RIX Racing Shift Rod Bushing ‘70-‘72 tail shaft to side shift
Rix914parts@aol.com
Newly designed, conversion bushing for 914, patent pending.
This bushing is for 1970 through 1972 914 owners who have or want to convert their tail shaft shifter transmission to the newer style side shifter, which takes a different diameter firewall bushing for the shift rod to operate correctly. After realizing they stopped making after-market conversion bushings I decided to design one of my own.
After some research I discovered that the original stock bushing used in 914’s during those years had three key problems that had to be addressed.
Design
Material
Ease of Installation
Design – Talking to 914 racers I learned that a screw was routinely added to the lip of the stock bushing to ensure it wouldn’t pop out during racing condition. The new design of this bushing solves that.
Material – Going with nylon again would not work. It wasn’t slick enough, it was too soft and wore out which led to sloppy shifting. I noticed a lot of products used in race cars were made of Delrin (polyoxymethylene resin) and withstood the intense conditions easily. Due to Delrin’s hardness and composite properties, our bushing is milled on a CNC machine from a solid piece of Delrin, not injection molding like others. A great improvement over the original, which extends the bushing’s longevity and delivers improved smoother shifting.
Installation – If anybody has ever replaced a stock nylon bushing they know it’s not an easy process. First the shifter has to be unbolted and moved forward so the shift rod passes the firewall to expose the old stock bushing. Then the replacement bushing (of the same stock design) requires forcing it into place and pounding it into the firewall hole. Not an easy task! Even with a big hammer! With my newly designed bushing you would still need to remove the older stock bushing in the same way but then you would re-attach the shifter so the rod sticks out of the firewall, then all that’s needed is to slip the new bushing over the rod with the protruding side toward the firewall. Push it flush to the firewall, the protrusion fits into the firewall hole and makes it self-centering. Then drill your first hole, insert a screw or rivet, and repeat this process, one hole at a time to ensure alignment.
In the future if you have to replace the bushing all that’s needed is to remove the screws or rivets, slide out the older bushing and slide the new one in, Removing the shifter is no longer needed.
The cost is $39.99 + $5.00 S&H in the continental U.S. per bushing, payable via paypal. The cost includes shipping in the continental US and paypal fees. If you live outside the US mainland, contact me and we will figure out the cost to ship.
RIX
Rix914parts@aol.com 951-818-8628
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