with the motor off its not gonna grind as you dont have anything turning... it sounds like the clutch needs to be bled as its not going all the way in to relieve the pressure of the clutch..... matter of fact when you are driving you could probably change gears in most cases without the clutch... like letting off the gas and moving it out of one gear and then playing around with it and sliding it into another gear depending on the RPM's of the engine and the speed of the car... i had a friend who broke the cable on his Mustang cobra and put it into first gear started up the car and then had to drive and shift without the clutch and then got on the interstate and drove about 80 miles home where he cold put it on his rack and change out the parts....
