Am I the Only one that breaks shift cables?

[Redlineracer12]

On my way home last night from a photo shoot I lost my shift cables when going from 2-3. Here I was thinking that I might've broken my tower bolt it's the shift cables again! This was the third, yes THIRD set of cables in my car. The last two times have been the same. The piece of tubing that the shift cable end (down on the tranny) is attached to pulls off the actual cable itself. Has this happened to anyone before? I've never seen anyone else have as many problems with these things as I do Maybe the two sets I got were from a bad batch where the crimp job just wasn't as solid? I'm not sure but I'm thinking if I buy another set I'm going to try and reinforce that area a bit.

Heres a crappy cell phone picture to show which cable I'm talking about and where it comes uncrimped:

 

[Redlineracer12]

Bumpity bump.... Still haven't fixed these bad boys. Donno that I'm going to be able to repair them I may be on to set #4 for the Ford Shift Cables. I just don't want them to break right away again The last two sets haven't even lasted a year each.

I don't know if you've ever tried but these shift cables are a slight pain in the rear to remove/install 3-4 times :laugh:

Hopefully this is the last time I replace them... but I said that last time....

 

[JoeM]

I beat the snot out of my car and have had no problems.

 

[Redlineracer12]

I beat the snot out of my car and have had no problems.

Cool.

Oh well. Set number 4 here we come this evening.

 

[chinaski]

i just broke my shift linkage if it makes you feel any better. i wasnt even driving like an ass hole, just normal driving. went from 2nd-3rd (shifted at 3.5k rpms) and i broke.

 

[XKontour98]

Oh well. Set number 4 here we come this evening.

You should be a pro by now

 

[Redlineracer12]

i just broke my shift linkage if it makes you feel any better. i wasnt even driving like an ass hole, just normal driving. went from 2nd-3rd (shifted at 3.5k rpms) and i broke.

I feel your pain Thats where mine always seems to break is the 2nd - 3rd... hmmm

You should be a pro by now

Unfortunately

 

[elraido]

Seems like when anything happens to anyones car it is from 2nd to 3rd

 

[Big Jim]

Have you considered looking for a used 98 cable set. It is stouter than the later cable assembly. It is interchangeable as an entire assembly including the cable ends. It would be wise to start with new cable ends, at least for the end that gets the most wear.

 

[TourDeForce]

You guys with cable problems wouldn't be running regular ATX fluid in your trannies now would you??

 

[KyleQ]

You guys with cable problems wouldn't be running regular ATX fluid in your trannies now would you??

Nope -

Redline - anywhere where you could just weld it up solid? Maybe you should stop pumping iron - those humongous guns of yours are too much for those shift cables :laugh: /humor

 

[TRicker]

i broke off my early 98 cables and got the new ones like yours, tony. my old ones seemed beefier but parts of them were a little cheap. either way, they all seem pretty weak. i learned to shift nicer. lol

 

[elraido]

Switch everything over to a rod shifter

 

[Redlineracer12]

Whoa I need to pay more attention to my own posts. I just figured this had died a while ago

Have you considered looking for a used 98 cable set. It is stouter than the later cable assembly. It is interchangeable as an entire assembly including the cable ends. It would be wise to start with new cable ends, at least for the end that gets the most wear.

Considered it, but I didn't know they were interchangeable or any considerable upgrade.

You guys with cable problems wouldn't be running regular ATX fluid in your trannies now would you??

Absolutely not! :troutslap: I have Torco RTF in it now with mostly new shift forks, it goes into gear firmly but its not bad.

Redline - anywhere where you could just weld it up solid?

Not really, the part that crimps onto the cable isn't really accessible from the back side. It's tucked inside a plastic sleeve that you cant really remove. I have a spare set that I might be able to experiment with but I'm not real concerned right now.

i broke off my early 98 cables and got the new ones like yours, tony. my old ones seemed beefier but parts of them were a little cheap. either way, they all seem pretty weak. i learned to shift nicer. lol

I agree... Maybe the 98 cables were actually tougher, that or I just got a bad batch from Ford.

Switch everything over to a rod shifter

No thanks :laugh: Even though it would probably shift better