hey guys,

so i notice that my friends shifter is so smooth and tight compared to mine which is loose and moves everywhere. feels really loose.

do you think its my shifter bushing where the shifter lever actually is ?

Or the bushing under where the tranny (shift linkage area).

thanks

 

ahhhh bummer. my shifter is WIN !

how to fix a lose shifter

 

^lmao ! lol !

 

There's at least four things that can contribute to a loose shifter. If any of these are broken or missing, you'll get play. (Sorry, but I don't know the proper terms for these items)

On the shift lever itself, there's a plastic guide or runner that slides over a short cylindrical protrusion in the shift lever housing on the tranny that keeps the shift lever from rotating around. Kind of like a woodruff key.

There's the rubber boot portion of the plate with three bolts that tightens down and seals the shift lever to the lever housing.

There's the two spring/ring bushings that fit on top of and under the large ball of the shift lever.

Lastly, where the shift lever connects to the tranny control arm, there's a plastic bushing in that hole as well.

 

^ thanks.

yea thats the one under the tranny if i'm not mistaken.

 

Under the tranny? The one I'm talking about is where the small ball on the shift lever connects to the control arm of the tranny, inside the shift lever housing.

 

okay! nice. i saw that in mazadtrix the shifter bushing kit came to like 25$....

can i get these bushing cheaper some where else?

there just like 4 seals and 2 boots to replace , right?

 

This is what you need from Mazdatrix

79-95 bushing (Upper)
79-95 bushing (lower)
89-95 Groove Bushing

And from mmr-direct.com (click catalog at the top then on the right on the next page click FC)

S5 Lower Shifter Bushing: this bushing is the one that the ball at the bottom of the shifter sits in, there isn't anywhere else to get these by themselves, if you get the entire "block" from Mazdatrix you have to disassemble the transmission to install it.

 

okay im guessing i would have to open the casing.

so recommend it to get it from the mmr-direct.com website ?

thanks

 

See signature...

 

great forum ^ thanks

 

I have a similar problem with my FC. The shifter seems very loose and I have to gently ease into the next gear. Feels like its out of pattern and/or linkage needs tightening. I will tighten up all the areas mentioned.

Thanks

 

These links may help:

http://www.mazdatrix.com/faq/shiftbsh.htm

https://www.rx7club.com/2nd-generation-specific-1986-1992-17/diy-shifter-bushings-637191/

 

I tightened up the 3 round bolts that hold down the round plate and that worked. From the above links (thanks a bunch for those!) I will order the bushing kit from mazdatrix.com to further improve the smooth shifting.

I bought this car 3 days ago and wonder how long the previous owner was driving the car like that and only needed to tighten up 3 bolts. hehe

Thanks again.

 

Make sure that the bolts you use are of high grade. I made the mistake of ordering a short throw shift kit and used the bolts that they provided. The end result was terrible. The heads sheared off of the bolts and then I wasn't able to shift at all. I tried to reverse drill the bolts out to no avail. In the end, I drilled new holes through the bolts and then tapped them. I then used new bolts to hold it all down. As the housing there is aluminum, you don't want to drill that if you don't have to. To reiterate, use good bolts if you replace them.

 

Did you use a torque wrench?