Hi, I have an 86 SE with the 4 speed muncie that I purchased recently. It shifts easily and smoothly through all 4 forward gears. It is very difficult to move the shifter far enough to the left to shift into reverse, but will shift into reverse once far enough over. I have tried cleaning and spraying the moving parts as well as the spring with WD-40 while still in the car, like I have read in other posts. This did not make any difference. I have since removed the shifter from the car for further cleaning. While holding the shifter assembly in one hand (out of the car) and the shift knob in the other it is impossible to shift into reverse without another person compressing the spring manually. Is this normal? There seems to be a very steep ramp to climb the roller. There is a notch out of the piece that contacts the roller. Is this normal? I have attached some pictures of my shifter and the reverse lockout mechanism below. Thanks in advance for the help!

I've got a four speed shifter apart on my workbench so I can have a look to see if it's any different than yours, and post back a bit later tonight if no one else responds by then. At first glance though, I don't see anything wrong with yours.

I am still having this problem, is it possible that the rubber bushing above the spring in the reverse lockout mechanism is compressed too much from wear? The "lockout tab" seems to be making contact too low on the roller, basically at or below the roller axis. I would think it should make contact slightly abouve the axis so it could turn the roller.

Thanks again.

looks and acts just like the 4 speed shifter in my garage.

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Hi
I had the same issue when I got my first 86 SE, with the 4 speed. I cut a couple of coils out of the spring that is in your picture - it goes into reverse much more easily.
Dale

Nice pics!! There are "AFAIK" 2 four spd shifters. One for the early 4 cyl and a different one for the 2.8.
You have the better one like me. I also have a difficult time getting into reverse so I've been slapping the shift handle with open palm to get it to go.

Looks like that cam that contacts the roller is too steep and the adjustment angle is not in your favor. Not much can be done about that.
So I was thinking of modifying the ramp on the cam for a milder engagement. Dremmel tool comes to mind.

Like someone posted above, cutting a coil or 2 off the spring should help.

While your in there you may as well check to make sure your backup lights stay on when you take your hand off the shifter when its in reverse. That's another problem with these shifters.

Spoon

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Thank you for all your helpful replies!

In addition to cutting a coil off the spring as suggested, I decided to insert a 3/16" rubber washer from Home Depot on top of the bushing. This raised the contact point of the cam a little bit on the roller and should make it easier to shift.

[This message has been edited by CocoFiero (edited 07-08-2012).]