Installing MGW billet top plate properly

Cman01

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Ok, I can't believe I'm actually doing this post but to ensure my new top plate is installed properly the first time I'm going to ask, because of the dynamat and I just want to get the new one in right on the first try.

I'm sure normally after your Gen 2 shifter is installed you go back into the car and drop in that top plate, tighten it up and you're pretty well done. Well, that was my belief also the first time but because of my Blowfish bracket my main shifter body wasn't sitting in the correct place so that threw off the proper location of the billet top plate.

So now that I have the shifter sitting properly (and in neutral), once I get the new plate dropped into the console area do I just place it so that the small opening of the rubber boot is sitting directly centered on the gold base of the shifter before tightening it down, or do I actually stretch the rubber boot over the gold base first before tightening down the top plate? Which order should I do this?

Thanks, btw my one and only beef about the product is actually the rubber boot on the top plate. The small opening that you stretch over the gold shifter base it actually doesn't stay in place. When you row the gears the small boot opening eventually pops off the gold base and just sits between the top of the base and the bottom of your screw in shifter handle.

So the change that I would like to see George make is to extend the length of the small boot opening an extra 1/8" or 1/4" then you can secure the top part with a zip tie and it will stay in place after it's stretched over the shifter base. For me, once my plate is in properly and I feel it's 100% good I'm going to tape it with electrical tape and it won't come off.

Tony

Oh yeah, for a little comic relief I should've watch this install video before doing my shifter (I know it's not the same shifter and trans but I probably would've gotten a better install result doing it the way the video showed. LMAO!!!!!)

 

Bearbo

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I can’t remember honestly. My best advice is to call George but if you are like me it is full steam ahead. I think you just center the rubber boot.

Sure I am wrong and the better/brighter will hopefully arrive to this thread to correctly guide you. Glad the journey looks to be coming to a successful close.
 

Cman01

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^^^^Need to see a pic of your 350R please :)

No, I'm not going to bug George about how to install this plate, it's a frickin' flat plate that should just drop in and screw down with the 2 bolts and nuts. I'm pretty sure ALA your shifter is now located in the proper location and the small end of the boot is centered to the gold shifter base (when in neutral) then the plate will be in the right place. There no way in hell there's something weird and complicated to install that billet top plate.
 

Bearbo

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D4715-F52-EEB5-4-D02-A578-BAC0-C0573-A2-D.jpg
 

Cman01

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I'm chilling in my hotel now and got my new top plate with new associated parts.

Shelby drove nice down here near Maplegrove Raceway for tomorrow's AM car show.

Looking forward to the show, then getting home and putting the new plate in to FINALLY finish up this shifter install.
 

Cman01

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Ok, just finished up the new plate install, all is good (for now, next thing on the list is to reinstall the BF bracket and still keep the rear support mount in the OE location).

Now this should be a simple re & re, but because of the dynamat I decided to be proactive so the install took a little time. For those of you installing this shifter for the first time I have some tips when it comes to installing the billet top plate so you only squish the dynamat 1 time and not have to remove the plate after you screw it down completely if something goes wrong with testing the gear shifting.

The plate has the 4 slotted holes, 1 in each corner. Just like the rubber membrane the bottom pass. slot is lower than the bottom driver's slot. I usually would prefer to install the plate so the bottom studs and top threaded holes are in the middle of the slots. Install 2 diagonally opposite bolt/nuts and tighten it just enough that you don't compress the dynamat. Stretch the rubber boot over the gold shifter base, screw in the handle and try the shifter and make sure you can go into all the gears. If the gears are ok then continue to install the 2 other nuts/bolts for the top plate and tighten it down alternating the tightening sequence.

In my case, when I did this I could not get my bottom gears, so I ended up moving the plate slightly downward, tighten lightly and test it again. Basically the nuts/bolts are sitting slightly closer to the top of the slots. Be careful you don't move the plate too much, move, tighten (lightly) and test till you can get all the gears. Once you find that sweet spot where the plate wants to be, make sure it doesn't move as you tighten down all 4 fasteners in a criss cross pattern till it is tight and the dynamat is squeezed out.

This will insure the plate sits in the proper place in your car (remember there are production tolerances), all the gears are able to be shifted into, and you get that perfect dynamat seal that you don't want to disturb the first time the plate is tightened down.

Tony
 

Cman01

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A little update, all my interior pieces have been reinstalled after the 2nd top plate installation mentioned above. The shifter I feel has loosen up a bit and I now find it pretty good going into and through all the gears.

My stock shift knob is screwed down about 12 + rotations before being tight but the pattern was not straight so I backed it off about 35 degrees to line up the shift pattern and with use hasn't loosen off at all. I might not even need to do the locktite to keep the knob from moving (pretty happy about that, I can easily access the shifter stuff underneath the console without worrying about clamping the ball to remove it and damaging it more, still using my OE ball not the new one I have sitting waiting to be used).

I did another test on the streets launching the car in 1st full send to 5500 rpm and got 2nd no problem so maybe my grind issues are behind me???? Drag strip test still to come, and I still have to get it back in the air and figure out the rear support bracket placement on the BF bracket...……………….coming up in the near future.

Tony
 

Bearbo

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OEM ball is your problem. Aftermarket balls have a nut to tight the shifter ball in correct position. I thought that there was a nut included with the shifter handle. Loctite is not needed whatever the case.

Glad things worked out.
 

Cman01

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Yes, the shifter handle has that 3/4" nut below when you screw it into the gold shifter base (along with the flat washer and lockwasher).

I did use locktite to tighten down the handle to the base but what I did is jam 2 nuts together on the top where the ball threads in to tighten the handle that way before I thread the ball in.

Not using Loctite on the ball makes it easy to remove to get the console out in the future if I need to. Since the ball isn't rotating with use I'll leave it and not bother with the locktite.

I did Loctite the ball after the mods to the stock shifter since at the time I thought I was done in that area and wasn't going to open it up again then obviously the MGW changed that. Having to use the pliers to remove the ball to start the MGW install caused the slight scuffing of the OE ball that's there now. I will put my new OE ball on at some point but I definitely don't want to damage that one if down the road I have to access that area again for servicing.
 

Bearbo

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Your car your rules. The jam nut properly installed and tightened will prevent the shifter ball from moving. No Loctite needed but hey feel free to slather on any color Loctite you want on shifter ball threads.

Loctite was only needed on the shifter arms underneath the vehicle that I remember. There may have been instructions to Loctite the shifter arm to shifter base. Invest in a strap wrench and you won’t mar your shifter ball in the future. Of course, don’t use Loctite but I said that already.
 

Cman01

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I didn't buy a MGW shift ball with my shifter I wanted the OEM look so stock ball for me.

MGW shift ball is different thread pitch than OE shift ball and would've came with the proper handle for their shift ball.

The first time I tried to remove the shift ball when attached by Ford I had a strap wrench but no matter how hard I tried that fricking ball wouldn't turn no matter what.

I basically had to unbolt the stock shift handle from the base of the stock shifter, took the ball and handle along with the console piece to the bench and got the ball off out of the car, it was a total pain.
 
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Snoopy49

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I used blue Loctite on mine and it is rock solid. I swear, Ford used red Loctite to secure the ball and it was a pain in the wrist to get off.
 

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