I'm not 100% sure when the cable change occurred - Maybe it was sometime during the production of 99s.
From an old post:
Originally posted by SVT PETE:
FYI
I pulled some cables from a 98 SVT to see if they were different from my 00 cables. (Of course the cables are busted.) 
My 00 cables are thin, round metal ends.
My 00 cables ends have small, round entry points.
The 98 cables have large, sqaure/rectangular plastic ends.
The 98 cable ends have square entry points.
The 98 cable ends are the same as the Focus cable ends except for the "grommet" part that pops onto the shift tower.
Bill Jenkins and I have searched everywhere for the older cables and no one has them. 
