001pewter

I'm experiencing what seems like more side to side play than usual, unless this is normal and I just now noticed. It seems about like 1/4 to a 1/2 in gear and neutral. I've taken the rubber off and tried to tighten the torx on the rod but it was tight. Anyone else experience this or any ideas what to look at? Or is this just normal and I'm a moron? Thanks for the help.

neutron82

take the bolt out and check the threads in the area that it passes through the shift rod... the threads on mine were all mangled up in that area but fine at the end where it actually threads into the collar to lock it down so it wasn't due to me stripping it... my best guess is that it was caused from hard shifting and the notch in the shift rod flattened the threads... my shifter felt really sloppy from side to side and would occasionally not want to go into gear... I replaced the torx bolts with old header bolts and it has been solid since... this is how mine looked after trying to retap the threads, it was worse before but was still trashed

001pewter

Got it out and the threads were good. Thanks for the tip though.

leadfoot4

How are the bushings, on the shifter box.....the point where the box attaches to the torque tube?

001pewter

They look tired and cracked but it didn't appear to be moving. It just looks like the rod has alot of play. I didn't separate the box and check the insides.

leadfoot4

There are a couple of nylon looking bushings, in the shift box, that the "shift rod" pivots on. They could be worn....

Bill Curlee

Our C5 shifters (especially the lower box) endures a LOT of stress and strains. They do eventually wear out and cause sloppy shifting.

There was a really good post that discussed those bushing and how the bushings were fixed. I wished I would have saved or book marked it.

Several thing in our shifter and the shift linkage path to the transmission can and do wear out and cause shifting issues. Here are some that I have experienced:

That bolt that "neutron82" discussed is a major SLOP area. It wears out as discussed or the joint fails to fully clamp the two rods together and the more you tighten the bolt the more likely you are to strip it or bust the bolt!

The rubber bushings below the two bolts that isolate the lower shift box from the Torque Tube (NON ZO6) are well known to turn to mush or dust. Causes the box to move when shift force is applied to the stick.

The rod that connects to shift box and goes back to the transmission has a universal type joint that allows it to not bind when the shifter is moved LEFT and RIGHT to select the different gates. That U Joint can get loose and sloppy.

The actual bushings in the lower shifter box that support the yoke that allows the yoke to move forward and aft and pivot left and right can wear and get sloppy.

The black plastic cap that fits on to the ball at the end of the shift rod can wear or crack and get sloppy.

001pewter

I'll give that a glance this evening, thanks for the info.

001pewter

Thanks for the info, to make my life a little easier, that alignment pin, does it just turn to the side or need to be removed? I've read a couple threads where posters have lost them.

Bill Curlee

When not in use, you pull it UP and snap it into the little plastic holder on the shifter plate. When you use it, pop it out and press it into the hole and when it goes into the hole in the rod, it locks the shift rod in N

If you lose it, just use a 1//8 drill bit. Most of them rust real bad and will not go in unless you sand them clean.

BC

001pewter

thanks for the info. Mine is rusted pretty good, if I don't drop it I'll clean it up.

leadfoot4

To go along with what's already been mentioned, the bushings that I mentioned, are available in polyurethane. I got mine from Zip Products, if I remember correctly. The "cap" that Bill mentioned, is available from Southern Car Parts.

001pewter

I hope that's the problem and it's not on the other end. Thanks for the heads up on where to get the parts from.

nsogiba

One of my projects on my C5 last winter was to investigate why the shifter felt so sloppy. It's a bad characteristic that ruins the driving experience of an otherwise great car.

I documented as much as I could here:

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...age-trans.html

001pewter

Nice write up I'm hoping the joint isn't the problem. If it doesn't rain again today I'll give the box a look.

nsogiba

Half of my slop came from the nylon bushings in the OEM lower box, and the other half came from the rear u-joint right before it enters the trans. The only slop I have left is internal trans.

I wish I could stick a BMW 6 speed gearbox in the rear of the C5.

001pewter

I got the shifter out, everything seems fine. I don't know why theres a small amout of liquid, I'm assuming is old grease from the factory. Box gets pretty warm. Bushing look worse than what I originally thought.