Adding floor shifter

Discussion in 'General Maverick/Comet' started by KZGUNS, Oct 12, 2021.

  1. KZGUNS

    KZGUNS Member

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    Hello new here. I have a 72 I’m doing a 302 swap and also a floor shifter. I didn’t want a B&M etc. wanted to look somewhat period correct so I got a 68 mustang floor shifter for the c4. Is there anyone here that has a measurement for the hole or should I just measure with the shift rod and get a rough idea?
     

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  2. 71gold

    71gold Frank Cooper Supporting Member

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  3. 71Mavrk

    71Mavrk Member

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    Floor shift Mavericks had a special housing.
    Micah

    DSC_4829.JPG
     
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  4. jasonwthompson

    jasonwthompson Member

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    I am also using a 67-68 Mustang shifter. I can try to get you a rough measurement as the car now has carpet in it. If you have and are going to use a shifter hump like Micah posted above, the 67-68 shifter will not work, you would need a 69-73 shifter as the dimensions between the two are different. I also used a 67-68 shift rod. IIRC, I bent it slightly to get a better fit, but that may be because I did not use the rod to locate the shifter. I used the shifter to floor rubber seal to mark and cut out the square hole for the shifter to sit in, and added some reinforcement in the tunnel so that it was just not bolted to sheet metal. Make the hole in the carpet as small as possible because the bezel does not cover much.
     
    Last edited: Oct 14, 2021
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  5. KZGUNS

    KZGUNS Member

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    That would be great. The more I looked it didn’t seem I needed the hump so I was gonna try to see how it would work without it.
     
  6. TeeEl

    TeeEl Member

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    The outline for where to cut is already there on the driveline tunnel under the carpet and sound deadener...
     
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  7. TeeEl

    TeeEl Member

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    It works with or without the "hump" plate. Without it, you may need to slightly bend the linkage rod to line up correctly. I would suggest using Riv-Nut threaded inserts to mount the shifter if mounting without the "hump" plate...
     
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  8. 71gold

    71gold Frank Cooper Supporting Member

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    my thinking is ... if Ford didn't think the hump was necessary the bean counters wouldn't have approved it being stamped and installed...JMO
     
  9. TeeEl

    TeeEl Member

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    You should know as well as anyone that not all of Ford's "Better ideas" were good ideas. My car has never needed the hump. I converted it to factory floor-shift back in 1992 and it still looks and works great. In fact, I'm not sure my Granada center console would fit over the hump.

    I will say that the hump might serve as a bit of a heat shield from the transmission. The shifter bezel on mine does get pretty warm. The main point of my previous post was that if you don't have/can't find that piece, you can still successfully install the floor-shifter... 20210208_201956.jpg
     
  10. Krazy Comet

    Krazy Comet Tom

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    I won't deny a hump would make mounting easier, why it was done at factory. Assembly line torched out a irregular opening and the plate covered it up. Saved time, & THAT made bean counters happy, plus gives a bit of extra room for linkage. That said, I've seen plenty of hacked in shifters and once owned a '69 Torino that had a early Mustang shifter installed. Worked fine, Torinos did not have a automatic floor shifter without console, that option required bucket seats.
     
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  11. 71gold

    71gold Frank Cooper Supporting Member

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    anything can be hacked to work...:huh:
    I also used my Maverick auto shifter w/hump with my AOD swap.
    I had a car once that had a boot on the tunnel that had a 1/2" piece of pipe about 14" long sticking out of it. you pushed down on the pipe to go to park and pulled up for R N D , a modified shifter you could say...:thumbs2:
     
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  12. Krazy Comet

    Krazy Comet Tom

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    I would not call the Torino shifter hacked. Was installed by one of the auto trans techs at local Ford dealership. Car went on to be driven & raced for several years, Mustang shifter install never modified. I wound up with car after the Super Cobra Jet 428 spun a bearing.
     
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  13. KZGUNS

    KZGUNS Member

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    Thanks for everyone’s input!!
     
  14. TeeEl

    TeeEl Member

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    I can assure you that there is nothing "hacked" about my Maverick. Modified, yes. Hacked, no. The shifter mounts slightly lower than it would with the hump...
     
  15. mojo

    mojo "Everett"- Senior Citizen Supporting Member

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    Straying a little off topic -- want to ask about metal portion of steer wheel. Has it been powder-coated? BTW - Very Nice interior!
     
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