thanks to this awesome pic ShureShot posted you can clearly see the bushing labeled "often overlooked" at the very bottom of the shifter. sure enough, my shifter doesn't have a bushing there. mazdatrix has this part listed for years 74-80, 93-95. how can I get it for my 1990?

 

no such thing on FC afaik

i have seen it on first gens and FD's but FC did not came with it

 

looks like it is part of the shift lever. like it is all one peice.

 

Yes they did!

I haven't been able to find the part number either, and I have browse thru the parts manual

Mine needs to be replaced too

 

I suck at photoshop\MS paint,btu here is a better picture in order to explain where the bushing is at.

Black = The sifter end (the ball)
Red = "The bushing"
Silver = The bushing\shifter housing

 

i think u guys are smoking crack

 

I've got an extra manual trans sitting in the garage, let me take a look tonight when I get home from work. If it has a bushing there I will send it to you for the cost of shipping (probably about 4 bucks).

crashtestjoey@hotmail.com

 

It's a pain in the *** to notice the bushing, and even harder to remove it....

 

Do I hear friendly bet?

 

S5 TII

 

Assuming it's there, I think I can find it. If he wants to come get it, he can have the whole transmission. All it's doing is taking up space and annoying me.

 

Despite people claiming it. I have never seen that bushing on any S4 or S5, only on S3 and S6 models.

There is no bushing there.

If it exists... post a FC part number. You won't be able to

 

The trans is still taking up space. Anyone want it? 86 5 N/A speed. Free. Nada. Zip. Got a bunch of other stuff too that I don't need. Anyone want to help me make room on the shelves?

 

Same here, over 20 FC's checked and none of them had it

 

AGAIN, up to a friendly bet?

 

sure, i will be gladly found out wrong

(only documented info counts, not something like stuffing firstgen bushing in there ;o)

 

I'll go along with hIGGI and take that bet as well.

And as hIGGI says:
Heck, this picture itself is from a 1st gen manual:

 

Hey, I haven't been able to find the part number either. Here is how I found the bushing, I blew the tranny on my 91NA, and the mechanic replaced the tranny with a junkyard one. The old shifter on the junkyard tranny felt extremely sloppy, after replacing the shifter bushings and not been able to pin point the sloppiness, I found out about the bushing.

Couple of years later, I blew that junkyard tranny too; that tranny was replaced with another junkyard. The second junkyard tranny had the plastic bushing on it.

A couple of years later, I blew that tranny too; so I purchased a newly rebuilt tranny and that one had the same sloppiness feeling as the first junkyard tranny that was missing the bushing. Placed the bushing on the rebuilt tranny, and the sloppiness was non-existent.


HOWEVER, I am not sure if my T2 trany have the bushing, will check later on today!

If you guys are right, the only conclusion I can come up with, is that I have used three SA trannys on my FC

 

and how did you know that the bushing was or wasn't there??? did you pull the linkage apart and check. You can't even pull the bushing out on a S3 or S6 unless the retaining spring pin is moved. And to move that you need to remove the spring, which requires breaking the spring off or disassembly of the linkage assembly.

Sure the looseness you felt was just not the missing ball shifter bushings, or a broken shifter retaining spring and not some fabled tip bushing?

 

When the first junkyard tranny was installed, and I noticed the loseness; the first thing I did was replaced the ball shifter plastic bushings & metal rings (springs?).

I was able to remove the bushing by using some type of pliers that my mechanic had, patient, and forcing the spring to one side while doing everything else at the same time

Now, I am starting to believe that I have been lied to; bacause I just checked my T2 tranny and there was NO bushing on it

So that means that I purchased three FB trannys?

 

There's no bushing. If there is it doesnt do a thing. My shifter had bad up and down play. I ordered a shifter bushing kit from the factory. Came with new new upper and lower bushings for the slotted ball part. I think it was $12. No more play and it feels like new.

Stop trying to fix problems that dont exist. There's plenty of other thing to do with these cars....

 

My S5 N/A tranny had a bushing there when it went out, it was falling apart but still there, wish I would have took a pic. How ever the S4 tranny I swaped it with didn't not have the bushing.


Maybe only S5 FC's had it?

 

I've heard other people talk about this.
If I understand correctly, you are referring to the mysterious "white bushing".

Mazdatrix confirms this:
Mazdatrix Shifter Bushing Writeup

 

No, that has nothing to do with the bushing that they are talking about in this thread

 

I think that pretty much sums it up for us FC owners. based on what 's been said in this thread, and also the fact that mazdatrix lists them for FB and FD cars, I'm going to accept the fact that this bushing doesn't exist for my 1990. but I'm not going to accept the fact that my shifter doesn't need one
I talked to one guy today who said he made his own out of CPVC... hmmmmmm