My Fiat Ducato 2.5TD motorhome Preg 96? 35k. When selecting 2nd gear from 1st or 3rd from cold,the gear is difficult to select resulting in a grating/crunching. It improves when warm. The only way to prevent it is to double declutch.(Difficult to do when accelerating from standstill up an incline) Is syncro going? Or is there another problem? Is it common? I have checked the gear selector cables & the levers coming out of the gearbox,there is very little play or slop on them.
i have had this happen on a 205 peugeot and the gearbox oil is actually a thin engine oil and i changed the oil for a very thin grade. this cured it, hence that is why yours is better when gearbox is warmed up as what happens thick oil drags on the synchro's