Originally Posted by Soft Ride

Sound like Saturn same model year had issues with automatics in a recall. Have you checked to see if there are any recalls on your car with your VIN # ?
Lots of talk online about manual trans & the reverse issues, from shift forks & related cable issues.
Possibly call a few trans shops who may be more familiar with these potential known issues/bug fixes. Just a thought.

Originally Posted by Krsd3855

yes it is a manual trans

Originally Posted by carfixer007

You need to get inside that tranny

Originally Posted by Krsd3855

Its a manual trans i had that in the title

Originally Posted by Krsd3855

someone from my work said it sounds like a shifter cable issue. Does that seem like a likely culprit?

Originally Posted by Krsd3855

Its a manual trans i had that in the title and it shifts like butter when the car is off but with it running itll grind when i put it in gear and let off the clutch. reverse is almost non existent i can sometimes get it to work if it grinds i put it in first pull forward a bit and try again sometimes that works

Originally Posted by CathedralCub

Could be. If it worked perfectly before the engine was replaced and now doesn't, why not have the shop that did the engine check their work?

Originally Posted by Krsd3855

they had it for almost 2 months for the swap and the warranty is only a month from pickup date