One of the great joys of building a replica vehicle is that there is no correct way of doing anything! In direct contrast to the restoration of classics, antiques, and muscle cars, we are given carte blanche when it comes to choices and options. When have you ever seen two identical street rods, Cobras, dune buggies, Speedsters, or any other vehicle covered by this magazine at any event? Good money is on never. Yes, a unique exception is a minority of replica owners who build a "tribute" car, in which the whole idea is to re-create the flavor of the original. Back to the choices, in almost every vehicle here, there are decisions for all parts of the car: paint, wheels, tires, interior, suspension, motors, and even the color of the seats. But, there has traditionally been one area where our choices are few: transmissions and shifters.
Since replicas are re-creations of a special car made eons ago, the originals used much older technology. Street rods are a perfect example, with the original manual transmissions having the shifters located directly centered in the gearbox part of the trans. The original Cobras had the problem of the shift linkage of the T10's putting the shifter handle back at the driver's hips. A simple solution was to mount a Mustang shifter handle backwards to have the knob closer to a regular position. It worked, but the pattern has always been awkward. Other replica vehicles have all suffered the same problem and coped with it in some manner. The only exceptions have been the family of cars with the drivelines out back, and the shifters are always a remote unit.
For a large percentage of street rods, a simple and practical solution has been to use an automatic transmission. It makes for much simpler installation, eliminates all clutch linkage, and the freedom to use any shifter for an automatic transmission is available due to either simple cable or a single rod connection. A little known fact is that an automatic transmission was offered on the original Cobras, but the final production numbers can probably be counted on two hands.
So, for those of us who like to "row the box," and demand a shifter-to-driver position that is comfortable and similar to our everyday performance cars, what are our choices? Happily, in the last few years, we have more than most know about. There are a few transmission choices, a myriad of shifter choices, even the ability to move the shifter. We also now can mate different engines and transmissions than offered by the factories. Your days of suffering with an awkward upshift or downshift are over! For those of us who race, we're doing handstands! I can't tell you how many times I've bungled a shift in my FFR roadster on the racetrack due to the awkward shift. So, may we offer some choices and information?
For most replica Cobra owners, here is the cockpit layout. Two buckets splayed outward; an offset steering wheel; offset, cramped pedals; and a shifter so far back, you have to be Harry Houdini to shift like Scott Pruett. Not a happy place for long drives. But, we'll help solve the last problem: shifter location.
Probably the biggest challenge in this area is if you're contemplating a build, in the process of building, or have a complete car. This subject usually comes as an afterthought once the car is done. By doing more research, you can make a critical choice that will affect the entire ownership experience of your car. Sure, it may look great, but is it really a joy to drive? Is throwing a fast shift quick and easy, or is it a dreaded event? Wouldn't you really rather have that shifter right out front, just like in your Saab? So, what can you do?
It's actually very straightforward. Depending on your vehicle, the biggest factor is your driveline, more specifically, the motor and transmission. If your car is already built, what transmission is in it? If you're building the car, do you already have a driveline? If not, what are you considering? For all the previous questions, can the transmission you're using have the shifter moved? Big question. If you're serious about a new shifter location, this could lead to a new transmission purchase and very large cash expenditure, not to mention the physical effort of performing the swap. If you have a Tremec T5, T56, TKO 500/600/3550/3560, or other transmission that has the flexibility of re-locating the shifter, does your car allow for that? Where do you want the new location of the shifter to be? Are there frame or sheetmetal problems? If you don't want to pull the transmission out of the car and open it up, what about an external kit to relocate the transmission?
Shown with the arrows is the "Vertical H" most Cobra and other replicars with severe engine setback have to deal with. The pattern is unnatural, and inter-gate shifts are awkward and clumsy. After even a short time behind the wheel, we long for a more natural feel.
Now that we have thoroughly confused you, time to answer all the questions we just posed. We'll start with the easiest, and progress from there. We're sure you have heard of the term "mid-shift," but may not really know what it pertains to. In its most simplified form, a "mid-shift" conversion moves the shifter handle and/or mechanism farther forward towards the engine and/or the front of your interior. This is accomplished by relocating the shifter location in the transmission to a more centered, or "mid body" location. This can be done both internally or externally, depending on your vehicle, budget, and transmission. Allow us to further explain.
Without a doubt, the easiest scenario is when you're still building the car, and collecting parts. Your choice of driveline is the key. Which transmission is sitting in your garage? If you have any of the current "rail" shifter transmissions, such as the family of Tremecs, you have many choices. You can buy a kit to actually relocate the shifter on the transmission. The older T5 and T56's only have one alternate position to move the shifter forwards roughly 8-12 inches on center, depending on the kit selected, but that may require a new tailshaft housing on the older transmissions. The modern TKO's all have the flexibility of two other shifter locations on the transmission. From here, both kits for the user, or a pre-converted transmission are available. Once you choose which transmission you'll use, and where you want the shifter to be located, the choices all will become quickly clear.
If your car is complete, or going inside the transmission is an option you wish to avoid, a solution is to mount an external mid-shift conversion, which relocates the shifter handle forwards and closer to the driver, but can reduce the 'snick-snick' feeling of a direct shifter. Another consideration with this conversion is access to the transmission and any obstacles from the vehicle chassis itself.
Rather than get into a lengthy technical discussion on each shifter and conversion, we will show you as an overview the most common problems, their corresponding solutions, and some interesting options to allow you more flexibility and creativity in your build. If you have any serious technical questions, please contact one of the sources listed at the end of the article. They are the true experts in this very technical field. Be sure to tell them that KIT CAR sent you.
So, when grabbing that next gear, make sure it's a fun one!
