how the crap do I put my shift lever back in! (1 Viewer)

[weatherm]

For goodness sakes. If its not one thing its ANOTHER!

The monsoon has started and I managed to pull out my shift lever trying to screw on the cover for it. I can get it in the hole but I can't get it to go into any gears. Everything is all sloppy, it locks into 2 gears but doesn't go anywhere. If I hold it down it stays in reverse.

Is there a trick to get this crap back together with out droping my transmission / xfer case?!!!

Thanks!

 

[76FJ40]

Push down and turn the rounded cover that goes on top of the large ball about 3" up from the bottom of the shifter (CW). I usually slide an old side gear over the shifter (teeth up) to help push down and turn.

 

[weatherm]

man I can't get that cover to go on no matter what I do. It used to shift fine with out the cover on it! thats the thing. The thing is now road worthy and this stupid mess happens.

 

[nuclearlemon]

i'm assuming you unbolted the top cover, you didn't just remove the shift lever. are all the gears in neutral? iirc, that's where toy cases have to be. sm465s have to be halfway into reverse, which is a pita

 

[In2cruisers]

We need more info.........What year and model tranny?

Is it for a later model 4spd??

It actually screws/tightens counter clockwise. Rotate the cup (top most part) so that the oval has the little spirs/endents toward you (toward the rear of vehicle) make sure the cup is all the way down... use straight screw driver or something of the same and tap down & towards the Right.

Biggest thing to remember is that it tightens the opposite way you would think it would !!

 

[In2cruisers]

i'm assuming you unbolted the top cover, you didn't just remove the shift lever.

Why not...if its a late model 4spd or even 5spd the shifter comes right out...

 

[shelfboy1]

look down the hole with a light make sure all the slots line up .their will be a circle in the middle and a slot on each side then the shifter should drop right in .hold it down and shift through the gears if its good install the retainer good luck

 

[weatherm]

Its a 72 3 speed

I mean it just came right out. it hanging half way out of my garage This is so embarrasing

What I'm getting here is the transfer case need to be in neutral and the transmission need to be in neutral also right?

 

[nuclearlemon]

Why not...if its a late model 4spd or even 5spd the shifter comes right out...

because he says he's trying to screw a cover on. that tells me he unbolted the shift tower, he didn't just pull the shift lever

 

[weatherm]

yeah I mean the stick you shift gears with. Sorry if I'm not using the right terminology.

I didn't unbolt anything. Its just a push and twist cover w/ a spring holding the tension. I was just trying to push that down and twist and bumped the shift lever and it came loose. It was free so I pulled it out because it sure wasn't in anything and now I can get it in the hold it goes in but the gears are all wrong. Only thing I have is reverse and thats just sloppy loose and in the wrong spot.

 

[Toyo FJ40]

The transfer case doesn't have to be in neutral just the trans Like Shelfboy said, look down into the trans and you will see the 2 rods with notches in the sides of them, just line them up and you should be in neutral. You should be able to shift gears with out the retainer locked down to see if it's in the right place. Then push down and twist the retainer to lock it in place.

I know on my 72 3 speed it's a bitch to turn it especially if it's oily

Kevin

 

[weatherm]

This is all I got.. I got up and down and neither of them go... I referse is now down to the left and its really sloppy. It used to be up

 

[Hobbs]

Seems we need a sticky on this subject.....

 

[bsmith123]

shifter

it is normal for the shifter to come out like that---I know it seems weird that just that retainer holds it in but it is okay

slot it in and move it forward and back if it will go into a couple gears like that then just go back to installing the retainer dont worry about trying all the gears yet

mine feels weird and wont go into all the gears right with the retainer off---once it is on it will be fine


it is one of those things that you have to do by feel and everyone has their own trick but you have to push down and turn it at the same time---clockwise look at the locks and detents and you will see

I use some long jaw pliers and pushdown and turn --it could be that you are not pushing it down far enough

Just be patient and keep trying different tools/techniques until you get it. It seems a real pain until you've done it a few times and get a feel for it

 

[nuclearlemon]

you can also cut a coil out of the spring under the cup to give it less tension.

 

[weatherm]

Ok. Well I'll try that today!

 

[weatherm]

Fixed! It has to be in neutral or sure. It required two people .. first taking off the transmission cover (which needed to have a few pieces welded anyways and cleaned up) so we did that and had a lot better access then. It took channel locks, flat head screw driver, grunting, and a hammer.

 

[Pin_Head]

It doesn't have to be in neutral; it just has to be in the slot that is correct for whatever gear the transmission is in. The nice thing about neutral is that there is only one slot and only one way to put it in.