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CJ-7 wobbly shifter

CJ-7 wobbly shifter

Bubbles910

Jeeper
Posts
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Location
Akron OH
Vehicle(s)
1983 CJ-7
Chevy 350 Small Block
Whenever my Jeep is in gear, the shifter is able to wobble back and forth freely, any solutions or known causes of this problem?
 
Never had that issue but I would think a light spring zip tied to the shifter and hooked to the Transmission or tub would keep it from wobbling. ALthough i know a Transmission guy that says if you keep pressure on your shifter(like resting your hand on it) that it can wear your shift forks prematurely
 
Not sure as I just got the Jeep today and it hasn't even been registered yet, but it has a Chevy 350 4 speed
 
It's going to be hard to tell you what could be wrong when we don't know what you have.
 
It being behind a 350 it could be almost anything. You say it has a sloppy shifter tells me its not a auto so is it a 3spd or a 4spd or 5spd?
 
Ive got a borg warner T-5 (5 speed) which is similar to the T-4 (4 speed) and the shifters on those are always wobbly. The shifter is boxed at the bottom where it slides over the transmissions shifting stub. I'm just use to mine being super loose on there. In fact I can lift the whole shifter straight up off the Transmission while I'm driving. If this is the Transmission you have you can get a new isolator clip and isolator here.
Borg-Warner T4 Transmission Parts at Morris 4x4 Center

Its really a terrible setup and if it bothers you enough and you want to spend $$$ you can get one of these hurst shifters here.
Core / Hurst Shifter 1982-1986 Jeep CJ CJ5 CJ7 CJ8 T4 T5 4 5 speed chrome stick

Then again you might not have a borg warner T-4 and this wont really help you at all.
 
Do you see your shift pattern in this thread?

http://www.bearcreeksurvey.com/NOSRepro.htm

It's not conclusive, but if you don't see your shift pattern, you've eliminated a guess.

If you do see your shift pattern, you have a strong(er) candidate.

-Jon
 
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Good God, I hope it ain't a T-5 hooked to that SBC :eek:

T-4 /T-5 have a 2 piece shifter. The rubber pad in the 2 piece deal breaks down over time.
Pull the shift boot and you'll see what I mean.
Fix= just drill through the 2 shifter pieces and bolt'em together.

OP-post pictures of your tranny, and we can tell you what your run'n.
LG
 
A loose shifter can be caused by the driver's hand resting on the stick while driving or forceful shifting. Take a pic of the tranny and post here along with any numbers you see in the casting.
 
T-4 has the same isolator and clip that the T-5 does. Do an ebay search for T-5 isolater.

OR you can bolt it like LG said, little more work, but will probably last longer.

That T-4 probably won't hold up to that SBC for long unless you baby it. It's a pretty light duty Transmission .
 
T-4 has the same isolator and clip that the T-5 does. Do an ebay search for T-5 isolater.

OR you can bolt it like LG said, little more work, but will probably last longer.

That T-4 probably won't hold up to that SBC for long unless you baby it. It's a pretty light duty Transmission .

Booyah! 2nd that notion but just don't bother getting the isolator. Bolt or weld them together for the time being and then start looking for a different Transmission . I picked up a T177 not to long ago to swap for my T-5 .
 
Booyah! 2nd that notion but just don't bother getting the isolator. Bolt or weld them together for the time being and then start looking for a different Transmission . I picked up a T177 not to long ago to swap for my T-5 .

Just did the same but it's a 176. And that stick seems to be wobbly as heck!
 
Just did the same but it's a 176. And that stick seems to be wobbly as heck!

Sorry, don't mean to hijack with a response but; probably need to replace the shift lever spring under the retainers. My stick is fairly stiff (that's what she...)
 
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ill price it out......for 12 bucks ill try it
 

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