Install - Part II
OK...so not having any real experience with installing one of these but knowing I'm going to have to cut the tunnel, I got started by measuring the shifter in relation to the tail housing and took note of some measurements on the shifter body and the mount. The first thing you need to realize is that these shifters (Hurst SS3 or RamRod) use this redesigned offset tail housing mount which raises the shifter body up by some 4" and offsets it a further 1.25" to the driver's side. (I believe this mount was modified in the mid to late 70s when the revisions were made to the super shifter to include the red lockout handle). Next, I marked the tail housing and installed the motor and transmission so that I could mock things up in the car and transfer the measurements over to the floor. Now the cutting begins.
Virgin floor before the cuts. Factory style hole is atop the tunnel.
Making note of the shifter body width and the width of the mount, I marked the tail for what was needed.
This shows the offset of the SS3 Shifter Mount Bracket. It's considered a High Mounting Position and will raise the shifter up through the floor.
After installing the trans, I transferred the measurements to the underside of the tunnel. The initial hole was 4.750 wide x 8" tall.
I drilled a couple of pilot holes for the jigsaw blade and got ready to cut the opening downwards.
First I cut across the top and then went down each side to create a hinge at the bottom.
I wanted to leave the hinge intact and possibly use this to enclose the shifter body by closing in the sides after it was pushed out.
It gave me enough of an opening but did little to provide an area where a new boot could be properly installed topside.
This idea can be used, but the boot would need to fold down the side of the tunnel. Not exactly to my liking.
To be continued...