B&M short shifter help!

[Pat1USMC]

Hi,
I was so excited about installing it, because it was supposed to be easy. It was, except for the fact that somehow, the car went back into gear while I was installing it, and I can't get it into neutral now.

There are two cables that connect to the shifter. The one on the left that moves when you move the stick laterally doesn't move now! I tried to press the clutch in and get it back into neutral or even pull/push the cable, and it won't budge. Therefore I now have a car I can't drive. How do I get the car back into neutral or get the cable to move again?
Thanks for any help anyone might be able to give...

[Sci-Fi]

Open the hood and there are the 2 cables that go to 2 levers on the transmission, one is between the battery and the engine near the front of the car on the transmission (has a large bushing and easy to get to) and one located under the battery tray (but you can just see it and reach it by hand). Just have somebody step on the clutch pedal and move the lever(s) to the neutral or middle position. The cables inside should move back to the neutral positions, but disconnect the inside cables first so you aren't fighting the shifter spring while you get your car into neutral. An alternative is to disconnect one of the shifter cables and have somebody look under the hood to verify that the lever is or has moved to the middle or neutral postion while you shift one side into neutral , and then do the same with the other cable (disconnect the one you just adjusted to neutral). Then its a matter of just snapping the cable(s) back on the shifter and you should be good to go.

Now if you happen to have adjusted the left cable before you knew you had a problem, you will have to readjust it. The right cable has no adjustment.

It seems a bit weird that if you had the tranny in neutral when you started the install, it would somehow go into gear. At least I never experienced or seen that happen unless one cable was attached and the shifter was inadvertantly bumped into gear. But even that wouldn't lock up the tranny. Oh well...hope this helps.

[Sci-Fi]

Forgot to ask, when you took apart the shifter, is the spring on the left side installed back in its original position and the left side lever part was greased and worked ok before you put on the cables? The below part with the white plastic covering for those who haven't seen it yet. (Pictures from PT Cruiser World)

The shifter spring:

[Pat1USMC]

Sci Fi, you are the best! Thank you so much for your help, you saved me a lot of aggravation, time and money! Turned out, one of the shifter cables had disconnected from the transmission, therefore I couldn't get it into neutral! Once i got it connected, I wedged my club in between the seat and the clutch pedal to push the clutch pedal down and was able to get it back into neautral.
I really appreciate your help. And the B&M shifter feels great. Now I just have to figure out how to get my cue ball back on there...

[Sci-Fi]

Glad it all worked out for you. I would have replaced the OEM shifter cable bushings with "Booger Bushings", http://www.boogerracing.com/ , for a more positive shift (gets rid of the rubbery feel). And I would be concerned if I found one of the shifter cables just happen to come off. Once the bushing locks in or snaps in, it shouldn't come off that easily.

If you like your Cueball that much, just buy an 3/8-16 insert and epoxy it in or contact Bruce Roosa, http://www.koolknobs.com/ , and ask him how much an insert would cost or send it to him and he'll do it for you. Bruce, Koolknobs, custom made my 2 1/4" round shifter balls. All I did was supply the pins and paint (to match the color of my PT) and he did the rest and added some swirl. Only cost me $25 a knob. Click on this link to see the knobs he made for me: http://groups.msn.com/PTEChatRoom/sc...oto&PhotoID=12 . Now that you have a threaded shifter shaft, you can use whatever shifter ball you want.

[Pat1USMC]

Once again, thanks a lot! Those bushings were exactly what I needed. Thats why the cable came loose. Mine had worn out. I don't know why, I never really threw the gears or was very hard on the shifter. I guess they had just worn out after 60,000 miles. I ordered a pair from that website, can't wait for them to come...