I recently removed my rear shifter bar from my stock 74 to take a close look at all the shift bushings and the set screws. All looked good, but I replaced the the bushing at the gearbox and both of conical set screws anyway.

While separating the shift coupler from the front shift bar (the one in the tunnel) I THINK the position of the front bar changed inside the clamp at the base of the shift lever. So I had my wife hold the shift lever in the neutral position with it tilted fully over to the right. Then I loosened the 13mm bolt at the clamp just behind the shift lever. Then I crawled under the car and rotated the rear bar fully clockwise until it stopped. Wife then tightened the 13mm bolt on the clamp.

Took it for a drive and I get R, 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th. But when I try to go for 4th, it feels like the lever hits something solid. There's no engagement at all into 4th. I CAN get 5th. Any ideas? Before I checked my bushings, I was able to get all the gears fine.

Here are some directions on how to adjust the side shifter.

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...shifter++bungee


I hope it helps.

Clay

I had exactly the same problem this weekend, except for me it turned out to be the set screw holding the shift linkage to the shift bar where they join just beyond the fire wall. It had backed out and was no longer seating in the hole in the shift bar. Doesn't sound like that's your issue though.

4th is actually there - once you push the shifter fully right and forward and it basically hits something solid, if you move the shifter slowly back to the left while pushing it forward it will eventually slot into 4th.

Not telling you that because it's a "fix" though, just to let you know you're not losing your mind - this really isn't a fix as if you're not careful and try to find 4th too fast there's a good chance you'll money shift from 3rd to 2nd instead.

After you removed the shift linkage, did you put it back in exactly the same orientation as when you removed it before reattaching it to the shift rod?

Thanks Clay. Will read thoroughly.

Thanks john77. Yes, my set screws and bushings are either new or in excellent condition.

Good to know 4th is actually there. I followed your directions and it "appears" that if I move the shift lever just slightly to the left, after attempting a normal shift into what should be 4th, the lever feels like it's going into 4th. I'll try it tomorrow while actually driving the car.

When I first started working on the linkage, I removed both set screws, then disconnected the rear shift linkage bar where it's attached to the transmission, then I tried pulling the rear shift linkage bar to separate it from the front shift linkage bar. I am pretty sure that I must have inadvertently moved (and maybe rotated) the front bar without knowing it. Probably because the 13mm bolt at the clamp wasn't tight enough or loosened a bit.

Thanks Clay. I followed your linkage adjustment procedure, but I'm still unable to get 4th gear from the shift lever. I have some questions regarding some of the steps in your procedure. Here are all of the steps you explain:

1. Remove the cover over the shift console.

2. Remove the carpet around the shifter.

3. Put the shifter in neutral, and loosen the pinch bolt on the shift rod. This is accessible behind the shifter.

4. Completely disconnect the shift rod by pulling the shifter back into the third gear position. You should see the coupler laying against the floorboard (like in the picture below).

5. From under the car, put the side shift console on the transmission into 4th gear. This is done by pulling down on the shift rod and pulling it rearward.

6. Back inside the car, put a rubber bungee cord around the base of the shifter, and loop the other end over the right hand door handle.

7. Make sure that the bungee stays at the base of the shifter.

8. Lift the shift rod inside the tunnel up, and slide it into the coupler on the bottom of the shifter. This is the hardest part of the job. The hole is small and both parts sag downward. You may have to use needle nose pliers or something like them to hold them up.

9. Once you have the coupling done, move the shifter as far forward as it will go.

10. From under the car, move the shift console into the neutral position.

11. Remove the bungee cord from the shifter, then move the shifter until the part below the curve is vertical. Tighten the pinch bolt.

12. Reinstall the carpet and the cover over the shift console.

First, I don't understand why the shift rod needs to be disconnected from the shifter (aka shift lever)? With the pinch bolt loosened the shift rod will move freely independent from the shifter.

Second, In step 10, I'm assuming you mean move the shift console from 4th into neutral with the shift rod at the transmission still pulled all the way down? So the shift console is in neutral between the 4th and 5th "clicks"?

Third, in step 11, while moving the shifter to vertical, do you mean position it to FULLY vertical in the center of the Second/Third shift plane? Or do you mean move it so it's in the center of the Fourth/Fifth plane? If you mean in the center of the Second/Third shift plane, then I don't understand why the bungee cord was needed.

Following your procedure, I'm still not able to engage 4th gear from the shifter. I did notice that my clutch pedal has maybe 1.5 inches of play, so I'm going to try adjusting the clutch cable to see if that helps.

The really odd part is that I CAN engage 4th gear at the shift console at the transmission WITH the pinch bolt at the base of the shifter tightened. BUT after I get back inside the car and pull the shifter into it's neutral position, I can't get the shifter into 4th gear. I can only get it from the shift console. I'm hoping it's just the clutch cable being a tad too loose, but I'm open to any other advice. So far, I can get into all the gears from the shifter except for 4th. Frustrating to say the least.

OH, I don't understand Dr. Evil's procedure below:

1-Put in 2 or 3
2- Undo pinch bolt and remove shaft from coupler
3 - Put selector in 2 or 3 depending on gear you chose, but make sure they rest against the spring plate
4- Insert rod back into coupler and tighten bolt.

Whether you select 2 or 3, with the "selector" in either 2 or 3 and resting fully against the spring plate (so fully forward for 2 and fully rearward for 3), YOU CAN'T tighten the pinch bolt. So unless I'm missing something, this procedure is impossible to follow.

Not sure if this is why the instruction is written so, but a common misperception is that there are splines inside the shift rod head as well as on the shaft.