2nd Gen Shifter Spring

[Eagle7]

If you remove the shifter, you can see a spring around the control rod, I think attached to the control rod end. The #1 transmission (rebuilt by the previous owner) doesn't have it - the spares (stock) do. I just spent most of the evening tearing transmissions apart trying to get the spring out of a spare and into #1 (no luck yet).

What does this spring do? Looks like it would be for side tension. Bottom line - do I want it in or out?

If I should have it, it looks like the control rod end has to come off in order to get it off/on. That end is held on with a roll pin, and I can only get at one end of the pin. Is there sufficient clearance to drive the roll pin out the other side?

Once I get it in, how should it be positioned/attached?

Thanks,

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Marty Doane
ITS RX7
CenDiv WMR

[BrianB]

The spring is for resistance against shifting to 5th gear and reverse. Without it, it's too easy to shift from 2nd directly to 5th. If you remove the round cover on the bottom driver side of the shifter extension, the spring will come out. I actually just finished adjusting mine, let me know if you need some more information.

[Eagle7]

Originally posted by BrianB:
The spring is for resistance against shifting to 5th gear and reverse. Without it, it's too easy to shift from 2nd directly to 5th. If you remove the round cover on the bottom driver side of the shifter extension, the spring will come out. I actually just finished adjusting mine, let me know if you need some more information.

I'm not sure we're talking about the same spring. There's a helix-shaped (standard spring shape) spring inside that small cover, and another smaller one inside a hollow bolt at the rear (with a ball a the end). Neither one is it. This is an odd shaped spring that encircles the shift control rod that goes forward to the transmission. It forms a circle (around the control rod), then has one straight tang and one paper-clip shaped tang. My problem is that because it goes around the control rod, I can't get it off/on with the control rod end attached.

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Marty Doane
ITS RX7
CenDiv WMR

[ddewhurst]

Marty, it's been a while since I have been into the shift lever. On a 1st gen trans there is a wire spring as you have described that stays in something in the trans & the shift lever pulls out. When you put it back together you just push on the shift lever & the spring opens up & grips around the neck by the lever ball. I don't have a clue what it's for.

The above is if I'm talking about what your talking about.

David

[paulydee]

The parts list lists it as a select spring. P/N M501-17-465B I believe it is used to keep the shifter centered. If that is important to you then you should repair it. If you take the side plate off as well as the cap (and detent spring) on the opposite side you should be able to get the roll pin out.

To me it seems like it is too much work fora minor issue. I would save it for when you rebuild the tranny.


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Paul D'Angelo
73 ITS CENDIV
Indy Region
www.iridiumracing.com

[This message has been edited by paulydee (edited May 20, 2003).]

[Silkworm]

Technically you're supposed to have it, but given how difficult it was for me to get that booger back into place, if I had to do this again, I'd say f'it and leave it off.. My understanding is the same as Paul D's, it's for centering the shifter handle when you get into neutral.

The 5/R detent spring is the round ball with a spring in the rear, you definitely want that to stay (but then it's not a royal PITA to put back in

PaulC

[Eagle7]

Thanks. You've all been very helpful.

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Marty Doane
ITS RX7
CenDiv WMR

[Mazdatrix]

It is basically for keeping the lever from making noise as far as we have ever known. In "most" of the street cars we see, it's already broken - with no problems.

For racing: CUT/GRIND whatever to GET IT OUT, and THROW IT IN THE TRASH !!
It happened to still be on the rod of the trans we put in my E/P car, so we left it in. Third race the end of it broke off, and wedged UNDER the socket the lever goes into !! I'm doing a zillion mph at Willow, and now I have no gears -- only a very stiff neutral. While coasting and trying to figure out what happened, I trashed the 5/reverse slider hub (just BARELY touched reverse - turned out that was the only gear I could get near).
Needless to say, we found all of that out AFTER changing boxes, and tearing the good one down back at the shop.
If I HAD known what had happened, we could have just pulled the cover off the side and removed the pieces of the spring.

We now remove those springs from all the race boxes we are near!!

Dave Lemon --