Gearbox shifting linkage problems.

[a3ternus]

Today my E30 decided it was time to bust my balls again.
My gearbox lever became loose and although I could change gears,
things were bad.The lever was moving almost freely in every direction
even when in gear.I decided to take a look under the car and saw this:



According to realoem I should be looking at #1,right?



Well,I guess it s not that hard/expensive of a job.
I m still in shock though cos I did nothing really extreme
or wrong in order to break this.And it seems to be quite durable.



Anyway,I should be changing the supporting bracket without
getting the exhaust and the driveshaft off the car,right?
Thanks for any tips/insight on this.
N.

[tonerrrr]

I did mine a bit ago after my shift linkage broke and dropped the exhaust, shields, and driveshaft for clearance. I also replaced all the bushings + any other wear part having to do with the shifter: http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=249133

You are correct that is #1. When you drop that whole "plate" you will be able to easily take the #1 part off and replace it with the new one. Make sure when putting the #1 back onto the big plate that it's lined up correctly for bolting back onto the transmission.

Take your time with the driveshaft, mine did not come off easily and I had to turn it several times to get it to bend down just right to come off. Your reward after doing everything right (replacing all the bushings/wear parts) will be a nice feeling shifter that you will be in contact with every time you drive.

Also, to get the #15 pin out of the #16 part I used one of those magnetic things used for picking up bolts or whatever in tight spots. Since my flange is welded on that was the only way I could get the pin out!

Good luck!

[a3ternus]

Pain in the ass but we managed to change it without anything off the car! /,,/
N.