4 Speed Shifter Adjustment & Freeing Rusted Disc From Flywheel
10-18-2015, 08:21 AM
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4 Speed Shifter Adjustment & Freeing Rusted Disc From Flywheel
"finally" learned to adjust OEM shifter after auto to 4speed swap.
These are the key points I learned........
Shifting should be smooth, if not, keep at it.
1. Inspect entire shift assy. Look for loose parts. Loose parts do not adjust correctly.
2. Disassembly: jack car up, place on Four jack stands. Take off drivers side exhaust head pipe for access. Disconnect shifter rods. Take off the reverse light switch assy and Rod. I did no other disassembly and nothing in the cockpit! Put gears (3) of them in Nuetral. Use a long box end wrench for leverage! Test to determine if in Nuetral is to turn rear wheel. If you can turn--good. If you can not, it's still in gear. Don't assume...do the test!
3. Fabricate the shifter adjustment (spacer) tool--goggle it! I made a short one and I taped to a hack saw blade to provide more remote installation of the tool and less disassembly. Blade bends easily. Install tool, use large screw driver to help wedge into the slot.
4. Install and adjust rods. Most important: nothing should be LOOSE. My main problem was the clip holding the reverse rod was loose. Only needed to re-bend it and it worked fine.
5. Pull out adjustment tool, reinstall reverse light switch and exhaust.
My next delema was, the vette sat for a while and the disc fused/rusted onto the flywheel. Searched the forum for suggestions and there were three and one.
One said to pull bellhousing cover and use screw driver to free the disc. Well I pulled the access cover and saw the back of the flywheel and no way to stick a screwdriver into. So this for me was a no go!
The other idea was to pull the trans--another no go for me.
The other was to keep the car on jacks and start the car in gear. The problem with this is, I couldn't stop thinking about the car coming off jacks...would have made a mess. Also I remembered that the axle shafts start rubbing when jacked up! A big no go!
The option I chose was the Bucking Bronco! This is where you push the car out into a UNCONGESTED, TRAFFIC/pedestrian/pet free area. Warm up the car in Nuetral. Shut it off, put the car in gear and start it giving it gas, hitting the brake and clutch pedal. Did my Bucking Bronco in our long driveway. On the 2nd run, I heard what sounded like cracking metal and felt very expensive.......turned out that was the sound of the disc breaking free. Afterwards, learned my wife was watching....said she enjoyed the show!
Adjusted clutch free play after the ordeal and am still amazed what a well adjusted shifter feels like. No grinding going into reverse, the gears shift effortlessly. Wow!
Bottom line: don't let the car sit in the garage too long without starting and exercising the clutch. Disclaimer: Info is for entertainment only and recounts my experience. Do at own risk!
These are the key points I learned........
Shifting should be smooth, if not, keep at it.
1. Inspect entire shift assy. Look for loose parts. Loose parts do not adjust correctly.
2. Disassembly: jack car up, place on Four jack stands. Take off drivers side exhaust head pipe for access. Disconnect shifter rods. Take off the reverse light switch assy and Rod. I did no other disassembly and nothing in the cockpit! Put gears (3) of them in Nuetral. Use a long box end wrench for leverage! Test to determine if in Nuetral is to turn rear wheel. If you can turn--good. If you can not, it's still in gear. Don't assume...do the test!
3. Fabricate the shifter adjustment (spacer) tool--goggle it! I made a short one and I taped to a hack saw blade to provide more remote installation of the tool and less disassembly. Blade bends easily. Install tool, use large screw driver to help wedge into the slot.
4. Install and adjust rods. Most important: nothing should be LOOSE. My main problem was the clip holding the reverse rod was loose. Only needed to re-bend it and it worked fine.
5. Pull out adjustment tool, reinstall reverse light switch and exhaust.
My next delema was, the vette sat for a while and the disc fused/rusted onto the flywheel. Searched the forum for suggestions and there were three and one.
One said to pull bellhousing cover and use screw driver to free the disc. Well I pulled the access cover and saw the back of the flywheel and no way to stick a screwdriver into. So this for me was a no go!
The other idea was to pull the trans--another no go for me.
The other was to keep the car on jacks and start the car in gear. The problem with this is, I couldn't stop thinking about the car coming off jacks...would have made a mess. Also I remembered that the axle shafts start rubbing when jacked up! A big no go!
The option I chose was the Bucking Bronco! This is where you push the car out into a UNCONGESTED, TRAFFIC/pedestrian/pet free area. Warm up the car in Nuetral. Shut it off, put the car in gear and start it giving it gas, hitting the brake and clutch pedal. Did my Bucking Bronco in our long driveway. On the 2nd run, I heard what sounded like cracking metal and felt very expensive.......turned out that was the sound of the disc breaking free. Afterwards, learned my wife was watching....said she enjoyed the show!
Adjusted clutch free play after the ordeal and am still amazed what a well adjusted shifter feels like. No grinding going into reverse, the gears shift effortlessly. Wow!
Bottom line: don't let the car sit in the garage too long without starting and exercising the clutch. Disclaimer: Info is for entertainment only and recounts my experience. Do at own risk!
