Repair Procedure A

1. To inspect for damage to the lower cover of the shift lever housing, release the shift boot sealing the shift lever to the center console cover. Select "Neutral."


2. Loosen the three screws securing the shift lever to the housing and remove the shift lever assembly.


3. Look inside at the rear edge of the plastic cover. If it is damaged continue with Repair Procedure A. If it is not damaged, refit the shift lever assembly and proceed with Repair Procedure B for shimming of the back-up light switch.


4. Disconnect the negative cable from the battery.


5. Remove both the front driver's and passenger's seats from the car.


6. Remove the rubber accordion bellows between the front and rear sections of the center console. Remove the front section of the center console from beneath the dash.


PSI 09/9-0131


7. Remove the coin holder or powerwindow switch unit (if equipped) and unplug the cable hamess connector.


8. Set the shift lever back in place and hold it securely at the base. Select Reverse gear. Remove shift lever and key.


9. Unscrew the four mounting screws that fasten the center console section. Lift the console cover off over the gear shift lever housing, also disconnecting the interior light switch and ignition switch illumination lamp.


10. Remove the left-side door sill plate, the A-pillar door edge bead, and A-pillar carpet retainer plate. Fold the left side of the front carpet over to the right side.


11. Fold back the forward edges of the rear carpet enough to remove the rear sections of the center air duct from the main section beside the shift housing. Remove the two screws securing the center duct at the bulkhead and remove the duct.


12. Remove the tri-lobed nuts, washers, and bolts securing the shift housing to the floor.

Figure 1:

13. Rotate the housing over to one side and loosen the screws to remove the plastic cover (Figure 1).


If the damage to the cover is minor and the modification procedure as outlined on the next page can be performed, continue on with the procedure. If the cover is too damaged and cannot be modified, install a new modified cover and then reassemble the center console.


14. Locate the round molding mark at the center of the top, rear edge of the cover.

Figure 2:

15. Measure 8.0 mm to the right of the center mark of the round molding mark and draw a line along the top edge with a pencil. Continue to draw a line at this point down along the rear face of the cover, perpendicular to the top edge (Figure 2).

Figure 5:

Figure 3:

16. Make a tracing of the template shown on the next page (Figure 5). Cut out the traced template and match the center line on the template with the line on the cover, as shown in Figure 3. Mark around the inside edge of the template.

Figure 4:

17. Using a rat-tail or half-round file, modify the rear edge of the cover to form a notch as illustrated in Figure 4.


18. Reassemble the cover, shift lever housing, carpets, consoles, etc. in reverse order.