Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Transaxle What to do what to do ...

Well I've had a bad shift tower for awhile now - lots of slop in all the gears, and occasionally won't go into gear at all. I had intended to fix it soon - but now I am getting the 3rd gear grind again. My trans was rebuilt by a dealer (under warranty at the time) only 30K miles ago!! @!#% you FORD

So I'm wondering if I should ...

Just change the shift tower and baby 3rd gear for another 6 months or so? Would changing the shift tower help the grind at all?
I was poking around under the car and trying to figure out how to remove it - can it be done without removing the trans mount? What about the rats nest of wires and hoses on top of it?

Just bend over, forget about my other planned mods and get the whole trans taken care of this spring. I know everyone in this area reccomends Terry Hanes. What could I expect to pay for a trans that is built right.

this is exactly what happened to me now i am going crazy with mods. two bad shift towers and gears grinding. Your problem was probly that peice of crap plastic bushing used in the tower. When it breaks sometimes you can't get in to gear. If it is driveble i would save money and live with it for a while and then do the whole trans. Lsd ,synchros, harder third gear and shifter forks and get rid of that contour shift tower get the nw focus one. About $1000 with out parts.