Manual transmission shifter started popping out of 5th gear when accelerating or going up a hill as the shifter support on the under side has rusted (thank you St Louis MO DOT) and the welded on and rubber injection molded area around the drivers side support (kind of resembles a bolt with thin head welded on the threaded or shank end to the tube) has fallen off. So I need pictures or some measurements of a good hole and what may be missing as it has 2 180 degree opposed slots to sit in the car body but both parts that engage are worn badly/ missing and the method by which the entire support stays suspended is worn or damaged thanks to my 27 year old youngest son being foolish, he also drilled and ran a long bolt through the body, figure 8’ed it badly the body tunnel & support plate (I will have to weld both up) and miss-located it badly rearward causing the gears (shifter knob & stick movement) to be very far forward and to the drivers side due to broken off support and car pretty much undriveable. There are rubber trapezoidal tabs if if recall correctly that support the shifter but seems like they are missing or worn down. I need this car fixed as the same son failed to maintain coolant level and did not change a weeping water pump soon enough cracked the block in my best car a '06 Civic and has been removed from our home for a long list of violent offenses. Any good pictures of the compatible '94 MX-3 shifter support both top (under boot and from the underside showing how it sits and is spaced in the hole and good technical description is greatly appreciated.
Sorry you are having this difficulty. Owning older cars, this sort of thing comes with the territory. Ask me how I know? …lol … Unless somebody here just happens to know, I think your best bet is to locate a junker car of same make/model/year-range on blocks, being used for parts at a car-recycling yard, and take some photo’s and measures’ there. If I had that problem this is the website where I’d start looking. It’s possible one of these nearby to you already has a MX-3 just waiting for you to come by and take a look. You may be able to remove some needed hardware at the same time.
No , you need to take this thing off the public roads . It has too many problems to ever be safe to drive.
If you have not already done so, join some online clubs. They love stuff like this. Facebook has an OK Mazda club, but there are also forums to find. I honestly don’t know what an MX-3 is BTW. And I’m a Mazda nut. Is it a non-US model?
It’s a '90s coupe, not real common. Old enough that rust could be a large problem, not just for the shifter.
I think it is a member of the Mazda sports car family, initially the Mazda Miata. I seem to recall the model number as MX-5 rather than MX-3. In any event its a very popular as a restoration classic project, and parts should be relatively easy to come by.
Thanks for correcting Texas. Yes, the MX3 is from a different Mazda family than the Miata-based MX-5. The MX 3 apparently is more rare, so parts availability for this repair might be an issue.
With the optional tiny 1.8L V6!
91+ Ford escorts share the same platform as well, but I don’t know how many parts interchange.