65 shift linkage adjustment

[Rcarlisle]

Hey. New guy on forum. I bought a 65 couple weeks ago. Much of it in boxes, but it does run and drive. But the seller said he had to adjust on the shift linkage. He has a dot on the PRNDL where it has to be to start. Which is not where it needs to be to move steering wheel over.

Seller said he messed with it. So he has it out of whack. If i go to the big dot, I'm pretty much in 1st. I have the shop manual but I just am not sure where the adjustment but is referred to in the manual.

I don't have an owners manual yet, so from what I gather, you want to put Trans in D1 (big dot) to start in first. D2 atarts in second? A little different from what I have done in the past. And L holds it in low.

So I would like to get ir adjusted correctly. I think the seller was using the traditional lever position of next detent after neutral to be the D position.

Any tips or tricks would be helpful and muchly appreciated.

Thanks
Randy

[Matches]

Hi,

I'm new to these cars too, but the first thing I learned was the shift lever wears out. Mine was wiggling all over, falling out of Park, generally super vague.

There's a roll pin holding the lever in, knock it out with a pin punch. The lever will pull straight out. You'll see a deep notch worn into the base of the shift lever. Either weld it up and grind it smooth, or replace. I got a new one on Ebay for $120, looks nice not cheap.

Big difference. I can find gears now! And yes, the big dot is the normal drive position.

If the previous owner tried to adjust the linkages to compensate for the problems, that's an issue I'll leave that for someone more knowledgeable to advise you.

[Rcarlisle]

Thanks for replying. I have watched the videos about fixing that shift lever. Probably need to do that first, then adjust on it. Just wondering if the adjustment is under car or accessible thru the engine compartment

[Terry64HT]

Take care if you are knocking the roll pin out. Hammering down on the shift lever collar can damage the column. I get a piece of 2x4 of the right length and drill a decent sized hole in the end so the pin will have somewhere to go and align it under the lever collar. I make it a little shorter so that I can put a piece of flat wood underneath to spread the shock on the floor when I hit the roll pin punch. Never know how weak the floor has become.
Use the same setup to drive the pin in from the top during reassenbly.
Terry
64HT

[Rcarlisle]

Thanks. I'll refer back when I get there

[Alan H. Tast]

Recently in VTCI's Facebook group there was a discussion with photos about how to remove the roll pin. One person found a tool at Harbor Freight used to separate motorcycle/bicycle chain link pins that works quite well to push the pin out of the lever arm without having to resort to a hollowed-out 2x4 between the collar and floor, then whacking with a hammer and pin punch. It looked like a heavy C-clamp with a pin on the end of the threaded shaft that you turn to press out the pin.

[Rcarlisle]

I really need to know how to adjust the indicator correctly. I've seen the vids on removing the roll pin and the advice here is great.

Thanks for all the tips.

[Terry64HT]

Alan, I believe the Harbor Freight chain breaker (I assume that's the tool you are referring to) has a 1/8" punch. That's larger than the roll pin in the shift lever if memory serves me right. Being hardened steel, it probably won't be easy to resize.
Go for it if you want.
Terry
64HT

[Richard]

Also spray some rust inhibitor or WD 40 for a few days before you start the process..Good luck..

[Rcarlisle]

I removed the roll pin and had the lever welded up. Easy enough with my biggest nail set and an Allen wrench. I still need to get the actual position more correct. Mechanic adjusted on it some. Made some things better and some things worse.

Any one have any advice on getting the position adjusted properly?

[redthundervert64]

I'm not familiar with shift linkage adjustments, so others might want to chime in, but maybe the shift tube bushing (or lack thereof) at the bottom end of the steering column tube is part of the problem. I don't see any mention of it in this thread and I'm wondering if you've checked to see that it's still intact and keeping everything aligned in the tube? On my car the previous owner had repaired the shift lever but the lever was still very sloppy (the car wouldn't even stay in park) and I discovered that the bushing was completely gone. Once I replaced it (this can be done without removing the steering column - do a seach) the gear shift felt much tighter and worked properly.

Hope this helps - good luck!

[Rcarlisle]

I think I figured it out. See photo. This pin is not correct. Or it's worn out. This will be the next item to change in a quest to make it better.