Alternate Fix for Loose Shift Lever
09-27-13, 02:16 AM
#1
Rookie
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Florida
Posts: 86
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Alternate Fix for Loose Shift Lever
1993 SC400
After reading what was involved in repairing my loose shift lever... remove the whole console, half
the dash and jacking the car up to get to the shift lever connection.... I considered this just too
overwhelming so I elected to try a modified fix.
BY just removing the trim around the console (ash tray, shift **** and plastic shift cover) I was
able to access both the driver and passenger side pivot point where the bushings would
normally go.
I bought a chrome plated spring clip ( like a bobby pin) at Lowes, cut the length down to about
half. I knocked the pin into position where the passenger side bushing would normally go but there
was still quite a bit of play. Fortunately I had some steel "shim material" which came out of the windings of an old electric
motor which was perfect for this job. They were rectangular in shape (1" x 1.25") with a 7/16" wide 3/4" deep
slot in the middle. I don't have a micrometer so I don't know how thick they were
I was then able to tap two shims into place between the chrome pin and the shift lever housing wall.
The fit was very snug and after greasing both sides of the pivot arm I ran the shift lever back and forth and
the shims stayed nicely in place and the pin did not rotate which is good cause that could dislocate the shims.
I realize that the drivers side pivot point will be rubbing (rotating) against the shift lever housing
but I don't think this will be a problem since use of the shifter is not very frequent. I could have
drilled a hole thru the shims and shift housing and fastened them in place with a small metal screw
for added security but I feel they are ok as is.
Hope it holds up
After reading what was involved in repairing my loose shift lever... remove the whole console, half
the dash and jacking the car up to get to the shift lever connection.... I considered this just too
overwhelming so I elected to try a modified fix.
BY just removing the trim around the console (ash tray, shift **** and plastic shift cover) I was
able to access both the driver and passenger side pivot point where the bushings would
normally go.
I bought a chrome plated spring clip ( like a bobby pin) at Lowes, cut the length down to about
half. I knocked the pin into position where the passenger side bushing would normally go but there
was still quite a bit of play. Fortunately I had some steel "shim material" which came out of the windings of an old electric
motor which was perfect for this job. They were rectangular in shape (1" x 1.25") with a 7/16" wide 3/4" deep
slot in the middle. I don't have a micrometer so I don't know how thick they were
I was then able to tap two shims into place between the chrome pin and the shift lever housing wall.
The fit was very snug and after greasing both sides of the pivot arm I ran the shift lever back and forth and
the shims stayed nicely in place and the pin did not rotate which is good cause that could dislocate the shims.
I realize that the drivers side pivot point will be rubbing (rotating) against the shift lever housing
but I don't think this will be a problem since use of the shifter is not very frequent. I could have
drilled a hole thru the shims and shift housing and fastened them in place with a small metal screw
for added security but I feel they are ok as is.
Hope it holds up
Last edited by SC93; 09-27-13 at 03:39 AM.
09-27-13, 11:40 AM
#3
Rookie
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Florida
Posts: 86
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Give me a week or so and i will detail more. The pin I bought at Lowes was mnf by Hillman
and is called a hitch pin clip .....093 x 1-5/8. As mentioned, I do not have a micrometer but was able to get
the thickness of the shims by making a 1" stack of shims and counting the number and dividing
that into 1000... resulting value was 22 thousands thickness per shim.
Unfortunately, I did not get photos at ea step but would be glad to give you a blow by blow description
of the process if my lever does in fact hold up. If I had to go internally to the lever pivot point again, I think
I could disassemble everything in 10 minutes now that I have been thru the process. Really not difficult at all
vs the conventional route to install the bushings.
My only reservation is the possibility that the shims could work loose but I don't think this will occur. If it
does I could go back in and drill a hole thru the shims and shifter casing and secure with a metal screw . Or, maybe
epoxy the two shims together and after setting up, epoxy this to the shifter housing wall during the insertion stage.
Where from in Indiana? That is my home state.
Last edited by SC93; 09-28-13 at 03:30 AM.
09-29-13, 09:42 AM
#4
Rookie
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Florida
Posts: 86
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
[QUOTE=SC93;8160532]=============================================
Give me a week or so and i will detail more. The pin I bought at Lowes was mnf by Hillman
and is called a hitch pin clip .....093 x 1-5/8. As mentioned, I do not have a micrometer but was able to get
the thickness of the shims by making a 1" stack of shims and counting the number and dividing
that into 1000... resulting value was 22 thousands thickness per shim.
Unfortunately, I did not get photos at ea step but would be glad to give you a blow by blow description
of the process if my lever does in fact hold up. If I had to go internally to the lever pivot point again, I think
I could disassemble everything in 10 minutes now that I have been thru the process. Really not difficult at all
vs the conventional route to install the bushings.
My only reservation is the possibility that the shims could work loose but I don't think this will occur. If it
does I could go back in and drill a hole thru the shims and shifter casing and secure with a metal screw . Or, maybe
epoxy the two shims together and after setting up, epoxy this to the shifter housing wall during the insertion stage.
Where from in Indiana? That is my home state.[/QUOT
=========================================================
I feel pretty confident that my shifter will stay tight so I am going to going to give details now
in case anyone wants to start rounding up what is needed to do job.
DETAILED STEPS FOR TIGHTENING GEAR SHIFTER
1) Put emergency brake on, turn ignition switch to acc and put gear shifter into
N. I tried to do above by inserting small blade into slot above the P which
Is supposed to release shift lever but I could not make it do so.
2) Carefully pry on top of plastic sheath below leather shift handle while pulling
it down and remove the two exposed brass screws. Pull shift handle and plastic
sheath off shift lever.
3) With screw driver, carefully pry/wiggle the four corners loose of the black
plastic cover with the P R N…. letters. When free put gear lever back to P,
ignition switch to off and under the top left corner of the cover plate there is a
black plastic lever arm…push it down and hold and now you can put the shift
lever into N and not have to leave ignition switch on. Lift cover plate and
disconnect the two electrical modules and set cover plate aside.
4) Lift cup holder lid and pull hard on inter part of cup to release…you may have
to pry it out. There are two spring clips that hold it in place. Remove the two
exposed screws that hold back of console trim in place.
5) Remove the six screws that hold the center console trim in place. When removing
screws use a magnetic tipped screw driver and be careful not to drop screws down into
shifter housing..very difficult to retrieve.
6) Starting from the cup holder side, carefully pry/lift the console trim and work
your way forward to the radio/ac cluster. Place fingers under trim and wiggle and
pull until the pins workloose. Remove the two electrical modules from the trim
and leave the cigarette lighter connected. Roll the trim over to the right and
place on floor.
7) Remove the 4 brass screws that hold the rectangular box that the shift lever slides
thru. The lower right screw is kind of hidden but you can angle your screw driver
and work it out. Again, careful not to drop screws into shifter box. Remove wires
that cling to the box and lift out.
8) Now you can get to the lower part of the shifter where the bushings go. The right side
is open to view but the left side is covered with a rubber boot which can easily be
peeled back. You just have to figure out a way to hold it back so you can work in
that area.
9) The 2 attached pics show the hitch pin and the shims used in this repair. The shims
came from either a disasembled transformer or motor that held the copper wiring, can't
remember which.The "W" shaped shim was cut in half resulting in 2 shims. I routed out
the slot to make it 7/16" wide which is the diameter of the thru bolt that would normally
go thru the bushings.
10)The hitch pin was purchased from Lowes. You can buy them online but shipping cost is an
issue. The pin I used is mnf. by Hillman and is .093" thick and 1 5/8 long. I cut the
pin at the second bend to shorten it and opened it up below the eye some to make it
easier to tap into place. Also, I ground the top of the pin down a bit to flatten it
so as to make it easier to drive into into the bushing slot. Adding up the total width
of the pin (93/1000") and the 2 shims (22/1000"ea.) I came up with approximately 140/1000"
or about 9/64" of space that needed to be filled in order to make the shifter handle nice
and snug.
!!)This is what I did to firm the lever up but would probably do it differently if I had to
redo.I tapped the hitch pin into the right side of the lever arm and inserted the two shims
in between the pin and the shifter housing. It was a very tight fit and the shims wedged
in vert snugly. I then saturated both sides of the pivot arm and housing wall with silicone
spray. I did this twice allowing about five min to dry between ea spray. Then I applied a
liberal amount of silicone grease to each end of the pivot point. I ran the lever back and
forth about 10 times and observed that the pin did not rotate and the shims remained in place.
So far after about a week the lever remains tight. I am sure there are many optional ways to go
about this job but if I were to redo I would try to firm it up by using a hitch pin on both sides
of the pivot arm. Knowing how much width I need (140/1000") I would take 23/1000" off of ea pin
on just one side i.e., flaten just one side of the pin so it would face up better against the pivot
arm when driven into place. If the lever was not tight by this method I would go back to the shims
but this time I would put a very thin layer of epoxy or JB weld on one side of the shim and place
a shim on both sides of the pivot arm pressing the epoxy side firmly against the housing wall. Then
I would try to insert the pin on the right side of the pivot arm (easier to access than left side).
If the pin would not go into place due to the added thickness of epoxy on the shim, I would shave
the pin down to the point where it would go in tightly. Lubricate as above and hope for the best.
I realize this is a "shaggy dog" explanation but laying out all the specifics can many times make
a chore much easier.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Online address of hitch pin HIL 639:
http://www.richardssupply.com/defaul...+Anchors*0%40%404168*Pins-Hitch%2fHair%2fSnap*7155%40%
40&SearchSource=Pagination&SearchType=AND&forcePrice=False&forceAvailability=False&OrderByColumn=&OrderByDirection=&SearchKey=SK73723
AM&CurrentPage=2
Give me a week or so and i will detail more. The pin I bought at Lowes was mnf by Hillman
and is called a hitch pin clip .....093 x 1-5/8. As mentioned, I do not have a micrometer but was able to get
the thickness of the shims by making a 1" stack of shims and counting the number and dividing
that into 1000... resulting value was 22 thousands thickness per shim.
Unfortunately, I did not get photos at ea step but would be glad to give you a blow by blow description
of the process if my lever does in fact hold up. If I had to go internally to the lever pivot point again, I think
I could disassemble everything in 10 minutes now that I have been thru the process. Really not difficult at all
vs the conventional route to install the bushings.
My only reservation is the possibility that the shims could work loose but I don't think this will occur. If it
does I could go back in and drill a hole thru the shims and shifter casing and secure with a metal screw . Or, maybe
epoxy the two shims together and after setting up, epoxy this to the shifter housing wall during the insertion stage.
Where from in Indiana? That is my home state.[/QUOT
=========================================================
I feel pretty confident that my shifter will stay tight so I am going to going to give details now
in case anyone wants to start rounding up what is needed to do job.
DETAILED STEPS FOR TIGHTENING GEAR SHIFTER
1) Put emergency brake on, turn ignition switch to acc and put gear shifter into
N. I tried to do above by inserting small blade into slot above the P which
Is supposed to release shift lever but I could not make it do so.
2) Carefully pry on top of plastic sheath below leather shift handle while pulling
it down and remove the two exposed brass screws. Pull shift handle and plastic
sheath off shift lever.
3) With screw driver, carefully pry/wiggle the four corners loose of the black
plastic cover with the P R N…. letters. When free put gear lever back to P,
ignition switch to off and under the top left corner of the cover plate there is a
black plastic lever arm…push it down and hold and now you can put the shift
lever into N and not have to leave ignition switch on. Lift cover plate and
disconnect the two electrical modules and set cover plate aside.
4) Lift cup holder lid and pull hard on inter part of cup to release…you may have
to pry it out. There are two spring clips that hold it in place. Remove the two
exposed screws that hold back of console trim in place.
5) Remove the six screws that hold the center console trim in place. When removing
screws use a magnetic tipped screw driver and be careful not to drop screws down into
shifter housing..very difficult to retrieve.
6) Starting from the cup holder side, carefully pry/lift the console trim and work
your way forward to the radio/ac cluster. Place fingers under trim and wiggle and
pull until the pins workloose. Remove the two electrical modules from the trim
and leave the cigarette lighter connected. Roll the trim over to the right and
place on floor.
7) Remove the 4 brass screws that hold the rectangular box that the shift lever slides
thru. The lower right screw is kind of hidden but you can angle your screw driver
and work it out. Again, careful not to drop screws into shifter box. Remove wires
that cling to the box and lift out.
8) Now you can get to the lower part of the shifter where the bushings go. The right side
is open to view but the left side is covered with a rubber boot which can easily be
peeled back. You just have to figure out a way to hold it back so you can work in
that area.
9) The 2 attached pics show the hitch pin and the shims used in this repair. The shims
came from either a disasembled transformer or motor that held the copper wiring, can't
remember which.The "W" shaped shim was cut in half resulting in 2 shims. I routed out
the slot to make it 7/16" wide which is the diameter of the thru bolt that would normally
go thru the bushings.
10)The hitch pin was purchased from Lowes. You can buy them online but shipping cost is an
issue. The pin I used is mnf. by Hillman and is .093" thick and 1 5/8 long. I cut the
pin at the second bend to shorten it and opened it up below the eye some to make it
easier to tap into place. Also, I ground the top of the pin down a bit to flatten it
so as to make it easier to drive into into the bushing slot. Adding up the total width
of the pin (93/1000") and the 2 shims (22/1000"ea.) I came up with approximately 140/1000"
or about 9/64" of space that needed to be filled in order to make the shifter handle nice
and snug.
!!)This is what I did to firm the lever up but would probably do it differently if I had to
redo.I tapped the hitch pin into the right side of the lever arm and inserted the two shims
in between the pin and the shifter housing. It was a very tight fit and the shims wedged
in vert snugly. I then saturated both sides of the pivot arm and housing wall with silicone
spray. I did this twice allowing about five min to dry between ea spray. Then I applied a
liberal amount of silicone grease to each end of the pivot point. I ran the lever back and
forth about 10 times and observed that the pin did not rotate and the shims remained in place.
So far after about a week the lever remains tight. I am sure there are many optional ways to go
about this job but if I were to redo I would try to firm it up by using a hitch pin on both sides
of the pivot arm. Knowing how much width I need (140/1000") I would take 23/1000" off of ea pin
on just one side i.e., flaten just one side of the pin so it would face up better against the pivot
arm when driven into place. If the lever was not tight by this method I would go back to the shims
but this time I would put a very thin layer of epoxy or JB weld on one side of the shim and place
a shim on both sides of the pivot arm pressing the epoxy side firmly against the housing wall. Then
I would try to insert the pin on the right side of the pivot arm (easier to access than left side).
If the pin would not go into place due to the added thickness of epoxy on the shim, I would shave
the pin down to the point where it would go in tightly. Lubricate as above and hope for the best.
I realize this is a "shaggy dog" explanation but laying out all the specifics can many times make
a chore much easier.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Online address of hitch pin HIL 639:
http://www.richardssupply.com/defaul...+Anchors*0%40%404168*Pins-Hitch%2fHair%2fSnap*7155%40%
40&SearchSource=Pagination&SearchType=AND&forcePrice=False&forceAvailability=False&OrderByColumn=&OrderByDirection=&SearchKey=SK73723
AM&CurrentPage=2
12-17-22, 04:16 PM
#5
8th Gear
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: FL
Posts: 8
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks for the information. I have an Rx-300 2002 that have a problem in the gear box. When I change the gear using the change gear shift, the dash does not show that I changed the shift position; it always show the neutral position (N); I also noticed that the shifter is very loose like it is not moving any parts.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post