I picked up a car and changed the tranny so i dont know how it shifted before hand. NE ways, after installing the stock cable tranny back into the car the shifting feels unnormal. when in neutral, the shifter can move from side to side prolly double the amount it should. also, when it is in a gear it can move from side to side the same distance and still drive perfectly while doing it!!! does n e one know what could be wrong with my setup. supposivily stock linkage, shifter and the tranny when pulled from a friends car worked fine.
also, when in gear and moving from side to side the transmision arm itsel moves. what keeps the shifter from moving from side to side in a normal setup?
NE info is greatly appreciative. Thanx
check shifter bushing?
Check out this thread from a while back:
http://www.g2ic.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=81552
It deals with the two problems I had. Most likely you just need a new shifter bushing. Or, if you’re like me, you’ll have to put a new shifter linkage in. Mine had sooo much play, it wasn’t even funny. Actually, it was though 
But check out the link (specifically my post for info) and go from there.
HTH
– Kevin 
yes, did you reconnect the bushing that holds the shift stabilizer rod in place?
kevin, i actually read the thread you just sent me earlier. I hope this will fix the problem but after analizing the problem with the help of my father i realized one major thing. While in gear the shifter goes back and forth (no lie )a foot in circumfrence with respect to the linkage pivot. with my father moving the shifter back and forth (while in gear) and me under the car i noticed that the linkage is twisting the tranny shift arm clockwise-conterclockwise-cw-ccw…etc.(solid connection) so… i guess my question is. When the tranny is in a gear should it just stay solid in that one position (no movement cw or ccw.) or is there something in the linkage that keeps the (normal) solid position. Thanks for the quick responses by the way and i hope that this is clear.
Also…i havent taken the shift linkage apart yet due to lack of knowledge of my problem. i feel helpless hehe
hey i have that exact same problem, 230Km at odo.
Nice solving B62, i’ll work on this during the summer cause it’s about -5 here in QUebec.
Thx
so do you know the exact cause or no?
craig -
Ok if I understand you correctly, are you saying that where the shifter linkage goes into the tranny, it is turning? And by that you mean the cylinder shaped shaft that is partially protected by a small rubber boot? If this is the area you are talking about, yes, that shaft should turn CW and CCW. When you are in 3rd or 4th gear, it will be straight up and down. When you shift to 1st or 2nd, it will turn/spin CCW (to the left), and when you are in 5th or reverse, it will turn/spin CW (to the right). This is normal, as is the fact that that cylinder shaft also goes in/out depending on what gear you are in. It’s all part of the process of changing gears.
A simple way to check to see if your linkage is good or not is check the play. If you hold it (the shifter rod) with one hand, and can still move the linkage around (up/down, etc) with the other hand, then it’s bad. A new one, it won’t move much at all, it’s quite solid. It works somewhat on the same basis as a U-joint or CV joint in that it allows the transfer of motion in a non straight line. I.E. It allows the motion to be transferred at slight angle. But the linkage itself should be rather solid and have minimal play.
If you choose to replace the shifter linkage, you should do it all in one piece, as in you can’t just change out the specific joint. You’ll need to buy the whole new shaft and linkage. Still not much, as I listed on the link in my previous post. Looking at the diagram on that will help to understand everything I’ve said too. While you’re at it and have it ripped apart, might as well replace the bushings too (at the shifter and on the stabalizer bar too).
I hope all this helped, and I hoped it was what you were looking for. If not, let me know if I can be of anymore help. The install really isn’t that hard, either. If you want to more on that too, let me know.
– Kevin
Kevin, i know what you are saying. to get in the diff. gears it must move counter clockwise ccw. but when i am in a designated gear i can move this tranny piston arm cw - ccw. all gears act like neutral in that you can swing the shifter side to side. all gears are functional and drive.
Hope this is clearer?
Thanx for all the info. though
-Craig
Craig -
Ok round two, lol. From what you are describing, and if I understand it correctly this time, you should not be able to rotate the shaft at all if it is in gear. In neutral, if you can grip it, then yes, theoretically, you could pull/push it and rotate the shaft at the same time to select your gear. But, when in gear, if pulling/pushing the shaft, it will take it out of/put it in gear depending on where you’re at. Likewise, you should not be able to rotate the shaft at all, when in gear.
The fact that it still works/shifts correctly is good. Though it makes it harder to figure out what is wrong. At first, I thought maybe that the key (little round black shaft) that locks the shifter linkage to the shifter (selector cylinder shaft thinger we’ve been talking about) may have come loose, allowing for rotation. But then that would leave me to beleive that selecting gears would be difficult/not work. So unless you’ve got play elsewhere, it’s difficult to diagnose what’s wrong. If you can spare the money, I would say just go ahead and try replacing the shifter linkage assembly and the bushings. See if that clears it up. You can prolly get all that for under $75.
HTH, keep me updated.
– Kevin
definatley your shifter bushing mine did the exact same thing when i bought it i put new shifter bushing in then it was fine just like yours every gear felt like neutral.
Mine does the same thing as his and it is the whole linkage. I am trying to figure out if I can just go to a junkyard and get the whole linkage and by bushings and replace or buy from dealership?
for bushings get the energy suspensions ones… i put them on my car and they made a BIG improvement… the biggest bitch about them tho is we had to get 2 pieces of wood and put on both sides and mash it in with a c-clamp… its some hard rubber to get in there
i think my linkage is messed up but for some reason when its cold outside it works almost perfect… its only when its hot and humid outside it has alot of play and sometimes wont go into gear easy
ditto?
Kevin, thanks for the info.im going to try and hunt down the whole linkage for cheap and get a short through with bushings. B&M with energy suspensions sound good?
i will let you all know how i make out.
if ne one else knows or had the same problem and has something to add info would be appreciated. Thanx
Craig
I have a whole linkage in my basement - it isn’t in great condition, but it didn’t have the problem you are describing when on my car.
Actually i spotted the problem today. its not the main linkage but the T adapter that goes on to tranny arm. it was loose making it appear that the tranny arm was rotating when in gear. after the boot was ripped of i noticed the problem. thanks for all the help. does n e one know how this T adapter is supposed to fit onto the tranny arm?
Craig
The joint with a collar that slides over the shift rod in the tranny? there is a pin that goes in vertically to hold the 2 together.
Craig -
I agree with Strike. That’s the part/area I mentioned in my last post as a possible cause for the problem, I.E the pin that keeps the two shafts together. That is assuming that that’s the part you’re talking about. New ones are cheap…and I have an old one somewhere but I don’t remember where…so def check into that.
ES bushings are def the way to go, as everyone has said that. It’s what I run, they’re great. And my friend had a B&M on his Del Sol and it was sick. Although I will admit it was a little too short and required a decent amount of effort to get into gear. But the throws were literally just basically flicking your wrist. (But hence the added effort, as poeple say around here, the shorter the throw, the more effort needed to shift).
Keep us posted
– Kevin
does anyone know the size of this pin of the top of their head. just wondering if i can pick a universal pin up at my local auto parts store. if not ill order it from an oem site or something. Thanks
Craig
P.S was very excited to feel a gear pattern finally. i just slapped a close fit bolt in it for now to see what she feels like. i am not driving it right now anyhow.