The gears will lock up and I cannot shift into any gear?

Now that you mentioned it, I remembered that I had stopped in driveway and at a traffic light when gears locked up (just shifter, not wheels), but the clutch pedal felt normal. I filled brake fluid and about a day later noticed I had lost a very small amount but I keep forgetting to check under the car, when parked, for signs of leakage.

I just had a friend drive it about 30-45 miles to his mechanic and he said, of course, he had no problems. I told him to get rid of the Bible that had been left in the rear window when he first bought the car. :)

I was also wondering if there is any way to relax the tension, slightly, on the clutch pedal? It's very hard to depress compared to the gas which affects my rhythm, but I also have some issues with my left foot/ankle which can make it hard to drive.

And thank you so very much for your help!

The gears do shift when the engine is off. I was told by my friend's mechanic that there is a very small leak in the slave cylinder and that I would be okay for now if I made sure to keep the brake fluid full (which might explain why it doesn't happen all of the time) since there doesn't appear to be a master cylinder.

I don't know that he has time in the immediate future to do the work necessary to fix the leak, but I also don't know if I can afford to take it to a shop. Will this be safe enough, temporarily? I just want to know I can drive without the gears locking up on me at a traffic light during rush hour traffic, or if I should have to down shift on the freeway.

Second question: the battery was tested, and I was told that the battery was not maintaining its charge when using any accessories (including headlights) while engine was running. I'm unsure of what this means. Bad battery? Bad alternator?

Putting battery issue aside for a moment, I have another question. The shifter continues to randomly get stuck between gears. My friend, the man I bought the car from, had to pick it up last night and as usual had no issues while driving it here. During our conversation he kept suggesting that I must be doing something wrong.

It is my belief that you either do, or do not comprehend how to operate a manual transmission, but I could be mistaken? So, my question is this: is there wrong way to drive a clutch, and wrong in such a way that would cause the shifter to randomly lock up between gears? I have driven them all throughout my life and have never had a problem but thought I should get a professional opinion before I express to him how ignorant and insulting that comment was. :)

Thank you! I did not ask them, but I plan to. If he has a legitimate answer, I can at least consider it, but I doubt that will be the case. I just wanted a professional opinion before I told him how ridiculous and insulting I thought that comment was.

Hypothetically speaking, before selling a much older car with a manual transmission would you at least check the clutch/cylinders/cables, etc, to be sure that what drives the car is intact and functioning properly?

My friend had his friend, the mechanic, check out the car and drive it for a few days to be sure everything was working. I do believe the mechanic is competent but when I asked my friend why the leak in the slave cylinder wasn't noticed before, he told me it's not common to check for something like that. True/False?

Also (I have many questions!), If you have to remove the transmission to access the slave cylinder to repair the leak, how would you know there Was a leak without removing the transmission to access the slave? And if it's a "code" thing, wouldn't it have registered when checking them the first time?

Again, I truly value your time, and sincerely appreciate all of your help. I am always grateful for the chance to learn. :)

Thank you for explaining that. He's safe for a minute. :)

Back to the shifter.

The shifter is still getting stuck between gears, even when the brake/clutch fluid is filled to maximum level. The clutch pedal feels normal, and I can always tell when it is going to happen because the few shifts before are noticeably rougher than usual. Does that help at all with the process of elimination?

If it turns out to be an issue with the cables or bushings, would that be an easier fix than removing the transmission, etc?

No, the previous owner did not have a problem with this. I think he actually thinks I'm imagining it or making this up.

So, I was reading comments from another site and saw someone describe the exact problem I'm experiencing. A following comment said, "sounds like your clutch is going bad."

Does this problem mean, necessarily, that the clutch is going bad? I'm assuming you would have already said so, if that were the case, but thought I'd ask anyway to be sure. If it is going bad, I'll just let him buy the car back.

So far, it shifts as it should when the engine is off. I test it every time I use the car. I didn't have a problem the last few times I drove, but I didn't go more than a few miles. I'm still afraid to take it on the freeway.

I also noticed that the leak is not exactly a small leak, like my friend said. I see small to medium sized spots where car is usually parked. There are more than a few, and the largest one looks like it's the most recent. That's telling me the leak is worsening rapidly, like every time (maybe every other time) I use the car. I'm also wondering, if the slave cylinder is what's leaking, what exactly is it leaking?

And again, thank you so very much for being so willing and able to answer my many questions. I always appreciate learning something new and your answers are always well explained, and easy to understand. I truly appreciate your help. :)