MGW shifter install...***?

[TowDawg]

OK. A shifter install should be a piece of cake. I've done on plenty of other cars and never had an issue. Unbolt the old one, drop in the new one and you're done.

I just got my MGW shifter from Mark, so I figured I'd throw it in and see the difference. I decided to go in from the top side since I JUST took the car down off of the jack stands the other day. I pulled the center console out and got the old shifter out and the new one in. The shifter will move to the left and I can get what feels like gears 1-4, but it WILL NOT move to the right. I don't think I can get 5-6 and it definitely will got get reverse. I pulled it out and re-installed with the same results. Then I took it out and put the stock shifter back in. SAME THING! What the heck happened? I know there is a reverse lockout solenoid that you undo if you go in from underneath, but I didn't do it that way. The only things that I unplugged were the lighter and windows on the plastic console area and the passenger airbag on/off and power source inside the little glove box area on the center console. I can't see any of those causing the shifter to not move to the right at all.

I'll give Mark a call tomorrow for some advice, but I'm hoping someone has some kind of idea of what's going on here. I want to get this thing back together and go give it a run!

 

[V10SpeedLuvr]

5th, 6th and reverse are for wusses. Go with it the way it is

 

[TowDawg]

I admit I'm a wuss. I like having a top when it rains too!

 

[Westxsrt10]

You might try loosening the bolts slightly to center the shifter in place. Also the thickness of the flange gasket (or lack of) as alot to do with operation.

 

[TowDawg]

I tried with the bolts just in the holes and tightened down. No gasket stock and not putting one in now. Thanks for the ideas though. Keep them coming!

 

[highsierrahillbilly]

Call the company you bought it from to help out. Don't drive it until the problem is solved, which i'm sure already know. Let us know what problem was and what the fix was please!

High Sierra Hill Billy

 

[lmcgrew79]

Mine seemed pretty tight at first and then got slightly better. Great shifter but my wife can hardly shift it.

 

[AZTVR]

Did the plastic isolator cup come out of position and get jammed into someplace it shouldn't be?

 

[Viper Specialty]

Sounds like the shifter is physically hitting something. Did one of the drilled rivets fall into something? Did you change the mount at the same time, and now the transmission is too high? Did the cup come out?

 

[TowDawg]

Nothing fell into anywhere, the shifter isn't physically hitting anything to interfere with it going to the right, and I didn't unbolt anything on the trans, so nothing changed there.

I'm not sure what the cup or the plastic isolator cup are. I'll go take it apart and look again. I know the ball on the bottom of the shifter goes into what I would call the cup, but it looks like it's made of brass or something if I remember correctly. I'll have to look at it again when I take back apart tomorrow. I've had enough aggravation over something so simple today.

 

[AZTVR]

I'm not sure what the cup or the plastic isolator cup are. I'll go take it apart and look again. I know the ball on the bottom of the shifter goes into what I would call the cup, but it looks like it's made of brass or something if I remember correctly. I'll have to look at it again when I take back apart tomorrow. I've had enough aggravation over something so simple today.

I may be wrong about the Viper T56 cup being plastic. My memory is not so good, and you can get them in bronze. Like you describe, its the cup that the shifter ball sits in. It is installed in the end of the rod in the trans.

I guess the next thing I would try is to see if I could push the rod in the shifter around to the various gear locations, with the shifter removed. Being careful not to damage that cup with whatever you use to push the rod forward, back, side to side.

 

[mjorgensen Woodhouse]

When you get the shifter back out make sure you can move the shifter completely as it would in the car. if it works smooth then there is something else happening. Lots of good suggestions above and I hope nothing did fall inside the top. We always do them from under the car and never have had a problem, I've never done one from the top unfortunately so can't help there...

Nothing fell into anywhere, the shifter isn't physically hitting anything to interfere with it going to the right, and I didn't unbolt anything on the trans, so nothing changed there.

I'm not sure what the cup or the plastic isolator cup are. I'll go take it apart and look again. I know the ball on the bottom of the shifter goes into what I would call the cup, but it looks like it's made of brass or something if I remember correctly. I'll have to look at it again when I take back apart tomorrow. I've had enough aggravation over something so simple today.

 

[TowDawg]

Mark, I'm glad you replied on here, so I don't have to repeat this in a PM back to you.

Apparently, I forgot to take my "don't be a dumb, blind, (insert other adjectives here) idiot pills". Anyone other than Chad is welcome to contribute to that sentence.

AZTVR and I were both correct about what we were referring to. There is a brass "hole/cup" on the transmission shaft that the ball of the shifter goes into. There is ALSO a plastic piece that goes into this and THEN the shifter ball goes into THAT! It must have come out with the stock shifter, but then fell down into the transmission housing. It was wedged down in there and I didn't see it until I just pulled everything out again got a good view all over with a flashlight. I dug that little sucker out of there and put it back into the brass fitting. I've gotta actually go do some work now, but I'll drop the new shifter in later I'm sure it will be fine. OOPS!!!

Thanks for all the replies, but this was just a case of being a ******* and not paying attention, so carry on.

 

[Fatboy 18]

Thanks for the update, I will be installing my Hurst shifter soon so I will take extra care!

 

[V10SpeedLuvr]

Mark, I'm glad you replied on here, so I don't have to repeat this in a PM back to you.

Apparently, I forgot to take my "don't be a dumb, blind, (insert other adjectives here) idiot pills". Anyone other than Chad is welcome to contribute to that sentence.

Fine I'll play by your rules and not say anything. I will however add the following emoticons to voice my displeasure with me not being allowed to comment:

​

 

[TowDawg]

I knew you would chime in with "helpful" info as always, so I figured I'd save you the trouble.

 

[TowDawg]

Shifter is in working properly. While I didn't push it on my drive, I honestly can't tell a huge difference (I already had the short MGW shift knob). Maybe I'll be able to tell more when it warms up and I can drive it harder.

Anyway, it's done and the console is back together. Now it's time to start pulling the bulkhead out and get ready to install the roll bar.

 

[rosco]

i just pulled the factory shift handle off of mine, cut it in half, machined some threads on to it and had a field day looking at all the choices i had for shift knobs. anything with the right threads will fit. settled in an epoxy knob same color as car with shift pattern etched in black.

looks sweet. works as well as the hurst or bm. cost about 30 bucks for machine work and the price of the knob. it is not the shifter that makes it stiff to shift, its the trany. something chevy found a fix for on the Z06. dodge is just dodge.

 

[TowDawg]

It's not so much how stiff the trans is, although it is the worst trans I've ever had to shift fast. It just doesn't flow like almost every other car I've had. Changing the shifter is about eliminating any sloppiness and giving true, positive shifts. Any aftermarket shifter I've ever had actually makes shifting a bit notchier, but more positive and the positive stops built into them help from bending shift forks if you're abusing the hell out of it.

 

[Steve M]

It's not so much how stiff the trans is, although it is the worst trans I've ever had to shift fast. It just doesn't flow like almost every other car I've had. Changing the shifter is about eliminating any sloppiness and giving true, positive shifts. Any aftermarket shifter I've ever had actually makes shifting a bit notchier, but more positive and the positive stops built into them help from bending shift forks if you're abusing the hell out of it.

That's always been the complaint with the T-56...my previous Camaro with a T-56 was always notchy, especially with an MGW. Just the nature of the beast. They at least addressed it with the 6060 in the Gen IVs...it isn't perfect, but it is way better than my Camaro ever was, and I still have the stock shifter. I'll probably keep the stock shifter too, and that thought never went through my head with the Camaro.