Shifter assembly - something is missing

[MrSharky]

Hey now -

Got bored, so I decided to dig in to see why Betty's shifter is so loose, and hoo boy - I'm pretty sure something is missing. Check out pictures here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/matthewpickering/BettyShifter?authkey=Gv1sRgCP2gjtP64oX4gQE&feat=directlink

I'm looking at the diagrams (thanks c.d.!!) but I still can't tell what i'm looking for.

Thoughts? help? Blunt?

Matt

[tito559]

That is exactly what my shifter and driveshaft looked and felt like until yesterday. Quite an easy fix but is a pain because exhaust, driveline, shifter and bracket have to be disconnected/removed to get in there.

Shopping List:

Name: Shifter insulator (sponge) between shifter tower & body (stops noise & smell at shifter) Quantity: 1 Price per unit: $15.55

Name: Ball Cup (for shift tower ) at shift lever

Quantity: 2 Price per unit: $1.75

Name: Bushing (Shift Rod) 68/73 bottom of shift lever ('hat type")

Quantity: 2 Price per unit: $1.75

I ordered my parts from 2002AD.

Your assembly looked to have a bit more play than mine so you might need the shifter bracket mounts (2).

To be quite honest, the most expensive part I ordered was the shifter insulator but if I would have known better, I would have went to a home improvement store and just bought sponge/foam (about 1" tall) and made my own donut for maybe $2. (Doesn't have to be pretty = can't see it from cabin and barely from underneath).

Hope this helps.

[MrSharky]

That definitely helps. Blunt is helping me with a parts list.

How difficult was the install/repair? Did you have to remove the driveshaft to get at it? Any pictures of what it should look like?

I'm pretty sure I can do this one, just trying to figure out how many days I should allocate for it.

Matt

[Scott Sislane]

although you're missing the foam donut, in the mean time, you could tighten up the angled brace that keeps the shifter platform from moving.

If you push up on the bracket, tighten the top, and then the bottom bolt, I think it should keep your shifter from moving around.

here's mine, so you can see where it should be attached.

Also. here are some pics so you can see where the shifter platform bolts to the tranny. From the way yours in moving side-to-side, your bolts/nuts may be loose that hold it in place.

Platform mounted.

And no platform. The two bushings that the bolts go through, also go a-muck:

[tito559]

Repair itself is really quite easy and could be done in an afternoon as long as you have all the parts that you are going to need before hand. It took me a week to finish mine...removed driveline because I needed a new support bearing and guibo, inspected shifter parts to see what I needed to replace, then ordered everything. By the time everything came in and installed, it was about a week.

Whether or not you need to remove driveline to work on linkage I'm not positive because my driveline was already on the ground before I even touched the shift linkage, however, it will for sure make things much much easier with it out of the way.

[MrSharky]

Thanks for all the input. I got under there again today to look around, and I'm thinking more and more that I'm going to need to remove the drive shaft to get at all the parts I need to get at.

Scott - yours looks funny - all that shiny silver - I see you removed the protective coating of oil. I can see why mine is so loose, but I'm not sure what I can do to fix it. On the platform - there are two bolts toward the front of the platform, and on the passenger side, the bolt must have been sheared off completely - the nut & bottom of the bolt is still there, but the top appears to be absent.

So the next natural question seems to be - has anyone done this w/o removing the drive shaft? And if you have to remove it, how do you remove the drive shaft? At the guibo? And if I'm doing that, shouldn't I replace the guibo, just because I can??

Matt

[tito559]

To remove the driveshaft unbolt it at the guibo and trans, then unbolt the driveshaft support bearing while supporting the driveshaft to keep it from falling. This should allow you to lower and remove the shaft from guibo/trans.

Look for any signs of cracking or any other damage to the guibo and support bearing as this would be a good time to replace them if anything looks to be worn/broken.

[Scott Sislane]

Ya, you'll need to remove the drive shaft to get up there. Only remove 3 of the 6 bolts so the guibo stays attached to the tranny output shaft. (The nuts are a bear to remove.)

That missing/broken bolt is where I suspected you had a problem, otherwise your shifter would only move up & down.

I still don't have all that "protective coating" off the tunnel. What a mess to work around. I think I still have oil stains on my hands/arms/face from that project!

Scott