my shifter has just taken a sh#t! i can barely get into 1st or rev... i'll try to slam it in (which is the only way) 1st gear and it goes into 3rd....i'll immediately try it again and it'll go right into 1st????? the shifter is VERY vague....i can go into 2 and 4 from the same (neutral, in the middle)spot with just a little (and i mean VERY little) movement to the left for 2nd same thing for 3rd and 5th......it's a side shifter and ALL bushings are new....got them from PP....any ideas??? THANKS

Typically when my car won't go easily into 1st or Rev I adjust the clutch cable to spec to make sure my clutch is fully released when it's pressed. Check that first.

but it is ALL gears...almost like a shifter adjustment....it will go INTO the 2-5 fine, it's more of a shifter position prob.

QUOTE (meares @ Oct 21 2005, 11:44 AM)

but it is ALL gears...almost like a shifter adjustment....it will go INTO the 2-5 fine, it's more of a shifter position prob.

cone screw backed out? check them.
adjust clutch.

then.. go to your haynes manual, and read about the adjustment you can do at the shifter base, by rotating the rod in the tunnel

where is the cone screw and is the adj. a pain to do? THANK YOU

QUOTE (meares @ Oct 21 2005, 11:54 AM)

where is the cone screw and is the adj. a pain to do? THANK YOU

Uh Oh....if you replaced your bushings, you would have had to remove two of them

Check your firewall bushing.

Betcha thats popped out.

the "cone screws" are just conical set screws- one back at tran and one at firewall. You have pulverized the bushing at the firewall twixt the shift rod fron and back pieces. It is a cheap piece, but a POS to replace. Gotta take out the shift rod and seperate the pressed in u-jointy thing to put a new bushing there. Use a big vice. PP has a good tech article on it. The biggest challenge is getting the flexy rubber covering back onto the firewall.

I had those same symptoms a few weeks ago. Previously I had replaced all shift bushings except the pair where the shift rods connect at the engine bay firewall.

Discovered that the two bushing I did not replace basically fell apart. Replaced them and every gear is easy to locate

Interestingly, I found that with a new cup bushing at the gearbox, a new bushing at the console, new u-joint bushings, and new cone screws, that the firewall bushing does almost nothing to help reduce slop. My firewall bushing popped out (insufficient force installing it), and is now dangling loose on the shift rod, yet the shifter feel barely changed. I can still get all gates nicely, and have no trouble getting it into any gear. Drove the car about 50 miles before I even noticed the bushing wasn't seated.

The bushings kit from PP includes new cone screws, so unless you bought the bushings piecemeal, you should have a set. They back out easily if you reuse them and don't use Loctite on them. New ones have a one-use nylon insert to prevent them from backing out.

hey....

it's the cone screw.....

mine did it like three weeks ago.....


4mm allen key + 10 seconds = happy camper.

enjoy

After you are done "screwing" around, also get the springs and bushings for the shifter. $45 and make a world of difference. Then adjust everything.

The springs? Why? They don't wear out. The plate does, and the cup does, even the shifter does, but never the springs. Waste of money. The Cap'n

My vote would be that one of your cone screws has come loose. There are two of them. Usually it is the one in the universal joint that works loose. If that is not the cause, remove the long shaft that goes to the tranny and try shifting the tranny by moving the stub shaft on the side of tranny. How does it work, is the sloppy feeling still there? If so, check the two roll pins used at both ends of the stubby shaft. The pins can totally shear off but they can also crack but still stay in place leaving you with a shifter that still works but is inconsistent in its shifting pattern. It is also possible for the holes that goes through the stub shaft and the two shift levers to become worn out. The roll pin on the inside of the tranny cracked on my car and it was difficult to find until I had removed the shifter console from the side of the tranny. Then the shaft play could be felt AND SEEN.

it was the cone screw on the shift rod next to the transaxle took about three mins to fix!!!!! THANK YOU ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1 i'm starting to do little things like this, that is saving me at least $200 each time.....THANK YOU for the input