Mine has springs on each side with a “button/hat shim” so it helps return to center.

Of course i can’t find a picture with all parts.
In the spring pockets, there is a steel shim/guide that spring fits into.
After cleaning and some lubrication it works much better.

Not sure if yours is setup the same.

Your copper sleeve might put too much pressure on that plastic socket.

https://lmr.com/item/LRS-7453A/84-04-Mustang-T5-T45-Shifter-Dampener-Bushing

Used for many years.  Local junkyard?

Last edited by Nos681 (10/20/2020 9:51 AM)

Remove stock shifter.

Throw stock shifter in trash where it belongs.

Buy & install Pro 5.0 shifter.

Problem solved forever. 

https://www.mcssl.com/store/pro50performance/catalog/product/aba304afce814250a701d255ae4df777

I have 3 of these, two on T5s, one on a T56.  They are the best shifter on Earth, period.  If you ever drive the car hard you will 100% break something if you do not have a shifter with positive stops.  I have a pile of broken T5 forks and a couple of broken T56 3/4 forks to attest to this.  Its not a question of if; its a question of when.  The Pro 5.0 pays for itself by preventing this. 

Last edited by TKOPerformance (10/21/2020 5:18 AM)

That doesn’t appear to be for t5/t45 Steve.

perv





Couldn't find a bushing so I 'fabbed' one......ain't that what hot rodd'in is all about?
Made it out of a bronze pilot bushing. Feels a lot better (tighter shifting) bronze should hold oil very well!
We'll see!
6sally6

The biggest issue is not the slop in the shifter; that's merely annoying.

The problem/danger is that there are no positive stops in the transmission or factory shifter to prevent over travel.  This is not an issue if you shift like a grandmother, but if you bang gears hard the stock shifter allows you to put considerable pressure on the forks, which cannot move any farther once the slider has bottomed out on the speed gear.  The stock forks are just aluminum.  Aluminum doesn't take well to being bent, and it also develops stress risers from fatigue and fails, even if it wasn't bent enough to cause permanent deformation.  Point being, if you drive the car like a red blooded American male you will eventually break a fork.  This is why nearly all aftermarket shifters include stops.  The Pro 5.0 is simply the best made, using the best materials. 

The rail shifting system used in the T5 and all Tremec transmissions is very smooth and works quit well, but its lack of stops is another reason why people often consider the T5 breakage prone.  Old top and side loader transmissions didn't have this issue because they used steel forks, and typically the shift rods would flex before anything else was stressed enough to cause grief.