Shift rod side to side play inside shifter box - normal?
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Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 86
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Shift rod side to side play inside shifter box - normal?
The shift rod inside the shifter box on my 99 coupe has considerable play, and when I was aligning my shifter it would wobble. One of the bushings inside the shifter box was deteriorated and halfway broken off inside the shifter box.
I have the metal bushings from a z06 on my torque tube, I'm talking about the bushings inside the shifter box itself.
Should the shift rod have ANY side to side play? The MGW shifter install video I watched showed absolutely 0 side to side play with the brand new shift box/bushings.
I have the metal bushings from a z06 on my torque tube, I'm talking about the bushings inside the shifter box itself.
Should the shift rod have ANY side to side play? The MGW shifter install video I watched showed absolutely 0 side to side play with the brand new shift box/bushings.
Instructor
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 207
Likes: 3
From: Manhattan KS
I had the same thing and modified my lower box. Here is what I did:
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...x-upgrade.html
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...x-upgrade.html
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 3,473
Likes: 691
From: West Virginia
I have an early car and the rear bushing in the shifter box is brass/bronze or similar. It is slightly loose, but makes no difference to shift quality. When I was in there, I completely dismantled the shift mechanism, including drilling out the rivets on the top plate to see why there was a bit of "slop" there - some very slight vertical play.
Turns out everything was just slightly loose - corrected it by first working on that plate with some emory on a flat surface, then re-assembling with a thin layer of make-a-gasket stuff and 3/16 nylock nuts and bolts. Doing this took up the wear in the shifter ball mechanism completely, really restored the shifter feel. Especially with a shortened lever and a Hurst cueball ****.
No replacement parts available for any of this stuff - apart from buying a new box assembly - as far as I can tell.
Turns out everything was just slightly loose - corrected it by first working on that plate with some emory on a flat surface, then re-assembling with a thin layer of make-a-gasket stuff and 3/16 nylock nuts and bolts. Doing this took up the wear in the shifter ball mechanism completely, really restored the shifter feel. Especially with a shortened lever and a Hurst cueball ****.
No replacement parts available for any of this stuff - apart from buying a new box assembly - as far as I can tell.
Last edited by jackthelad; Feb 25, 2015 at 10:23 AM.
