusted on, and people have destroyed the differential trying to hammer them off.

Assuming that;s OK, remove the deck, then physically sit the tractor on it's rear end, so the spark plug points straight up. That way, nothing leaks out of the engine.

Remove any guards over the belts.. Disconnect shift & brake linkages. Push brake pedal down & engage parking brake. Drive belt will now be slack. Unbolt transaxle from chassis & remove.

phil_saunders(a)bigfoot.com

Phil Saunders, April 2010

The gearbox has no clutch inside, it is a crash gearbox ( no syncro ) if there is any drag on the belt you will not select gears, can you select gears with the engine stopped? if you can it is a belt drag issue, if not there may be an issue with the selector forks in the box itself, the old gearboxes are grease filled so i do not think its a lubrication problem.

Husqvarna man, April 2010