# Replacing the Shift Forks on 1996 Ford F150 Manual 4x4 **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** transmissions, ford, manual-transmissions, f150\ **Created:** [July 13, 2015, 6:10pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594 "2015-07-13T18:10:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fillyblynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ac8455/32.png) [@fillyblynn](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fillyblynn)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 6:10pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/1 "2015-07-13T18:10:32Z")
Been a long time Car Talk Junkie! Thanks in advance for any help. Quick background: Truck stuck at the top of a hill, won’t budge forward or backward, stick is stuck. Gotta move the thing off this hill. Jam the stick backward, and it comes undone, roll the car back to a flat spot to check it out. It’s stuck in 4th gear. Get it home in 4th. Question: I deduced that it’s a worn shift fork. Do you think that’s right? Second question: I can access the transmission from the top through an access panel. I’ve gutted the inside and I’ve got the access panel open, and I’m staring at the transmission. If it is indeed the shift forks, do I have to do anything special to put it neutral after replacing them? ---
**Author:** ![Mustangman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mustangman/32/44130_2.png) [@Mustangman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Mustangman)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 6:50pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/2 "2015-07-13T18:50:09Z")
Wow! Servicing the tranny through the floorboards! Kind of like filling a tooth from your rear end instead of your mouth… More likely a broken shifter fork… When you shift to anything other than 4th, 4th won’t DISengage but now 2nd does, so its locked up in 2 gears at the same time so ONLY 4th is engaged I saw some pics of the 5 speed version of the trans online. The shifter with forks come out the top. You should see the collars that the shifter forks ride in looking into the tranny. You should be able to reach inside and slide the selectors back into neutral by hand. You’ll also need to fish out the broken bits of the shifter forks bouncing around inside. Yeah, they are aluminum (I think) but they could (or may already have) done some damage. You’ll need to thread the forks back into those collars when you reinstall the cover. THAT’s gonna be fun IN the truck! Good Luck! ---
**Author:** ![BillRussell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/billrussell/32/3179_2.png) [@BillRussell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/BillRussell)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 8:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/3 "2015-07-13T20:11:56Z")
Mustangman, I didn’t need that image in my mind, specially as I have a dentist appointment tomorrow. b ---
**Author:** ![fillyblynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ac8455/32.png) [@fillyblynn](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fillyblynn)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 8:28pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/4 "2015-07-13T20:28:01Z")
Thanks Mustangman! Since I knew the shift forks were on the top of the transmission, coming at it from the top (so I don’t have to drop the tranny) seemed like an alright strategy. It’s pushing 100 degrees in St. Louis. So doing the work inside the truck is going to be bundles of fun. Best, fillyblynn ---
**Author:** ![Rod-Knox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Rod-Knox](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Rod-Knox)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 9:00pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/5 "2015-07-13T21:00:36Z")
It is very likely that this [http://allstategear.com/M50D%20Shifter%20Repair%20Kit.htm](http://allstategear.com/M50D%20Shifter%20Repair%20Kit.htm) will get the shifter repaired. Hopefully all the wrestling with the shifter didn’t result in any damage to the gears and maybe the clutch didn’t take too bad a beating. ---
**Author:** ![fillyblynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ac8455/32.png) [@fillyblynn](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fillyblynn)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 9:17pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/6 "2015-07-13T21:17:54Z")
Thanks Rod Knox. Will definitely check this out. The clutch was brand new, and while it did get a bit of a burn getting home in 4th, it should be alright. ---
**Author:** ![Rod-Knox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Rod-Knox](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Rod-Knox)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 9:26pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/7 "2015-07-13T21:26:29Z")
And the repair is easily done through the floor access. As best that I can recall only the lever tower must be removed to make the repair but it may be necessary to remove the cover with the forks to get all the synchro hub and forks in their neutral position. Be careful to avoid letting trash fall into the open transmission. And often the gaskets pull away with the covers undamaged and can be reused. ---
**Author:** ![fillyblynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ac8455/32.png) [@fillyblynn](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fillyblynn)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 11:00pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/8 "2015-07-13T23:00:10Z")
Red Knox, how do I know when they’re in the neutral position? ---
**Author:** ![Rod-Knox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Rod-Knox](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Rod-Knox)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 11:10pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/9 "2015-07-13T23:10:49Z")
In the neutral position all the forks grooves line up from left to right. Often a heavy screw driver or small pry bar can successfully move the forks into position through the shift tower hole with the clutch pedal pressed but that isn’t always the case. When the gears get bound up it is sometimes necessary to rock the truck back and forth while prying on the forks and sometimes the cover must come off to pry directly on the synchro hubs. You must look closely at the hubs to determine if they are engaged and which way they must move to disengage. ---
**Author:** ![fillyblynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ac8455/32.png) [@fillyblynn](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fillyblynn)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 11:54pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/10 "2015-07-13T23:54:51Z")
Very cool. Really appreciate the help. ---
**Author:** ![fillyblynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ac8455/32.png) [@fillyblynn](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fillyblynn)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 12:01am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/11 "2015-07-14T00:01:40Z")
Do I have to drain the transmission fluid before opening the top? ---
**Author:** ![Mustangman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mustangman/32/44130_2.png) [@Mustangman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Mustangman)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 1:24am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/12 "2015-07-14T01:24:53Z")
Draining isn’t required to open the top, but you won’t be able to see very well inside. The level might be low enough to see the syncro hubs and such. If not, just pull the drain plug. ---
**Author:** ![Rod-Knox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Rod-Knox](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Rod-Knox)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 1:48am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/13 "2015-07-14T01:48:53Z")
NO. Don’t drain the transmission. The oil level is several inches down from the top. ---
**Author:** ![fillyblynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ac8455/32.png) [@fillyblynn](https://community.cartalk.com/u/fillyblynn)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 5:05am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/replacing-the-shift-forks-on-1996-ford-f150-manual-4x4/90594/14 "2015-07-14T05:05:06Z")
Awesome. Thanks everybody.