Hey so ive been trying to adjust my shifter and for some reason I can't seem to get it right, followed all instructions and the Haynes. I have a late side shifter on my 73. I did notice in the Haynes that it says you should be able to turn the shift rod through the tunnel as an adjustment. My shift rod does not turn. When I took the cover off the transmission I noticed that the small plastic bushing which I think should hold the shifter ball in place was not staying put. It seems like the ball piece is almost to short. Does this snap into place or does it just move around in the cup? I will upload pictures in just a bit so everyone knows what I'm talking about in case u didn't understand my description. Thanks guys

Matt

The cup is pressed onto the ball. If the bushing moves in the shift console on the tranny, you need to secure it. There are 2 solutions here: (1) Pack the exterior of the new plastic bushing with JB Weld and let it sit for 24 hours, then install the shift rod and other pieces. (2) Buy the bronze bushing and install it. You may still need the epoxy, depending on how wallered out the hole is. Oh, and make sure there's no remnants of old ball cups stuck in the socket!

I've not encountered a shift rod that won't turn, so I suggest you look at and see why it wont. It MUST turn to make the ball cup and socket move.

The Cap'n

ok so heres what im talking about
In this first picture it shows the ball and cup in there proper place

Click to view attachment

In this second picture, this is whats happening after the shifter is moved only slightly

Click to view attachment

in the third and fourth picture im seeing a couple alan adjustments, the first one on the back and the second one close to the firewall. Now do I need to loosen these alans in order to turn my shift rod or should the shift rod turn without loosening them? It does turn without loosening the alans but very very slightly.

Click to view attachment

Click to view attachment

The first picture shows a cup bushing that has FAILED. Replace it.

The Allen screws are the "cone screws" that probably should get replaced every time you remove them (though I often don't). They do not provide any adjustment at all, they are tapered and fit into a hole in the shaft to provide (in theory) a good snug wiggle-free connection.

You appear to have a side-shift transmission. All of the adjustment for that is done up at the gear shift lever, and none at all back under the engine or at the transmission end of the linkage. Double-check the adjustment process; you may have been reading the section for the tail-shift linkage.

Replace the cup bushing and you should notice about six tons of improvement in your shifter.

--DD

And don't forget to remove the rest of the plastic cup while you're in there.

The Cap'n

Uh, what they said. You need to replace all the bushings if that one is bad. The rest are likely to be crap as well....and the screws.

Ok so I installed the new plastic bushing today. So that plastic bushing is not supposed to move at all in the shifter console? I should jb weld it into place? Thanks

The "castellated" one that clips onto the side of the shifter console, where the rear shift rod goes through it? Not supposed to move at all. Most of them seem to move a little, and due to wear some of them move a whole lot.

Epoxy can work to eliminate the slop. Wrapping the bushing with tape might help if the hole is just oversized and not ovaled out. (It usually seems to be ovaled.)

The less slop the better! But as I said, just replacing that completely failed cup bushing should give you a whole lot of improvement.

--DD

while you're at it, source the plastic cover for the rear console. all the grease and grit pictured will only add to the early failure of your new ball cup bushing. the COMPLETE bushing kit pelican offers would be the smart move. no sense in attacking the problem piece meal.

k

Cleaned it all up and still having trouble getting the shifter right. I bought this "short throw" shifter on the board a few months ago and it turns out the guy who sold it to me just cut the lever down and welded it back on to the stock plate. Pretty sure that's not really what I was looking for. Im gonna go back to my stock shifter and see if I can adjust easier with it.

The broken bushing shown above does need to slide in/out slightly as the lever articulates. It should be greased only.

To late for that. Everyone told me jb weld it in place...

You are going to have a hard time finding gears. In 2nd & 3rd the bushing is recessed. In 1st, R, 4th & 5th the bushing comes out about 1/8-3/16 inch. If it were me, I would order a new one and drill out the old one. Porsche never epoxied the bushings in place. Some people that do not know should not give advice.

WHAT? No no no! The "castle" one that the rod goes through--THAT one can be epoxied in place. The cup bushing needs to be able to slide! You may need to replace the metal piece the cup bushing slides into, now...

--DD

Craap what do I do now??? Well let's just add the to the "stupidest things I've ever done post..."

Take off that cup retainer and drill out that bushing, then get in there with a dremel or the like, make sure its smooth, clean and allows the NEW cup bushing to slide freely inside it.
If you can get it clean of the epoxy, or you scar it up ...get a new one.

i hav one if u need to purchase one !

matt, pm set.

k

Wow. Clarity is a bitch. I have a spare one if necessary, too At least you have a cause for your problems to fix instead of no idea

If there's one thing more thing that would be very informative and helpful on this site, it would be a clear and concise shifter bushing replacement post. it seems most folks have or want to install a side shift tranny, and I haven't found a tutorial for that.

Ok, I have my own agenda here, as I know my console bushing is bad, so I'm expecting a kit from GPR this week. My cover is also missing, one is waiting in the garage.

I'm off to eat weenies and drink beer. Happy Fourth to all, this place is awesome.

Joe

I might be able to do that if I had a car in need of such a repair. Anyone in the area need this done so we can document it?

Seriously guys come on... JB Weld?

What are we here redneck sheep fuckers? Don't use any epoxy on your shift linkage.

Replace all the bushings including the firewall that can be a bitch to get in, replace the allen pins and check your transmission fluid level.

Lube the linkage points with Lithium Grease Lubricant.

Do not lube linkage points. The bushings are not in need of it and lube only serves to attracts dirt that will act as an abrasive making things worse.

Seriously. The hole in the side shift console where the rear shift rod goes through is often worn and too large to keep the bushing put. JB Weld is an eminently acceptable way to keep it from moving.

The moving parts, you naturally don't want epoxy on.

--DD

If the hole is only slightly opened I like to stick zip-tie pieces in to take up the slack. Works perfectly and is easy. If the hole is too big, though, the bushing will just fall out. In that case, JB weld is a viable option.

you put these little pieces in the hole first (or around the bushing) and they stay in place?

I made custom bronze ones for the shifter console and the firewall...
I bolted the firewall one in place using a very large flange.

rich

let me get this right here, so your saying JB weld is ok for the castellated bushing or for the console bushing?

Castellated console bushing

I thread the zip tie pieces between the bushing and the housing.

I bought and installed this part and highly recommend it.

No zip ties, no JB weld, no replacing it ever again, and no slop.

screw the JBWeld and use the zip ties to take up any slack... Typically the hole the shift console bushing goes is oval due to wear, its just aluminum. Use zip ties to get rid of the slack, fix the cup bushing and then adjust the shift linkage as per the manual. Then you should have all the gears.

Hey guys so Ive been working on this shifting problem for a couple weeks now and can't seem to get it nailed. Replaced bushings everything is good there. I actually got a really nice real weltmeister shifter in the mail from SLITS who donated it to me, thanks man btw. Installed that and I still cant get first. All the other gears including reverse work fine. When I shift into first alll I get when I let out the clutch is a whining sound. Is this a clutch problem or just an adjustment issue? Ive adjusted everything i can. Also it seems like with the new shifter even though im using the plate to lift it up it still hits the clutch tube when I go over to 4th gear. Seems like i can just solve that with a couple of washers though. Anyone have that problem? Anyways as always any input helps. Thanks guys

If you get 3 and 5 with no problem, your 1st gear is shot and needs to be fixed with new teeth, slider and band. Let me know if I can help

Are you positive your clutch tube hasn't come loose from the forward weld?