Triumph Repair: Transmission /clutch woes, cars of the 70s, todays cars

Question
I have a 76 spitfire which will not gear down. Mainly it shifts up through the gears smoothly

Answer
Hi Robert,
That sounds like you are not using proper downshifting procedure. You need to depress the clutch all the way to the floor and rev the engine just as you engage the next lower gear. Gear synchronizers in 76 Spitfires were ok in their day but did require that a downshifting procedure be used. In todays straight shift cars you can get away by just sticking the lever in a lower gear and even the Spitfire and other cars of the 70s when new you could downshift without reving the engine first but you would soon ware out the syncros and need to rebuild the trans to correct it for another few months.
The syncros don't know which way you are shifting up or down. Either way you need to get the engine speed at least close to the gear speed that you are trying to engage.
Down shifting was an art that is lost in todays cars but still required on older cars.
Howard