MGW Gen3 RACE SPEC shifter Install:

[black2008gt]

shit id put a hundred.

 

[nyuk98GT]

Hep me, hep me...

Darren,

I need your help, please. How did you get that pesky rubber boot around the shifter body? I have no problem getting the boot sealed on the tunnel but I have tried everything I can think of to get the inner lip onto the shifter body. I tried fingers, then paint stir sticks, and a couple of wooden dowels (when my fingers got tired).

For the record, I did manage to get the inner boot onto the Barton when I installed it and, yes, it took some finagling to get the boot onto the Barton body but paint sticks worked well. I don't know what is so different about the MGW body that the boot won't fit. (I'm sure it will fit but I am having a wuss moment and need some good advice).

Any and all help is appreciated.

Thank you.

Chris

 

[UltraKla$$ic]

You have to stretch it and slide it over FIRST before you seal it around the tunnel. My fingers were SMOKED by the time I finished putting that boot on. It does go on though you just have to wrestle it on!! The hardest part to manipulate is where the boot rides along side the reverse side of the shifter and the very small space between it and the tunnel hole.

 

[nyuk98GT]

By George, man, do you never sleep?

Thanks for the speedy reply. OK, I'll go out and give it another try this week. I must say, the Mustang looks a little shabby with the console cover not in place. It would not pass UltraKla$$ic muster.

Thanks very much. I owe you a cold beer.

Chris

 

[skwerl]

I quickly gave up on the idea of getting the lower lip of the boot over the shifter body. Took me long enough just getting the outer groove on the hole in the floorboard. No real increase in cabin noise like I had in the Bullitt when dealing with the 3650 shifter and boot.

 

[HEMI LOL]

Darrens car. 32 miles. race shifter.

my car. 18k miles. 100% stock shifter, no issues what so ever.

seems legit.

 

[TGR96]

^^^haha

 

[BadHabit2Break]

You have to stretch it and slide it over FIRST before you seal it around the tunnel. My fingers were SMOKED by the time I finished putting that boot on. It does go on though you just have to wrestle it on!! The hardest part to manipulate is where the boot rides along side the reverse side of the shifter and the very small space between it and the tunnel hole.

This just sounds so dirty......

 

[UltraKla$$ic]

Darrens car. 32 miles. race shifter.

my car. 18k miles. 100% stock shifter, no issues what so ever.

seems legit.

 

[SNKPWR]

I quickly gave up on the idea of getting the lower lip of the boot over the shifter body. Took me long enough just getting the outer groove on the hole in the floorboard. No real increase in cabin noise like I had in the Bullitt when dealing with the 3650 shifter and boot.

Brian I would still try to get the boot over the shift box I've seen George say many times it's important to keep duat out of there and contaminating the lubrication

 

[UltraKla$$ic]

Actually the majority of me wrestling with the boot was because I DIDNT have he boot all the way around the shifter base. After I realized that, my struggle became less and I was able to fanigle the boot around the hole in the tunnel to complete the install

 

[AndrewNagle]

I guess the non-raincoat wearing crowd struggles with this....

 

[Chiron]

Has anyone installed the stainless bushings yet? Thoughts?

 

[nyuk98GT]

Chiron,

'SNKPWR' has the bushings but I don't know if he has them installed yet. Could try PM-ing him for an update.

The stock shifter support is very wobbly so the MGW bushing can only help. Gotta give George kudos for coming up with another elegant solution for a very reasonable price.

UPDATE (16-Dec-14):

He's got the work in progress!! See his post here:

http://www.s197forum.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2148850&postcount=17343

\end of update\\

Chris

 

[nyuk98GT]

Darren,

I finally got that boot on properly. I think the key is not to put the boot down too far on the shifter. So, here's my method, in case some poor soul is searching for some help in the future.

Initially, I had the boot pushed through the hole in the tunnel and I wrestled with the lower lip for an hour and then gave up. Today, I pulled the boot off and slipped it back on so the lower hole is just resting on the shifter base. The hard part, as you mentioned, is getting the boot past the reverse stub. Next, stick a finger in there and start the lower lip over the base and into the groove. Then, just keep working that lip around the shifter base. I started near the reverse stub and got the lower left and upper left corners done first. The rest went OK. I don' think it took more than 10 or 15 minutes to get the boot lip onto the shifter. The rest of the boot installation (the tunnel lips) went quickly.

George has a good section near the end of installation video now and he shows how the shifter can be raised to touch the bottom of the tunnel and lowered by about 6" or so. This should ease the installation of the rubber boot. I didn't want to take the shifter down so I thought I would try the finger force method. Seems to work OK.

Thanks for the help, friend! Cold beer here when you venture north.

Chris

 

[SNKPWR]

Is the boot harder to get on the race spec than the normal mgw? I spent about two minutes getting my lower boot seal seated around the shifter.

Also got the bushings installed at the same time. Hard to say how much of the improvement I noticed is from those and how much was stock shifter vs mgw, but the are super sweet craftsmanship and fit absolutely perfectly snug but without any effort to insert, just right. But I have zero lockout now and feels firm crisp no hint of vagueness at all. and like every other mgw I've owned, nvh is like stock. Awesome work George, and thanks for also taking the time out of your busy schedule to call me back and answer my newb question about the stop adjustment, excellent customer service!!

 

[UltraKla$$ic]

So Hamilton, you went with the non-RACE Spec shifter and metal bushings? Seems like George figured out that the side to side deflection of the shifter can be almost completely eliminated with a metal bushing!!!!! The superior shifter's he makes is just Lagniappe!!!!! No need for 14 tons of mangled hardware powder coated blue that INCREASES NVH for 99.9% of its users trying to replicate what George does with a single bushing change. LOL!!! Genius!!!

 

[Chiron]

Lagniappe!

Darren learnt me a new fancy Cajun word, neat!

 

[Wicked GT]

Darren learnt me a new fancy Cajun word, neat!

I had to look that up too!

 

[stang8psi]

I just ordered the metal bushings to use with my newly acquired Barton and barton 2 post setup.. I just recently started to get lockout above 7500 rpm.. Now my car has (clutch, flywheel, AM SR short shifter, Jpc clutch line, JHR rear bracket, helper spring removed and amsoil trans fliud and dot 4 fluid) Car just this last track outing wouldn't shift above 7500 First time ever for me and this trans.. So we will see how the bushings and new shifter with the 2 post bracket works.. Last effort before a t56 magnum goes in or a auto swap..